DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Domestic Violence (Penal Code 273.5) can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony. If convicted of a felony it carries a penalty of 2 to 4 years in the state prison or a fine of up to $6,000.00 or both a fine and imprisonment. As a misdemeanor, your exposure is up to a year in the county jail. Since it is a crime of moral turpitude it can also have immigration consequences. The statute includes injury to a spouse, former spouse, someone you live with or used to live with or the mother or father of a child. The court will probably include restraining orders as well as domestic violence classes for the defendant in addition to the above punishments. Sometimes the district attorney charges a person with Penal Code Section 243 (e) (1). This section prohibits any willful infliction of force or violence upon your intimate partner and includes your fiance, the parent of the defendant's child, living partner or previous dating partner.