When an individual uses violence or force upon his or her GLBT intimate partner, he or she may be charged with battery as a California domestic violence crime. One’s intimate partner may be his or her partner or former partner in a civil union, the person with whom he or she lives or lived, the person with whom he or she has children or the person whom he or she is or was dating.

If convicted of battery, the defendant faces up to one year in county jail and up to a $1,000 fine if the crime was charged as a misdemeanor or up to four years in state prison if the charge was filed as a felony. If the individual also has prior battery convictions, he faces mandatory incarceration. These consequences are not the only punishment that the defendant faces, however, as there are several mandatory terms of probation that must also be imposed, assuming that he or she elects a probationary sentence.

Probation is generally imposed for a minimum of three years and may be formally or informally supervised. During one’s probationary period, he or she must not violate any other laws or will be subject to an even stiffer sentence for the battery charge in addition to whatever punishment he or she received for the new charge. Once the defendant is placed on probation, he or she will be named as the restrained party in a protective order issued to protect his or her intimate partner from further acts of abuse. The protected party gets a copy of the order and, depending on the circumstances that surrounded the charged incident, the order may contain a residence exclusion and stay-away conditions to increase the protection afforded to the partner. If the defendant wasn’t booked at the time of his or her arrest, which means fingerprinted, photographed and entered into a criminal database, he or she must go through the booking process within a week of being placed on probation.

Probation for battering one’s intimate partner will also include community service, participation in a minimum two-hour weekly batterer’s class for at least one year and a minimum $200 fine that is in addition to any fine that was imposed as punishment for a misdemeanor conviction, which will be distributed to various California domestic abuse funds. Instead of the maximum $1,000 fine that may be imposed in connection with a misdemeanor conviction, the court may order the defendant to reimburse his or her intimate partner for any reasonable expenses that were incurred as a direct result of the battery or may order the defendant to pay up to $5,000 to a battered person’s shelter. It should be noted that the court will consider the defendant’s ability to pay before it imposes these financial conditions.

When evaluating the defendant’s progress, the court will consider his or her diligence and willingness in following through with these requirements. The court has the discretion to either extend, modify or revoke probation at any time, which is why it is helpful to retain a California domestic violence criminal defense lawyer through the probationary period to help convince the court that his or her client is doing the best that he or she can and that revoking probation wouldn’t be in the best interests of justice.

The trusted, LGBT supportive attorneys at the Kavinoky Law Firm have successfully defended countless individuals accused of intimate partner abuse with passion and integrity. They have mastered the intricacies involved with this technical area of the law and are dedicated to defending the rights of anyone accused of a DV crime. They understand the possible privacy concerns and fears that a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender individual accused of a same sex crime may have and will do their best to help such a client complete his or her conditions in gay-friendly programs. Contact the Law Offices of Darren T. Kavinoky today for a free consultation.