Fort Worth Domestic Violence Lawyer

Work with a Fort Worth domestic violence attorney who can help get your charges reduced or dismissed.

In relationships, arguments can quickly turn passionate, resulting in poor heat-of-the-moment decisions. Once the police are called, what seemed like a simple argument between you and your spouse or another family member has now escalated into a legal nightmare.

Police and prosecutors are strict when it comes to domestic violence, and they often don’t have much sympathy for your side of the story. The case may be that the best chance you have for a positive outcome is to contact a domestic violence attorney who will listen to you and fight for your rights.

Call a Fort Worth domestic violence lawyer from our office to start working on your defense today. We are experienced domestic violence attorneys, so we understand the frustration you are feeling when the world, including your own family members, seems to have turned against you.

Understanding Domestic Violence Charges

Domestic violence laws vary from state to state, but in Texas, domestic violence, also known as family violence, is basically any attempt to intentionally cause bodily injury to a person with whom you have a domestic relationship.

“Domestic relationship” is broadly defined as a relationship with any of the people listed below:

• Spouse
• Children
• Parents
• Roommates
• Anyone you are in a dating relationship with
• Foster family members
• Anyone living in the same household

To prove you’re guilty of the Fort Worth domestic violence charge against you, the prosecutors must be able to prove one of the following:

• That you intentionally caused physical bodily harm to another person you have a domestic relationship with
• That you threatened physical bodily harm to a person you’re in a domestic relationship with
• That you intentionally or knowingly caused contact with a person you’re in a domestic relationship with, and you were aware the person would take offense or find the contact provocative

Texas Penalties for Domestic Violence Convictions

The penalties for family violence in Fort Worth depend largely on the circumstances. For example, the seriousness of the injury will play a large role in whether the violence is charged as a misdemeanor or felony.

The following are a few of the factors that will determine whether you are charged with a felony or a misdemeanor:

• Your relationship to the injured party
• Whether you have a history of domestic violence
• Whether suffocation or strangulation was involved in the alleged violence
• Other aggravating or mitigating factors

Again, depending on the seriousness of your Fort Worth domestic or family violence case, you could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor all the way up to a first-degree felony. The following information summarizes the penalties for these types of convictions:

• Class A Misdemeanor – You could be sentenced to up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000.
• Third-Degree Felony – You could be sentenced to between two and ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
• Second-Degree Felony – You could be sentenced to between two and twenty years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
• First-Degree Felony – You could be sentenced to between five and ninety-nine years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Should I Just Plead Guilty?

Many people wrongly assume that a charge of domestic violence in Fort Worth automatically makes them guilty in the court’s eyes. When you plead guilty right away, you are damaging your criminal record for life, creating a history of violence that other people can point to.

Put simply, you may be causing hardships in your life beyond the associated legal penalties.

In some cases, pleading guilty to domestic violence could lead to the loss of your family relationships, including custody of your children, and that’s just a start. You could also lose your job, hindering all of your attempts at financial stability.

Don’t risk your entire future by pleading guilty to a charge without speaking with a Fort Worth domestic violence charge lawyer first.

Defenses Against Fort Worth Family Violence Convictions

Believe it or not, there are defenses against domestic violence convictions. Just because a family member called police and accused you of assault doesn’t make it true. And it doesn’t make a strong defense impossible. The following are a few of the defenses your attorney may be able to apply in your case:

• The injury against your family member was unintentional or a mistake. For example, you were swinging your arms around while working out and accidentally hit your family member. The injured family member might have believed it was intentional, but you know it wasn’t.
• There was no offense and your family member is lying. For example, you and your girlfriend got into a dispute, and she told you that, if you didn’t do what she wanted, she would call the police and accuse you of domestic violence. Often, family members falsely accuse their loved ones of violence in an attempt to manage their behavior.
• The violence was in self-defense or defense of others. In this example, you will admit to violence; however, you were defending yourself or others from a family member’s attack. This is the classic “he said, she said” when it comes to the matter of who attacked first. If the prosecution can’t prove that you started the violence, your charges could be dropped.

Get in Touch with a Fort Worth Domestic Violence Attorney

Being arrested for domestic violence doesn’t take away your rights. You are entitled to tell your side of the story and fight to preserve your record and your reputation. Don’t try to fight the charge on your own. You have a much better chance of beating the charge with an experienced attorney by your side.

Contact an experienced Fort Worth domestic violence lawyer with the Law Offices of Jeff C. Kennedy. We will examine your case and work tirelessly to build the defense that will best serve you. Call us today at 817-605-1010 to arrange a free consultation. You may also complete our website contact form below.