Legal and Emotional Considerations Related to Assault and Domestic Violence

Assault, and, specifically, assault related to domestic violence is a very serious matter and sadly often underreported. In today’s blog article we will talk about both the legal considerations of being charged with assault in the context of domestic violence, and the emotional considerations of the victims.

Legal

For the person being charged, assault in any context including domestic violence is very serious. There are many levels of assault charges with varying levels of punishment. So, assault is not just applying force to someone without their permission, but also threatening to do so and making the victim afraid that you are going to do so. Charges become more serious when there is a sexual context and if a weapon is used or being threatened to use.

Penalties for assault in any context, including domestic violence, can range from fines to long jail sentences. For this reason, we advise individuals to always take these charges very seriously and hire a criminal lawyer as soon as possible.

Emotional

If we turn for moment to the victim of the crime, victims of all kinds of assault suffer, but victims of domestic violence suffer differently, because these are victims typically assaulted by those that they may love and trust and know for a long time. In addition, the crime may take place in your home where you should feel safe. Sometimes the victims are children, and sometimes there are children who witness the crimes. The devastation wrought by domestic violence can be much more far-reaching than assault between two strangers on a street corner.

As one glimmer of hope, we can say that there are many support services in place in British Columbia to help victims of assault, sexual, or domestic, or otherwise. We blogged about that recently. We encourage victims of domestic violence and assault to report the incident to police as soon as possible and reach out to one or more of the support services available to help you.

Gagan Nahal is a criminal defence lawyer based in Surrey, British Columbia, although he has represented clients across Canada. He works vigorously and tirelessly defending his clients. 

If you have any questions about this article or you would like to talk to Mr. Nahal, please call him directly at (604) 527-4769.