What Should Be Your First Priority if You Have Been Charged with Domestic Violence?

Interviewer: If you have been charged with domestic violence, how should you prepare to meet with an attorney?

Contact an Attorney and Arrange a Meeting to Discuss the Case

Michael Kramer: Well the first thing I do is we have a meeting. We sit down and I find out about the case. Once I get a feel for the case, then I will know what we’ll need to support our position. I may need a chronology of events, I may need a potential client to write out background information, write out a history of their marriage. I try to get a whole picture of the situation.

The Attorney May Advise a Cooling-Off Period between the Two Parties

Then the best thing I found to do is let time go by, let tempers cool. There may be a time down the road that I, as the attorney for the alleged perpetrator, attempt to contact the victim. To see whether time has healed wounds and there’s a chance or reconciliation and there’s a chance to avoid heavy litigation and a trial.

A Domestic Violence Incident Is Typically a Prelude or Adjunct to a Divorce Proceeding

That usually occurs down the road, but often times it doesn’t. Often times a domestic violence incident is a prelude to a divorce actions. Many times while a divorce action is pending, a domestic violence incident occurs.

A wife or a husband is accused of using it as a sword to gain an advantage in the divorce action. It’s used as leverage in the divorce action often times. On many, many, occasions these incidents are manufactured. Domestic violence incidents occur for all different reasons, under all different circumstances. Each case is so individual.

A Conviction Cannot Be Expunged in the State of New York

Interviewer: If I have a domestic violence conviction on my record, would I be able to expunge it or would I be able to seal it?

Michael Kramer: No, there’s no expungement in New York.