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Domestic Violence

Florida Statute § 741.28 defines domestic violence in this state as any assault, aggravated assault, battery, aggravated battery, or other criminal offense performed by one household or family member resulting in the physical injury or death of another family or household member. It is a hot-button issue in Florida, and whether the incident arose from a misunderstanding, false accusation, or a mistake makes no matter to the police officer when he or she puts the handcuffs on the alleged offender.

 To protect your rights and fight your domestic violence crime charges in Hernando County or the surrounding areas, it is strongly advised you seek the counsel of an experienced Brooksville criminal defense lawyer.

Brooksville Domestic Violence Defense Lawyer

Receiving a domestic violence charge is a serious and stressful situation. If you have been charged with a domestic violence offense like assault or battery in Hernando County, Sumter County, Citrus County, or the surrounding areas, including Spring Hill, Brooksville, Timber Pines, Homosassa Springs, Floral City, and Bushnell, contact The Law Office of Ashley Aulls, P.A.. Ashley Aulls comes from a background of successful legal professionals and has practiced law since 1996. 

He knows what it takes to build a strong and comprehensive defense while being open to the client’s needs and worries – client education and open communication. To schedule your initial case consultation and find out what The Law Office of Ashley Aulls, P.A. can do for your domestic violence case, call (352) 593-4115 today.

Florida Domestic Violence Charges Information Center

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Domestic Violence Crimes and Definitions

When it comes to crimes of domestic violence in Florida, it is important to understand the individual definitions for each offense. Many of the domestic violence arrests in Hernando County, Sumter County, Citrus County, or the surrounding areas require an element of intent or an element of knowledge. The lack of such elements may be the fuel your Homosassa Springs defense attorney needs to build a defense capable of getting your domestic violence charges reduced or dismissed. Some of the domestic violence crimes seen in the courts in Brooksville and the surrounding areas are:

  • Domestic Assault/Battery: Fla. Stat. §§ 784.011 & 784.03 – Domestic assault and battery are an instance of assault or battery that was caused by a family member. Assault is the unlawful threat by word or act to do violence to another person, along with the apparent ability to do so, and doing some act that reasonably creates fear in the victim. Battery is when a person actually and intentionally touches or strikes a person against their will or intentionally causes harm to a person. A family member can be any of the following:
    • Spouses or ex-spouses
    • Relations by blood or marriage
    • Current or past roommates
    • Current or past household members
    • Parents of a child
  • Domestic Battery by Strangulation: Fla. Stat. § 784.041 – Domestic battery by strangulation is when a person knowingly and intentionally impedes the normal breathing or circulation of a family member, or person he or she is dating, against his or her will, which causes a great risk of bodily harm through pressure on the neck or the blocking of his or her nose or mouth.
  • Child Abuse/Neglect: Fla. Stat. § 827 – Both child abuse and neglect are serious offenses under Florida law. Child neglect is defined as a caregiver’s failure to provide a child with the proper care, supervision, and services necessary to maintain the child’s physical and mental health or a reasonable effort to protect the child from abuse, neglect, or exploitation by another person. Neglect can be one act or a series of acts. Child abuse is the intentional cause of physical or mental injury to a child, an intentional act that could result in such injury, or active encouragement by any person to commit an act that results in or could reasonably cause physical or mental injury to the child.
  • Violating a Protective Order: Fla. Stat. §§ 741.31 & 784.047 – Also known as the violation of an injunction for protection against domestic violence, any person who willfully violates a protective order by the following acts commits a crime in Florida:
    • Refusing to vacate the shared home
    • Going to or coming within 500 feet of the protected person’s residence, school, place of employment, or other specific, frequently-visited places
    • Committing an act of domestic violence against the protected person
    • Committing any other violation through intentional threat, word, or act to do violence against the protected person
    • Communicating with the protected person in anyway, including by phone
    • Knowingly and intentionally being within 100 feet of the protected person’s occupied or unoccupied motor vehicle
    • Defacing the protected person’s personal property
    • Refusing to surrender firearms or ammunition by court order

At any time, a victim or a person who feels like he or she is in danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence can petition the court for a protective order/restraining order in Hernando County or the surrounding areas. If you have a protective order filed against you, you have the opportunity to defend against it in a protective order hearing. An experienced Brooksville domestic violence attorney can help you through this process, as well as defend against any criminal charges brought.

