I've been practicing in San Fernando for twenty-five years, and I've an excellent understanding of the domestic charges being handled at the San Fernando Courthouse. First, you need to understand that the District Attorney's office, which prosecutes felonies in that courthouse, has a specialized unit that handles only domestic violence cases.  Therefore, if your case is filed as a felony, you will be assigned a specially assigned prosecutor.

There are approximately five or six of them, and there is also a head prosecutor in charge of what they call the VIP unit, also referred to as the Victim Impact Unit.  They handle domestic violence cases, sex crime cases, stalking cases, and other cases where there are victims or families involved. 

I've also seen them handle child abuse cases. Misdemeanor domestic battery is covered under California Penal Code 243(e)(1). Corporal injury to a spouse is a 'wobbler,' a term used in California law to describe a crime that can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony, as outlined in California Penal Code Section 273.5.

Individuals like those charged in domestic violence, spousal abuse sex crime cases will be looked at with a hard line because the special prosecutors have the issues versus situations where you're just a general case going through the court. 

You will be dealt with by the prosecutor who sits in the court where your case is pending. That prosecutor has many other cases to deal with, so they're not keeping a stern eye on you.

Misdemeanor Domestic Violence Cases

Domestic violence cases filed as misdemeanors are typically handled by the City Attorney's office. This office is responsible for prosecuting violations of city ordinances and state laws within the city. They will also usually assign a special prosecutor to handle the misdemeanor case. This practice of assigning a special prosecutor in domestic violence cases has come about due to the political pressure on the police, judges, and prosecutors to punish those who commit these crimes. 

So, this is what I would characterize as a targeted crime — a crime that prosecutors have targeted for serious prosecution. If you get convicted of a domestic violence case, just the bare minimum, you're looking at being placed on probation for three to five years.  You're looking at losing your gun rights for ten years.

In some cases, having a felony, you're looking at losing the right to vote.  Also, you're looking at doing a 52-week domestic violence course, which is once a week for 52 weeks, and a host of other potential punishments depending on what happened, who the prosecutor is, whether there was any injury, how strong the prosecutor's case, whether you have a prior criminal record.

All these factors are carefully considered in a domestic violence case. Therefore, it's essential to have a criminal lawyer like me, who has a wealth of experience in handling these cases, understands the prosecutors, judges, and most importantly, what is fair and what is not.

Pre-Filing Intervention in Domestic Violence Cases

Some of these cases can be addressed through pre-filing intervention.  This is a legal strategy where your attorney, in this case, I, will send a letter to the filing deputies, providing your version of events, character letters, and any evidence we may have that contradicts witnesses or the alleged victim's statement, so we can attempt to avoid a filing altogether.

I recently had a case in San Fernando where the client was arrested.  The victim had terrible injuries, but she caused them.  She fell on top of a mirror herself when she acted like a nut and wouldn't let my client leave the house.

That was a circumstance when the police come, they have body cam, and they have an actual lousy injury — they've got my client there, there's an argument between the two of them, my client gets arrested, has to post $100,000.00 bail, and is facing some serious charges.

We got to the filing deputy in San Fernando quickly. We got my client's version of events. The evidence most likely supports my client's version of events because once the prosecutors look at the body cam evidence, the statement of the alleged victim, my client's account, the injuries, and the setup of the house, they realize, you know what, this guy shouldn't have been arrested.

He should not be charged with domestic violence in San Fernando, and they never filed the case.  This was a great example of pre-filing intervention leading to no charges being filed, and my client being in the clear. Despite the initial arrest, my client chose to face the consequences rather than bail. However, once you obtain a non-filing, you're in a strong position to remove your arrest record and move forward with your life. This is a promising aspect of domestic violence cases that can be addressed.

Another area is if it's a bad case and they don't have the evidence, but you were still arrested anyway; in that case, contact a reasonable attorney like me.  We'll go in there and gather our side of the story and our evidence, and then we'll go to trial. We beat them, and that can be done in a domestic violence case, assuming that you've got the evidence, you've got the correct argument, you use the jury instructions, and you show the jury the person is not guilty.

The Burden of Proof in Domestic Violence Cases

Remember, the prosecutors in these domestic violence cases have the burden of proof and must prove every crime element under CALCRIM 840. They've got to prove that the person is guilty, and the person doesn't have to prove anything. 

I say you have to prove that you're innocent. Still, the bottom line is, I they don't' put forth the evidence that shows that you're guilty of domestic violence — lay out all of the elements that you were the aggressor — that you've committed some injury against the other party and that you were not acting in self-defense; defense of property under the right circumstances or simply defending yourself.  If the facts vote in your favor, you should get the not-guilty verdict.

The other way these individuals are held, probably most of the time, is through a plea bargain.  Sometimes people get mad.  They do things they shouldn't do, and now it's time for us to do damage control.

We gather character letters; we make the right moves to show the prosecutor and the judge that your actions were an aberration.  They won't happen again.  You've got a lot to lose — a family, a job, a career — whatever the case may be.

We lay out your version of events.  Sometimes, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.  The prosecutors don't have all the facts because the police did a sloppy domestic violence investigation.  We're going to present our side and demonstrate that this is the way the case should be resolved.  Get the matter taken care of and get yourself out of the criminal justice system as fast as possible. Contact the Hedding Law Firm for help.

San Fernando's jury pool is generally conservative, but they're also reasonably minded individuals.  If you have a case, you can win because the prosecutors do not have the evidence to convict you; you will need a great attorney to champion your cause and present the evidence that shows your version of events.  Attack the prosecutor's evidence so you can secure a not-guilty verdict.