Domestic violence attorney Broward

October 5, 2024

How Broward Domestic Violence Charges Can Impact Child Custody

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

One of the most pressing concerns for many criminal defense clients facing Broward domestic violence charges is how it could potentially impact child custody. It’s important to understand that in addition to criminal case restrictions and penalties, domestic violence charges and convictions can significantly affect your ability to gain or maintain custody of your children.

Family courts in Florida prioritize the safety and well-being of children above all else. Although these cases are separate (with domestic violence charges generally being handled in criminal court and child custody matters handled in civil court), allegations of domestic violence can result in severe consequences for parents – even before criminal conviction.

Working with an experienced domestic violence criminal defense lawyer, you may benefit from well-planned defense strategies that can help minimize the negative impact in both criminal and civil courts.

The Connection Between Domestic Violence and Child Custody

In Florida, family courts are obligated to consider the best interests of the child when determining custody arrangements. Florida Statutes § 61.13 specifically direct judges to consider domestic violence as a key factor when making custody decisions. Even allegations of domestic violence, whether they result in a conviction or not, can impact the court’s view of a parent’s fitness to care for their child.

Here are the primary ways domestic violence charges can affect child custody: Continue reading

November 5, 2022

Can I Argue Self-Defense in a South Florida Domestic Violence Case?

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

Florida has strong and well-established “stand your ground” self-defense laws. But can you successfully argue self-defense in a South Florida domestic violence case?

The short answer is: Yes – but you better have solid evidence.

As our Broward County domestic violence defense lawyers can explain, there are a number of state laws pertaining to self-defense and how it should be applied in Florida criminal cases. Most of these can be found in Chapter 776 of Florida Statutes, which outlines the criteria for Justifiable Use of Force.

Among these:

F.S. 776.102, Use or threatened use of force in defense of person. This statute holds that a person can be justified in threatening to use force or actually doing so against someone else when he/she reasonably believes that doing so is necessary to defend themselves against the other person’s unlawful use of force. However, they can’t use deadly force for this purpose – unless he/she reasonably believes that doing so is needed to halt imminent risk of death or serious injury to themself or someone else. In both cases, there is no duty to retreat before using or threatening to use such force.
F.S. 776.013, Home protection; use or threatened use of deadly force; presumption of fear of death or great bodily harm. This provision states a person who is lawfully inside a dwelling or residence doesn’t have a responsibility to retreat if they feel threatened in that space. They can stand their ground and use force or threaten to use force. As for the degree of force, it can only be deadly if the person has a reasonable belief that they must do so in order to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to themselves or another person OR to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony.
F.S. 776.031, Use or threatened use of force in defense of property. A person can use or threaten to use force against someone else when and to the extent that individual believes doing so is necessary to prevent or terminate another person’s trespassing on personal property or criminal or tortious interference with personal property in their possession (or in possession of an immediate family/household member). Force can only be deadly if one reasonably believes using it is needed to stop the imminent commission of a forcible felony. (Forcible felonies are those that involve the use of physical force against another human being.)

If you’ve used justifiable force, then you would not be subject to prosecution. However, there is another provision worthy of consideration if the underlying circumstances involved an allegation of domestic violence:

F.S. 776.041, use or threatened use of force by aggressor. Use of force won’t be considered justifiable if the person accused was either attempting to commit, committing, or escaping after the commission of a forcible felony OR that individual initially provoked the use or threatened use of force against themselves. (There are exceptions to the latter half if the use of force was so great they believed themselves in danger of imminent death or serious injury or they’d exhausted every other reasonable means to escape such danger OR they tried in good faith to withdraw from physical contact and indicates clearly their desire to withdraw/terminate use or threatened use of force.)

Risks of a Self-Defense Argument in a Florida Domestic Violence Case

September 2, 2022

Broward Defense Lawyer Helps Tackle False Allegations in Florida Temporary Injunction Cases

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

As a Broward defense lawyer with a heavy focus on domestic violence cases, pushing back against Florida temporary injunctions is a regular part of our wheelhouse.

It often comes as a surprise to clients that in the Sunshine state, temporary injunctions for protection (also commonly known as “restraining orders”) can be pursued – and obtained – solely based on the unilateral accusations of the person seeking one. That means the claims are one-sided, and one can be entered against you before you even have your day in court. In fact, the court has 15 days to set a hearing where your side will be taken into account. Before that deadline, there is no requirement that you be apprised of the allegations against you or that you be given the right to cross-examine any witnesses about what happened. In some cases, courts may even extend a temporary injunction beyond those 15 days for “good reason.”

Despite this, temporary injunctions are part of public record. That means anyone can look them up and review them: Employers, landlords, ex-spouses, airlines, firearm retailers, etc. Though they might not hold as much weight as permanent injunctions, temporary injunctions can absolutely impact your ability to land (or keep) certain employment, access certain housing options, your ability to travel, your ability to carry a firearm, and your pending divorce/child custody case.

Because of the severity of these consequences – now and well into the future – it is imperative that anyone fighting a Florida temporary injunction hire a criminal defense lawyer with extensive experience specifically in the area of domestic violence law.

Temporary Injunction Procedure

As our Broward domestic violence defense lawyers can explain, the burden of proof for temporary injunctions in Florida is much lower than what is required to establish guilt in a criminal case. Continue reading