If my wife and I were both given assault citations but the officer did not witness anything and my wife and I refused to write statements, will to be easy to get our cases dropped?
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If my wife and I were both given assault citations but the officer did not witness anything and my wife and I refused to write statements, will to be easy to get our cases dropped?
Asked on December 15, 2012 under Criminal Law, Texas
Answers:
David West / West & Corvelli
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
It depends on the county your case is in as some are easier than others to get dismissals from; however, you and your wife have the benefit of the 'marital privilege'. This concept of law says that a husband and wife can never be made to testify against each other in court, even if lawfully subpoenaed. Without your testimony, it sounds like the prosecutor would have little chance of proving the charges - unless they can do so through other evidence. The most common ways they do this is through showing that there is physical evidence of a fight (bruising, cuts, bleeding, furniture broken or in disarray, etc.) and/or through the testimony of other witnesses who will say they heard or saw what sounded/looked like a fight. If they have this evidence, they might still try to press the charges to trial.
This is the kind of case where having a good criminal defense lawyer can really pay off. We can get statements from both of you indicating you do not plan to testify against each other and go to the prosecutor and convince them to dismiss the cases. That way you don't have to worry about getting convicted of these charges.
Good Luck
David West
Attorney at Law
David West / David West & Associates
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
It depends on the county your case is in as some are easier than others to get dismissals from; however, you and your wife have the benefit of the 'marital privilege'. This concept of law says that a husband and wife can never be made to testify against each other in court, even if lawfully subpoenaed. Without your testimony, it sounds like the prosecutor would have little chance of proving the charges - unless they can do so through other evidence. The most common ways they do this is through showing that there is physical evidence of a fight (bruising, cuts, bleeding, furniture broken or in disarray, etc.) and/or through the testimony of other witnesses who will say they heard or saw what sounded/looked like a fight. If they have this evidence, they might still try to press the charges to trial.
This is the kind of case where having a good criminal defense lawyer can really pay off. We can get statements from both of you indicating you do not plan to testify against each other and go to the prosecutor and convince them to dismiss the cases. That way you don't have to worry about getting convicted of these charges.
Good Luck
David West
Attorney at Law
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