Tulsa Domestic Violence Lawyer for Domestic Assault and Battery Charges

Misdemeanor Domestic Assault and Battery in Oklahoma

Oklahoma's domestic abuse offense is found in 21 O.S. § 644. A person commits misdemeanor domestic abuse when the person commits an assault and battery against a current or former intimate partner or a qualifying family or household member.

The domestic relationship is part of the charge. Conduct that might otherwise be prosecuted as ordinary assault and battery is treated differently when the required domestic relationship exists.

A first offense is a misdemeanor. A second or subsequent qualifying offense is treated separately as felony domestic violence, and other allegations such as strangulation, use of a dangerous or deadly weapon, great bodily injury, pregnancy, or committing domestic abuse in the presence of a child have their own rules and potential consequences.

Who Qualifies as an Intimate Partner or Family or Household Member?

Domestic assault and battery is not limited to married couples. Oklahoma's definitions cover several kinds of current and former relationships.

Depending on the circumstances, the relationship can include:

• current or former spouses;
• people who are or were in a dating relationship;
• two people who are the biological parents of the same child;
• people who currently or formerly lived together in an intimate relationship;
• parents, grandparents, stepparents, adoptive parents, and foster parents;
• children, grandchildren, stepchildren, adopted children, and foster children;
• other people related by blood or marriage; and
• unrelated people who live in the same household.

A casual acquaintance is not a dating relationship merely because the two people know each other socially. The relationship alleged in the criminal case has to fit Oklahoma's legal definition.

What Does the State Have to Prove?

A domestic relationship by itself does not prove domestic assault and battery. Prosecutors still have to prove the willful and unlawful assault and battery and the qualifying relationship beyond a reasonable doubt.

Battery does not require a serious injury. Oklahoma law treats the willful and unlawful use of force or violence against another person as a battery, and the amount of force can be slight. That means the absence of bruising, bleeding, or another visible injury does not automatically defeat the charge.

The existence of an injury does not establish who caused it, whether the contact was unlawful, whether someone acted in self defense, or whether the accusation accurately describes what occurred. Those questions have to be answered from the evidence rather than from the fact that someone was arrested.

Punishment for a First Domestic Assault and Battery Conviction

A first misdemeanor domestic assault and battery conviction carries:

• up to one (1) year in the county jail;
• a fine of up to $5,000; or
• both jail and a fine.

Domestic abuse treatment is also part of the sentence. If the court gives a deferred or suspended sentence, the defendant is ordered to complete the required assessment and a 52-week batterers intervention program.

That is not a short anger management class or a few counseling sessions. The program lasts approximately one year, and completing it becomes an important condition of remaining in compliance with the court's sentence.

What Happens After a Domestic Violence Arrest?

A domestic violence arrest is handled differently from many ordinary misdemeanor arrests. Oklahoma law does not allow an officer or sheriff simply to release a person arrested for an act constituting domestic abuse without the person appearing before a judge, magistrate, or court.

The judge can address bond and conditions of release before the criminal case itself has been resolved. Those conditions can affect where you may go and whether you may communicate with the person who made the accusation, so the actual release order needs to be read carefully and followed exactly.

In Rob's experience, a domestic violence allegation is also likely to be followed by a protective order proceeding. That means a person may suddenly be dealing with two related but separate court cases arising from the same accusation.

Protective Orders Prohibit Contact

A protective order prohibits contact with the protected person. That prohibition applies even when the protected person changes his or her mind, wants to resume the relationship, initiates the communication, or says that contact is okay.

You should not rely on the other person's permission to disregard the order. A text message, telephone call, social media message, third party communication, or in person contact can create another criminal problem while the protective order remains in effect.

This creates a difficult situation in cases involving married couples, shared children, a common home, vehicles, pets, finances, or other responsibilities that normally require communication. Those practical problems need to be addressed through the lawyer and the court rather than by violating the order.

Can the Other Person Drop a Domestic Violence Charge?

The person who made the accusation does not control whether the criminal charge is dismissed. Once the case is in the criminal justice system, dismissal is a prosecutorial and judicial matter rather than a decision the complaining witness can make alone.

That does not make the other person's position irrelevant. A later statement, refusal to cooperate, contradiction, or change in the account can affect the evidence, but prosecutors may also rely on 911 recordings, police observations, body camera footage, photographs, medical evidence, text messages, admissions, or other witnesses.

A case in which the complaining witness wants the prosecution to stop is not automatically dismissed. A case in which that person continues to accuse the defendant is not automatically proven either.

Domestic Violence Allegations Can be Fabricated

Domestic violence allegations can be fabricated because many of these accusations arise from events that supposedly occurred in private, with no neutral witness present. An accusation can be made quickly during an angry argument, breakup, divorce, custody dispute, or other emotionally charged situation, and police may arrive after the alleged incident is already over.

That does not mean every domestic violence accusation is false. It means the accusation itself should never substitute for examining the evidence and deciding whether the complaining witness's account is actually supported by the surrounding facts.

The timing and circumstances of the allegation can be important. A person's statements, prior communications, motive, physical evidence, photographs, video, witness accounts, and conduct immediately before and after the accusation can all help determine whether the story makes sense.

