Domestic violence is a traumatizing experience that can never be taken lightly. However, when domestic violence accusation turns up false, the experience could be equally damaging for the wrongly accused. Those guilty of domestic violence face serious jail or prison time, fines, 52-week treatment classes, and even job loss. The list goes on. Falsely accusing a person of domestic violence is truly cruel and can tear apart innocent lives. When facing a domestic violence charge, it is highly recommended to contact an experienced domestic violence lawyer as soon as possible.
On average there are 700,000 false domestic violence charges each year in the United States. The fact of the matter is, the logistics of legal action with domestic violence is an incredibly difficult issue to deal with. If you reported a crime that didn’t happen to a police officer, you would be facing criminal charges yourself. When it comes to false domestic violence charges, the courts will never charge the accuser. Our criminal justice system needs to favor the accuser to prevent victims from feeling afraid to come forward. Instances involved with domestic violence have high fatality rates, which is why law enforcement and criminal courts always prefer to leave the least amount of room for chance possible for these allegations.
One of our legal system's most significant criticisms when it comes to addressing domestic abuse are the facility and regularity of false accusations believed by the courts. In the statutory scheme of domestic abuse, the crime can be summed up as an unlawful infliction of physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or criminal sexual act between family or household members.
False domestic violence accusations can come from many reasons. Spice, Malice, and revenge are just a few motivators that lead to a spouse claiming false accusations. These charges are also huge factors for legal matters involving divorce and child custody, but our courts are continuously striving to fight the issue of false domestic violence charges. The Apex court ruled in K.Srinivas vs K.sunita, (2014) 15 SCC 34 that if a false criminal complaint is preferred by either spouse it would invariably and indubitably constitute matrimonial cruelty and entitle the other spouse to claim a divorce. This ruling has paved the way for helping those who were wrongly accused of domestic violence.
Once again, it is of utmost importance to consult with an experienced domestic violence defense attorney when you are faced with these charges. These cases often time involve an alleged victim’s word against the defendant, which can feel like having the weight of the world stacked onto the defendant, even when they are innocent. An experienced domestic violence attorney will act as a strong advocate for the defendant and help level the playing field by evaluating the intricate details, facts, and evidence of the case to help prove their innocence.