Spousal abuse, as defined by West Palm Beach law, can be any physical, verbal or cyber assault that would either cause physical harm to a person or place the person in fear of imminent harm. Someone can do that to a spouse either physically or verbally and it would constitute some form of spousal abuse. The law in West Palm Beach is the same as it is in the State of Florida.
Any person accused of spousal abuse, whether physical, verbal, cyber, or any other type of abuse, should consult a capable domestic violence lawyer that may be familiar with the police officers that will be involved in the charges, and is familiar with the prosecutors that represent the State of Florida in court. A skilled lawyer could also answer any questions you may have about West Palm Beach spousal abuse charge expectations and could advocate for you.
What is the Difference Between Spousal Abuse and Domestic Abuse?
For spousal abuse, there needs to be a husband-wife or a domestic partner relationship. Domestic violence can be amongst any parties that live together in a domestic relationship, including mother-daughter, father-son, brother-brother, or brother-sister altercations. Anything taking place within a household would come under domestic violence and anything between a husband and wife or domestic partners would be considered spousal abuse.
Spousal Abuse Charges
In West Palm Beach, if a person is accused of spousal abuse, that person could be arrested and charged with domestic battery or domestic violence. If a person is not physically abusing a spouse but is verbally abusing a spouse, then that person can be charged with assault. If that person is harassing, stalking, or cyber-stalking the other spouse, they could be charged with harassing phone calls or harassment, stalking, cyber-stalking, and even domestic violence. This can also result in a domestic violence injunction being taken out against the abusive spouse, which is just one of the West Palm Beach spousal abuse charge expectations a person should have during a spousal abuse case.
Consequences of Spousal Abuse Charges
A person’s West Palm Beach spousal abuse charge expectations should depend upon the type of abuse that is alleged. If the person is accused of physical abuse, they are going to be arrested unless there is a valid claim for self-defense or mutual combat. If there is an accusation of assault without bodily harm, the person may receive a summons or, at the very least, will be summoned to court to answer as to whether or not a restraining order should be entered against them to prevent any further spousal abuse.
Contact an Attorney About West Palm Beach Spousal Abuse Charge Expectations
A local spousal abuse lawyer knows law enforcement, knows the prosecutors, knows the prosecutors’ procedures and practices, and also knows the judge who handles these cases. If someone wants to have some input on how the case proceeds, they should have a lawyer who knows the people that are accusing the person or the people that are processing their case, whether it be law enforcement, prosecutors, or judges.
Those people also will be familiar with the person’s lawyer. They are not going to be familiar with the lawyer if the lawyer is not from West Palm Beach. They are not going to be familiar with the lawyer if the lawyer is not from Palm Beach County. Therefore, when the lawyer is talking to the people that are going to be deciding the case, it is important that the lawyer be a local lawyer who has handled these cases in this jurisdiction for many years, thousands of times. It’s important for the lawyer to know the practice and procedure in the local jurisdiction and to know what can and cannot be done with each and every individual case. A lawyer who is not from the area might not be as familiar with the courts and how cases are handled. If an individual has been charged with spousal abuse and certain West Palm Beach spousal abuse charge expectations they want to ask about, they should contact a capable attorney that could help.
