Domestic Violence 2nd Degree

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Domestic Violence 2nd Degree in South Carolina

Sometimes a Domestic violence situation comes from a heated verbal argument between you and your spouse. The police are called and that could be from a neighbor or someone who heard you arguing.  Once the police are involved the situation is taken out of your hands.  Hi, my name is Dale Savage and I’m a criminal defense attorney here in Charleston, SC. Today we’re talking domestic violence 2nd degree charges.

DV 2nd degree is a misdemeanor, but the consequences of just an arrest can be significant.  You’ll need to make bail to get out of jail, most times a no contact order will be put in place which means that once you are released from jail you can’t go back home until or unless that order is modified to allow contact or the case is resolved either by a conviction or a dismissal.

What is Domestic Violence 2nd Degree

To establish DV 2nd degree the prosecutor must show:

  • That you caused physical harm or injury to a household member; or
  • You attempted to cause physical harm or injury w/the ability to do so creating fear of imminent peril.
  • (A) and there was moderate bodily injury;
  • DV3rd degree and there is an order of protection in place;
  • You have a prior DV conviction w/in 10 yrs.;
  • DV 3rd degree and the following occurred;
    • Committed in presence of a minor;
    • Against person who was pregnant or should have known was pregnant;
    • Committed during robbery, burglary, theft;
    • Impeded victims breathing or airflow (choking)
    • Blocked a person access to a cell phone, phone, or electronic communication device with purpose of interfering with reporting the incident to police, ambulance and other medical help;
Domestic violence 2nd degree is a misdemeanor that carries a penalty up to 3 years if convicted.

What are Your Options

As you can see the DV 2nd degree law is broad and covers a number of different situations.  Good defense attorneys know it’s important to meet with the prosecutor and find out the basis for the arrest, whether the alleged victim wants to drop the charges, and does it make sense to move forward with formal prosecution in the case.

Not all arrests end in a conviction but prosecutors and law enforcement treat these cases seriously so you need to present a defense that will convince them that a conviction is not the only option in your case.

This can range from the victim being the initial aggressor in the incident to a lack of evidence, and what I mean by that is if a cell phone was broken during a verbal argument and that’s the only evidence, then it’s not enough to support a DV 2nd degree charge b/c you must have a DV 3rd and the phone was broken to interfere with the person calling police.

Charleston Domestic Violence Lawyer

If have been charged with DV 2nd degree and want to discuss your options, please call me at (843) 530-7813.  I hope this video was helpful and thanks for watching.

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