Questions for officers accused of domestic violence

On Behalf of | Mar 29, 2017 | domestic violence |

As a police officer, you are trained to be precise in your investigations of crimes so that as much useful information can be obtained to properly adjudicate the matter in court. When you are the subject of a domestic violence charge, the same rules essentially apply.

Because of this, your defense attorney will ask you a battery of questions in order to get to the heart of the matter. This is to discover what potential defenses will be available to you, and to determine how strong the prosecution’s case against you may be. Indeed, your lawyer is entitled to discovery, but the sooner you find information that can help in defeating a claim, the sooner you can move on with your career.

With that, this post will highlight a few questions to be asked in preparing your defense. 

Does the 911 report support or undermine your claim? – Most police officers agree that 911 reports contain powerful pieces of information about a person’s actions and credibility. If there are parts in the report that help or hinder your defense, your attorney will want to know about them.

Are there witnesses to be interviewed? – Even if no one actually witnessed the actual alleged crime, there may be people close enough to the situation to give their take on what possibly happened. Again, a skilled defense attorney will want to know who these people are so that information can be obtained for your defense.

Do you or the alleged victim have a history of violence? – The notion that suspects act a certain way until they are caught is not limited to criminals. Authorities may suspect that your purported violent tendencies may be the basis for a criminal charge. The same applies for alleged domestic abuse victims.

If you have been charged with domestic violence or are under investigation for a crime, an experienced criminal defense attorney can advise you.