This is a case study on family violence with a protracted period of offending.
What is alleged to have occured?
Our client had been charged with 13 offences against his ex-partner including serious offences such as Intentionally Causing Injury and Making Threats to Kill. The allegations were serious because they related to four separate incidents over a week-long period, meaning that this was not an isolated incident but, as viewed by the prosecution, a case of family violence with a protracted period of offending.
In the first incident, the accused had allegedly grabbed the complainant and twisted her arm causing severe pain. The second incident happened three days later wherein the accused allegedly physically assaulted the complainant in their bedroom, culminating in him pinning her against the bedroom wall and, again, allegedly causing severe pain to her back. The third incident occurred a further two days later and it was alleged that the accused twisted the complainant’s arm again causing severe pain. In the fourth incident, the accused had allegedly repeatedly hit the complainant to the head before kicking her to the stomach. Some time later the accused allegedly made a threat to kill the complainant.
What happened at court?
We represented the client at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on the following charges of family violence with a protracted period of offending:
- Aggravated Assault
- Unlawful Assault
- Intentionally Cause Injury
- Threats to Kill
- Threats to Inflict Serious Injury
The client did not want to contest the allegations and wanted to plead guilty and put the incident behind him. We advised him to immediately enrol in a Men’s Behavioural Change Course and helped him arrange a number of references and a report from a psychologist.
What was the result?
After discussions with the prosecution, many of the serious charges were withdrawn and the client pleaded guilty to five of the initial 13 charges. Following submissions, the magistrate ultimately imposed a fine without conviction payable in instalments. This was a good outcome especially considering the view that it was a case of family violence with a protracted period of offending.
DISCLAIMER: This is a real case study of an actual case from our files. Details pertaining to the client have been changed to protect their privacy. The sentence imposed and the charge have not been altered. These case studies are published to demonstrate real outcomes and give an indication of possible tariffs in Court. We do not guarantee a similar case on these charges will get the same result. Please note that we post results at our discretion, therefore while many case studies are average results, others are notable for their exceptional outcomes. PUBLISHED 09/03/2017