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Penalties for Florida Domestic Violence Offenses

In Florida, what penalties you could face for a conviction of a domestic violence offense in Spring Hill, Brooksville, Homosassa Springs, Beverly Hills, Wildwood, or the surrounding areas depends on the type of offense and what class the charge belongs to. Misdemeanors and felonies in Florida are separated by degrees, with the first degree being the highest class. Per Fla. Stat. §§ 775.082-084, misdemeanor and felony offenses in Florida have maximum penalties of the following for each class:

  • Misdemeanor – Second Degree– 60 days in jail and a $500 fine
  • Misdemeanor – First Degree – One year in jail and a $1,000 fine
  • Felony – Third Degree – Five years in prison and a $5,000 fine
  • Felony – Second Degree – 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine
  • Felony – First Degree – 30 years or life in prison and a $10,000 fine

Examples of misdemeanor domestic violence offenses in Hernando County include domestic assault, domestic battery, and violation of protective order. Domestic assault is a second-degree misdemeanor, while domestic battery and protective order violations are first-degree misdemeanors. The third-degree felony domestic violence offenses are child abuse without bodily harm, child neglect without bodily harm, and domestic battery by strangulation. Child abuse or neglect with bodily harm is a second-degree felony.

According to Fla. Stat. § 741.283, any person adjudicated guilty of intentionally causing bodily harm to another person in a domestic violence scenario will spend a minimum of five days in Hernando County jail. Pleading guilty, nolo contendere (no contest) or having a judgment withheld for a domestic violence charge will result in a year’s probation and a mandatory batterer’s intervention program. An experienced defense attorney serving domestic violence defense clients in and around Brooksville will be able to fight to protect your rights all the way to trial or help you decide if a batterer’s program is best for you.

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Resources for Brooksville Domestic Violence

Florida Department of Children and Families – Follow this link to the homepage for the DCF, a Florida governmental department that aims to improve the lives of individuals and families by providing services and important information about the protection of families.

FCADV – Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence – The Florida Coalition of Domestic Violence, whose homepage this links to, aims to bring an end to family violence through public awareness campaigns, the development and improvement of public policies concerning domestic violence, and supporting shelters for victims of domestic violence.

Dawn Center of Hernando County
P.O. Box 6179
Spring Hill, FL 34611
Hotline: (352) 799-0657
Administration: (352) 684-7191

AARDVARC – An Abuse, Rape, Domestic Violence Aid and Resource Collection provides resources, guidance, and support to those involved with domestic violence in an attempt to combat it. Their homepage is full of helpful information on domestic violence.

Domestic Violence Arrests in Hernando County – Information from the Hernando County Sheriff’s office including a summary of the law for filing a criminal complaint, a petition for injunction for protection, or an allegation of a violation of an injection for protection against domestic violence.

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Defense Attorney for Hernando County Domestic Violence

If you are considering a qualified defense attorney for your domestic violence charge in Brooksville, North Weeki Wachee, High Point, Hernando Beach, Hill ‘n Dale, Inverness Highlands, Sugarmill Woods, Lecanto, Wildwood, Lake Panasoffkee, or Bushnell, Florida, it is best to contact him as soon as possible after your arrest. Ashley Aulls has practiced law since 1996. 

The Law Office of Ashley Aulls, P.A. can even represent you in any related protective order/restraining order hearing in Hernando County, Pasco County, Citris County, and Sumter County, FL. To schedule your initial case consultation with Brooksville defense lawyer Ashley Aulls, call (352) 593-4115 today.