Domestic Violence Walk Planned for this Month

Domestic violence plagues families and communities all over South Florida, around the country and around the world. Our criminal defense lawyers too often see cases of family disagreements or misunderstandings that have turned violent, resulting in one or more person(s) being charged with the serious crime of domestic violence.

We are always sad to see these cases brought into our offices, and so we’re happy to share with you that toward the end of this month, the 15th annual “Safewalk-Run” will take place in Coconut Creek, raising money and awareness for victims of domestic violence.

According to the Florida State Statutes, “domestic violence” is defined as an aggressive act such as assault, kidnapping, false imprisonment, etc., and other criminal acts that result in physical injury or death of a family member or member of the household committed by another member of the family or household. As further stipulated by the statute, if adjudicated guilty of the crime of domestic violence, the offender must serve no less than 5 days in jail. 5 days doesn’t seem like a great deal of time, but the law goes on to say, “this section does not preclude the court from sentencing the person to … an additional period of incarceration.” So, the penalty for domestic violence really depends on who is overseeing your case and how they perceive what happened.

Violence against another – especially against a loved one – is horrible and problematic in many ways. With a devastating incident such as familial or household violence, passion often runs wild and emotions take control. This is true both during the midst of the quarrel and after the fact – many times, people’s recollection of how events actually transpired are skewed by the emotions they felt during the event. Our lawyers at Leifert & Leifert are skilled and experienced attorneys, and because we will uphold Florida law in any and all cases, we try not to be swayed by emotion – we deal with the facts. A bruise tells a fact, for example, but it does not reveal every relevant fact.

Take a bruised arm, for instance: this shows that the arm is injured, that the individual whose arm is bruised sustained an injury severe enough to leave a bruise. The bruise does not, however, tell how the bruise was inflicted, or when it was inflicted, or if the person with the bruise was in fact the aggressor in the situation and the bruised arm is the result of a self-defense punch.

There are a lot of variables in any criminal case, and people should not rush to judgments about who is a victim and who is an aggressor without all of the relevant facts. Sometimes there is enough blame to go around.

While we are skeptical of absolutes and highly aware of the intricacies of every different case, we are absolutely adamant about our disdain for domestic violence. We are entirely pleased that the “Safewalk-Run” will take place on October 26th and will continue to bring awareness to this issue and aid to those who need it most.

If you are charged with a crime in Palm Beach or Broward counties, contact the Law Offices of Leifert & Leifert, a Partnership of Former Prosecutors, for a free consultation to discuss your rights. Call 1.888.5.DEFEND.

For more information on the Safewalk-Run, visit their site here.

You can also read a Sun Sentinel article about the event and domestic violence statistics by clicking here.