South Carolina's CDV law is enforced in earnest by police departments around the State. Anyone is subject to an arrest when law enforcement is called to a home due to a domestic dispute. CDV arrests can be based on facts that otherwise don't seem to be violent or criminal.
If you are charged with CDV you will be given a date to appear at CDV Court. The date on your ticket is in fact an initial trial date. The Court will be prepared to either accept a guilty plea, or dispose of your case without giving you the opportunity to pre-trial discovery or a
jury trial. Of course the
penalty for a CDV conviction is the same whether or not you were convicted after a summary style trial in the CDV Court rather than a fully comprehensive trial where all of your rights were implemented with the assistance of a
criminal defense trial attorney.
A common question I receive is how can someone prove that they are innocent of a CDV charge? This is why in our system the government has the burden of proving guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. The job of a CDV defense attorney is to prove that the State's allegations are so unlikely to be true that reasonable doubt must exist and the defendant is entitled to a finding of "not guilty."
When someone arrested for CDV fails to take advantage of their legal rights and to retain a
defense attorney, they run the risk of being summarily convicted or an otherwise unfavorable outcome.
The Law Office of James R. Snell, Jr., LLC, is a
criminal domestic violence defense law firm in
Lexington, South Carolina. Individuals charged with CDV may receive a personal no cost consultation by contacting his office at 1-888-301-6004.