Legal Question in Criminal Law in Minnesota
Misdemeanor (Domestic) Assault
I was arrested for misdemeanor assault, domestic 5th degree (the lowest level) for slapping my husband. We had gotten into an argument, & he had threatened to take our 21 mos. old child. He had been drinking quite a lot that day. I was afraid that he was going to put my child in danger, & I was afraid that he might not bring him back. I caused 2 scratches to his neck, which the police took pictures of, but they did not take pictures of the bruises on my arms, from when my husband pushed me away. I called the police, b/c I feared for my child. Yet, I was taken away, as I admitted to hitting my husband. My husband isn't pressing charges, & he never intended to. We're working things out now. I don't have a prior history of anything of this sort. At my arraignment hearing, I was assigned to random UA's, which I don't understand, but am complying with nonetheless. I can't have this on my record in any way, as I work in the Social Services field. The courts would not give me a public defender, b/c although I only work P/T, we own a house. I can't afford a lawyer. Am I foolish to represent myself? I've already looked into counseling & anger management classes, so as to present to the judge. For the record, I am nearly 7 mos. pregnant.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Misdemeanor (Domestic) Assault
The old saying, "The one who represents herself in court has a fool for a client!," is quite true. Lawyers know this well. Even though lawyers have the legal knowledge and expertise to represent themselves in court they rarely, if ever, do. Why? Because they know how valuable good representation can be to a favorable outcome. It's invaluable. A person without a lawyer has lost already, they just don't know it yet!
The case you describe sounds nearly identical to one I just finished -- pregnant wife, alleged to have assaulted husband, who suffered a scratch to the chest, and opposed prosecution of his wife. The biggest problem in the case was client's admissions to police.
The goal in that case was to get an outcome which could be expunged under Minnesota's expungement statute -- not just to avoid a conviction. We were successful, but not until minutes before we were to start picking the jury, and after much work by me on my client's behalf. Who knows how much luck was involved, but, as they say "good luck follows hard work!"
It is likely that the only chance you have to both avoid conviction and get an outcome subject to expungement under Minnesota's expungement statute is to be represented by me, or another good criminal defense lawyer. (I generally limit my work to the greater Twin Cities area.) You are welcome to contact me, if you wish.
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