Legal Question in Criminal Law in Rhode Island

Fiance Arrested on Assault Even though I did Not Want

I know this is gonna sound like another one of those domestic abuse cases so allow me to explain briefly:

My fiance of 4 years was recently diagnosed with a rare spinal cord nervous system disorder and is being pumped with steriods every 2 weeks for inflammation.He has never exhibited any violent behavior in the past,however during a recent argument he starting throwing my personal property around and then got in my face and made me call the police, almost sarcastically but I felt threatned enough to do so.I did not expect the police to handcuff him,I was not hurt, just crying,and I explained that he was on steriods for a medical condition.They didn't care and said under RI Law they have to make an arrest.I refused to sign anything or give a statement.They took him to the jail and held him and released him that night bc he had no record.However they put a restraining order against him in my name which I never wanted.His court date is in a week and I am not pressing any charges, but they haven't even contacted me about going to court to testify.We have been communicating by phone and he wants me to find out if he needs a lawyer for this because it seems like its him versus the state and not even me now-Can someone help?


Asked on 5/20/05, 7:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jules D'Alessandro D'Alessandro & Wright

Re: Fiance Arrested on Assault Even though I did Not Want

The first short answer is YES, he absolutely needs an attorney to represent him in this matter. Domestic assault is taken very seriously in RI. Even thought you may believe that the assault was unintentional and the result of steroids which are prescribed and taken legally, the assault still occurred and must be dealt with by the court system with the input from the prosecution and a victim's rights advocate. Furthermore, if the police obtained any evidence of an assault independent of your statement, or your fiance confessed they can and will proceed with the prosecution without you. Many times people believe that they have a valid defense and attempt to handle a case without an attorney. In criminal matters, especially domestic assault cases this is a very bad idea, the system is geared toward forcing the defendant to enter a plea that he may not want and a plea in a domestic case carries mandatory minimum sanctions such as counseling, probation, restraining orders and confiscation of weapons. We have an attorney at this office who is very experienced in domestic assault cases. Please contact my office to set up an appointment with Attorney Steven Wright right away.

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Answered on 5/22/05, 6:01 am


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