Being accused of domestic violence can be highly disconcerting for anyone, but if you are a public figure, such as a professional athlete, politician, CEO, etc., being accused of domestic violence can be particularly damaging to your reputation. You will likely face negative attention from the media during the arrest…
Articles Posted in domestic violence
How New Proposed California Gun Legislation Could Impact Domestic Violence Defense
In the wake of the Supreme Court and other courts recently overturning key elements of California’s restrictive gun policies—followed by a rash of mass shootings in California over the past few weeks—numerous state legislators are making gun safety a hallmark of their agenda for 2023. Many of these laws seek…
When Accidental Injury to a Child Leads to False Accusations of Domestic Violence
As parents, we love our children and never want to see them hurt. If a child is injured due to an accident, we naturally feel a sense of guilt and worry. But if an innocent accident somehow leads to false accusations of domestic violence or child abuse, it can be…
Biggest Celebrity Domestic Violence Stories of 2022—and What We Can Learn from Them
Domestic violence continues to be a major issue in our culture, plaguing millions of households every year. At the same time, for most families, incidents of domestic battery and other forms of violence don’t become major news stories. When celebrity relationships devolve into domestic violence, not only must they deal…
The Effect of Domestic Violence Accusations on Your Dating Life
Being accused of domestic violence can have a serious and lasting effect on almost every aspect of your life. Even if you are never charged with or convicted of a crime, for example, the existence of a protective order alone can force you from your home, increase your expenses, affect…
Emotional Abuse Is Now Considered Domestic Violence in Some States. Where Does California Stand?
In June 2021, Connecticut became the third state in the U.S. to expand its legal definition of domestic violence to include emotional abuse (the specific legal term is “coercive control”). Similar legislation is in the works in five more states. Under these expanded definitions, domestic violence protections are no longer…
The “Safer Communities Act”: How It May Affect Domestic Violence Cases in California
In June 2022, partly in response to a long string of mass shootings, Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which President Biden promptly signed into law. Touted as the most significant federal gun control legislation in three decades, the Safer Communities Act provides incentives for states to adopt “red…
Domestic Violence and the Internet: Taking the Crime Online
While most people think of domestic violence as the act of physically striking one’s partner or spouse (and indeed, domestic battery accounts for the lion’s share of domestic violence incidents), the State of California counts plenty of other actions as “domestic violence.” In fact, nowadays, you don’t even have to…
The “Shadow Pandemic”: Domestic Violence in a COVID World
In the months and years since COVID-19 became a global health crisis, word has spread rapidly about the “shadow pandemic,”–referring to the worldwide spike in domestic violence (and violence against women in general) in the wake of the COVID pandemic. Many concerns were raised during the initial lockdowns and quarantines…
Adult Children and Domestic Violence
While the vast majority of domestic violence cases occur between spouses, domestic partners, or dating partners, there’s an often-overlooked version of domestic abuse that can be particularly harmful: when adult children become physically violent toward their parents. This type of domestic violence often falls into the category of “elder abuse”…