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Domestic Violence - Officer's Presence At One's Residence (Part 1)

By Walin & Klarich

Several cases have involved situations wherein officers go to a residence in response to a report of domestic violence being committed. Generally, if an obviously battered victim is present and the batterer is still within the residence, the officer may enter the residence to arrest the batterer. This was expressed in the case of People v. Frye (1998) 18 Cal.4th 894. The issue is whether, in light of the facts known to the officer at the time, the officer could have reasonably concluded that immediate action was necessary. An attorney may be able to argue that had the officer left the scene to obtain a warrant, there was not a significant risk of additional harm. Such an argument is fact-intensive and requires review and analysis by an experienced California domestic violence defense attorney...continue to full post

Full post as published by Southern California Criminal Defense Blog on December 06, 2009 (boomark / email).