Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

My niece and her daughter had an argument. The fault was her daughters'. During the argument her daughter shove everything that was on the stove onto the floor. At that point my niece pushed her. At the advice of my sister (my niece's Mom and the daughter's grand-mom), the daughter called the police. My niece was arrested and had to appear in court for a hearing. My niece's daughter just graduated and she's 19 so she moved out of the house. She did appear at the hearing and she asked that the case to her Mom be dropped. But they were told that it's the Commonwealth of Virginia versus her now. Now she has to get a lawyer, and she was told she was looking at 12 months in jail. She cannot afford a lawyer. She's a single Mom. It's one of those where she makes too much money to get a court appointed one but makes too less to hire one. If her daughter calls the prosecuting attorney and tells the person that she will not appear in court and that she called the cop in the heat of the moment because she was mad at her mom and that there was no physical harm would they just dropped the case? Why spend taxpayers money to take a case to court when you have no case. What can she do?

Asked on 6/22/10, 11:24 am

Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

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The daughter could contact the prosecuting attorney assigned to the case

and explain that she dosen't feel that she would make a very good witness

for the Commonwealth against the neice if the case went to trial for whatever

reasons she can offer, such as the heat of the moment, etc.

The daughter should not, however, tell the prosecuting attorney 'that she will not

appear in court" since s/he could request that the court issue what's called

a Rule against the Witness for her failure to appear which would require her

to come to court to explain her nonappearance to the judge and risk

being found in contempt and possibly sanctioned.

Answered on 6/22/10, 10:58 pm

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