When one’s intimate partner tries to prevent him or her from initiating a criminal complaint or from participating in a criminal proceeding, that partner could be charged with the California domestic violence crime of intimate partner intimidation. One’s gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender intimate partner may be the person whom he or she is or was dating, the person with whom he or she has children, the person with whom he or she lives or lived or the person to whom he or she is or was civilly united. If convicted of this charge, the accused faces either a misdemeanor, which is punishable by a maximum one-year jail sentence or a felony, which is punishable by a maximum four-year prison sentence, unless there were aggravating circumstances that could lead to a more severe prison sentence.

Due to the fact that the penalties associated with an intimidation conviction are so severe, any evidence that helps prove the defendant’s side of the story will be invaluable, so long as the defendant’s attorney is savvy enough to recognize favorable evidence and knows how to most effectively use it to his or her client’s advantage. This is why it is so important for the accused to hire a criminal defense lawyer who is also a California domestic violence lawyer who understands the types of evidence that are generally presented in these types of cases and how to use them appropriately.

Witness accounts are one of these types of evidence. Although an inexperienced attorney, or one who doesn’t specialize in domestic abuse, may think that any witness that is presented by the prosecution is going to be detrimental to the defense, an attorney who practices DV law knows that any witness can provide information that helps prove the defense and pokes holes in the state’s case.

Witness accounts are rare in intimate partner intimidation cases because of the fact that most incidents of intimate partner abuse occur in private. When they exist, however, they can be quite useful, depending on the strength of the defense attorney’s examination and cross-examination skills and on the credibility of the witness. A good defense lawyer will spend quite a bit of time preparing a witness that he or she intends to have testify so that he or she is comfortable with the process, knows what to expect and isn’t caught off guard by the types of questions that will be asked by the prosecutor. In addition, an experienced domestic violence attorney will conduct a thorough background check on any potential defense witnesses to make sure that their reputation won’t be called into question by a morally questionable criminal history. The defendant’s attorney will also conduct a background check on any prosecution witnesses, usually with the help of a private investigator, to uncover any conduct that could be used against him or her when testifying and will interview all witnesses prior to trial to gain insight into what he or she might testify to and to have information that could be used to contradict his or her testimony at trial.

Witnesses in a domestic abuse case often testify out of loyalty to or animosity for one of the parties. Their motives in and of themselves may be called into question and a veteran defense lawyer not only knows this but also knows how to successfully communicate that to the judge and jury. A practiced D.V. attorney will have defended enough cases to recognize when a witness isn’t completely telling the truth or when his or her testimony could be discredited even though honest.

The GLBT supportive attorneys at the Kavinoky Law Firm excel in witness preparation and cross-examination. They have successfully defended countless domestic violence cases and are in tune with how judges and jurors respond to different witnesses. For legal advice about an intimate partner intimidation case, contact their law offices today for a free consultation and for the best representation.