Q: My husband was arrested for domestic assault for pushing me the ground while drunk after someone called the cops on him
After being released on bond, he immediately entered into a rehab program and will be back for the hearing. I’m not sure what happens since I’m not the one who called the cops. The big issue is alcohol and I would love for him to continue treatment. When sober, he doesn’t show any signs of aggression ever. How can I help as the victim for the hearing coming up. I’m not sure if I will need to be there or if I can request continued treatment in replacement of a charge?
A:
This is complicated. You should talk to a counselor who works with these kind of situations. If you don't have that available to you talk with a trusted responsible family member or friend. This is not to determine his innocence or guilt or punishment, but rather to determine if you want to stay in the relationship and how to make that work.
If you feel safe and want to stay, you certainly can ask for an alternative disposition of the criminal case against your husband. You have a constitutional right to "confer with the prosecution". Tell them what you want and stick to it. The district attorney might agree to a retirement, or even a dismissal after some additional treatment or counseling for your husband. The most important thing is to make sure it never happens again and then to get on with your lives peacefully.
You would both probably benefit from hiring a good lawyer for your husband.
A: Generally, the defense attorney will set the case for a preliminary hearing and the State will subpoena you as their witness at the hearing. However, before the hearing takes place, the ADA assigned to the case will be in negotiations with your husband's attorney. Your husband's attorney should interview you with regards to what happened and what you want accomplished with the case to explain to the ADA requesting the case to be dismissed on some sort of condition and usually after the passage of a certain amount of time, 6-12 months. Thereafter, at court, the ADA and/or the victim witness coordinator will discuss the case with you and your husband's attorney's position on the case. Although it is the ADA's decision whether to accept the defense attorney's offer to resolve the case, it makes it difficult for the State to proceed with a witness that is uncooperative or does not want to press forward with the case to trial. As the attorney below mentioned, the most important thing is that your husband hires a lawyer to represent his interests.
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