Not Guilty Verdict in Felony Domestic Violence Trial

Attorney Matt Ness recently assisted a young man in Adams Township when domestic violence charges put his freedom at risk.

After a heated argument, his live-in girlfriend decided to leave and stay with her parents. Days later, the police arrived in the middle of the night and arrested him based on her claims. Her accusations were harsh and ranged in charges for felony strangulation, aggravated assault, misdemeanor unlawful restraint, making terrorist threats, and simple assault.

This man had no prior criminal record and was now suddenly facing years in custody and a life-long stigma as an abuser of women. Luckily, we were able to secure his release and immediately started working to protect him.

During our investigation, it became clear that the police did little to corroborate the alleged victim’s story. Attorney Ness and our team discovered there was a lot of friction between the woman and her family regarding her relationship as well as numerous inconsistencies in her version of events.

Eventually, we located a security guard from our client’s apparent complex who interacted with her on the night in question. He recalled that nothing about their encounter raised any alarm and that she appeared uninjured.

Despite the discrepancies and very little evidence of any injuries, the prosecutor was unwilling to offer less than a year in jail. As a result, we took the case to trial and challenged the case. By highlighting the weaknesses in both evidence and credibility, the jury only took three hours to return a not guilty verdict.

While this was a drawn-out process, by working with an experienced attorney from the beginning, our client spared himself from years in custody and a haunting domestic violence label. In the end, the client cleared his name and was free to move on.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.