What are the Potential Penalties of a Domestic Assault in Minnesota?
Domestic assault charges are incredibly serious criminal matters that can have far-reaching consequences on both individuals and their families. Here in Minnesota, these charges carry significant penalties that can affect various aspects of a person's life. If you or a loved one is facing domestic assault charges, it's crucial to understand the potential penalties involved and seek the guidance of an experienced domestic assault defense attorney.e. We will explore the consequences of domestic assault charges in Minnesota and shed light on the importance of why you should have a strong legal defense at your side.
“The problem with domestics is that they make the person charged seem dangerous and unstable. Nobody wants this label.”
Domestic Assault Defined
In Minnesota, domestic assault is defined as any act intended to cause fear of imminent bodily harm or the infliction of bodily harm upon a family or household member. This includes spouses, current or former intimate partners, parents, children, and other family members living in the same household. It is much broader than most people realize.
What are the Legal Penalties for Domestic Assault?
The penalties for domestic assault in Minnesota can vary depending on the surrounding circumstances of the offense, any prior criminal record and any other aggravating factors. It is critical to understand the domestic assault charges are enhanceable. The various penalties one may face include:
Misdemeanor Domestic Assault:
A first-time misdemeanor domestic assault offense carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000.
Subsequent offenses or prior domestic violence-related convictions can lead to enhanced penalties.
Gross Misdemeanor Domestic Assault:
Because domestic assault charges are enhanceable, committing domestic assault against what is defined as a family member within a ten year window of a prior domestic related or other related even is automatically charged as a gross misdemeanor.
The penalties for a gross misdemeanor include up to one year in jail and/or a fine of up to $3,000.
Felony Domestic Assault:
Domestic assault can be charged as a felony if there are two enhanceable factors within a 10 year window.
In addition, there are multiple aggravating factors such as dangerous weapons, strangulation and substantial bodily harm that could make a first offense domestic into a felony.
A felony domestic assault can put you in prison for more than a year and also comes with substantial fines.
Consequences Beyond Legal Penalties:
In addition to the criminal penalties, domestic assaults can have massive consequences that impact, jobs, relationships, licenses, and your future. These consequences may include:
No-Contact Orders:
The court frequently issues no-contact orders in a better-safe-than sorry approach. These can restrict and remove you from the home even before the State has proven a single thing. These can limit contact with your loved-ones and access to your property.
Loss of Parenting Rights:
A domestic assault charge can result in temporary access to our children long before the State has proven anything. Further, they can impact custody and visitation in costly cases.
Damage to Reputation and Relationships:
Domestic assaults make people seem dangerous and unstable and this can be cataclymic. It can impact, reputation, social standing, relationships and how you are seen in the community.
Professional Consequences:
Domestic assault charges can impact your profession and licensing issues as well. For be who have background checks, what will a domestic assault conviction do to that job.
“What the Court can do to you because of a domestic assault is bad. What it may do to you personally may be even worse.”
Why a Strong Legal Defense Matters so Much
Considering the severe penalties and incredible consequences associated with domestic assault charges, making sure that you have an experienced Minnesota domestic assault defense attorney is critical. Jack Rice Defense, with extensive experience in handling domestic assault cases here in Minnesota, can provide the following invaluable assistance:
A Complete Case Evaluation:
Conducting a comprehensive review of the police reports, evidence, witness statements, and police reports, photos, video and audio to identify strengths and weaknesses in the State’s case.
Building a Customized Defense Strategy:
Developing a unique and tailored defense strategy that challenges the prosecution's evidence, identifies procedural errors, and presents a compelling case in your defense and preparing for a possible trial.
Considering Alternative Outcomes and Negotiating Favorable Outcomes:
Engaging in various negotiation options with the State to seek options to trial including reduced charges, alternative sentencing options, or maybe even diversion programs whenever possible.
If you are facing serious domestic assault charges here in St. Paul or anywhere else in Minnesota, make sure you have the best defense team by your side. What a domestic assault conviction could do to you is almost impossible to quantify. A strong defense could make all the difference
Jack Rice is a former prosecutor, a former CIA Officer and a Board Certified Criminal Law Specialist. He is also the Founder of Jack Rice Defense a boutique criminal defense firm based in St. Paul, Minnesota. Contact Jack Rice Defense for a free confidential consultation or call 651-447-7650 or 612-227-1339. When your life in on the line, Jack Rice Defense.