Evidence in an Oklahoma Domestic Assault and Battery Case

Domestic cases frequently involve conflicting versions of a fast moving event. Rob looks beyond the conclusion written in the police report and compares the accusation with the evidence that actually exists.

That review may include:

• the original 911 recording and dispatch information;
• body camera and patrol car video;
• photographs taken by police or either party;
• text messages, emails, call records, or other communications;
• statements made at the scene and later statements;
• medical records when an injury is alleged;
• statements from children, neighbors, family members, or other witnesses when legally and factually relevant; and
• surveillance or other video showing events before, during, or after the accusation.

Timing can be especially important. A statement made during the 911 call may differ from what was said when police arrived, what appears in a written report, and what a witness says weeks later.

Physical evidence can also support or contradict parts of either account. The location and nature of an injury, the condition of the scene, photographs of both people, and video of their appearance or behavior may help determine whether the accusation fits the rest of the evidence.

Self Defense and Other Defense Issues

Self defense can arise in a domestic assault and battery case just as it can in another assault case. When the evidence shows that force was used to defend against an unlawful attack, the circumstances surrounding who initiated the confrontation and what happened next need careful review.

Defense of another person can also be relevant. An allegation involving a child, another family member, or someone else who was present may require examination of whether the accused person was trying to protect that person rather than commit an unlawful battery.

Some cases turn on whether the contact was willful or unlawful at all. Accidental contact during an argument, an attempt to leave, efforts to retrieve property, or physical contact occurring while two people were struggling can present a very different factual question from an intentional attack.

False allegations also have to be taken seriously as a defense issue rather than dismissed as impossible merely because police made an arrest. When an accusation can be fabricated, the defense needs to examine whether the independent evidence supports what the complaining witness claims happened.

Domestic Assault and Battery and Protective Orders Are Separate Proceedings

A criminal domestic assault and battery case and a protective order proceeding are separate legal matters. A person may face both at the same time, but the filing or issuance of a protective order does not itself establish guilt in the criminal prosecution.

The criminal case asks whether the State can prove the charged crime beyond a reasonable doubt. The protective order case follows a different procedure, even though many of the same accusations and witnesses may appear in both proceedings.

Because every protective order prohibits contact, the order must be obeyed while it remains in effect. The protected person cannot privately give the defendant permission to disregard a court order. Violating a protective order creates a separate criminal charge.

When a Domestic Violence Allegation Becomes More Serious

Not every allegation that occurs between family members or intimate partners remains a first offense misdemeanor. Oklahoma has separate domestic abuse offenses and enhancements for conduct that involves additional facts.

Those include allegations involving:

• a second or subsequent qualifying domestic abuse conviction;
• strangulation or attempted strangulation;
• a dangerous or deadly weapon;
• great bodily injury;
• abuse against a pregnant woman;
• domestic abuse committed in the presence of a child; and
• interference with an emergency telephone call when the facts support that separate charge.

Those allegations should be analyzed under the specific charge rather than being treated as merely a more serious version of the same misdemeanor. The required proof and punishment are not identical.

Firearm Consequences of a Domestic Violence Conviction

A qualifying misdemeanor domestic violence conviction has consequences beyond the Oklahoma misdemeanor punishment. Federal law restricts firearm and ammunition possession for a person who has been convicted of a qualifying misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.

Whether a particular Oklahoma plea, conviction, or disposition falls within the federal definition should be considered before the criminal case is resolved. A protective order can raise separate firearm issues as well, so the criminal charge and any related order need to be evaluated independently.

What Should You Do After a Domestic Assault and Battery Arrest?

If police want to question you about the accusation, you should decline to answer questions and ask to speak with an attorney. Trying to explain a heated domestic dispute immediately after an arrest can create statements that become evidence before you or your attorney have heard the recording of the 911 call, seen any video or photographs, or heard the other person's account.

You should also preserve communications, photographs, video, and other evidence related to the incident. Do not delete messages or attempt to persuade the complaining witness to change a statement.

Most importantly, follow every bond condition and protective order exactly as written. Questions about how to deal with shared children, property, belongings, or other practical problems should be resolved through your attorney and the court rather than through prohibited contact.

Frequently Asked Questions About Oklahoma Domestic Assault and Battery

Is a first domestic assault and battery charge a misdemeanor in Oklahoma?

Yes. A first conviction for domestic assault and battery under Oklahoma's basic domestic abuse provision is a misdemeanor carrying up to one year in county jail and a fine up to $5,000. A qualifying prior conviction changes the situation. A second or subsequent domestic abuse offense is handled under Oklahoma's felony domestic violence provisions rather than the first-offense misdemeanor rule.

Does the person accusing me have to be my spouse?

No. Oklahoma law also covers former spouses, dating partners, co-parents, certain people who live or formerly lived together, relatives, and other qualifying family or household members. The relationship still has to fit the statutory definition. Simply knowing someone or having an ordinary social relationship does not make every assault accusation a domestic abuse case.

Can I be convicted if the other person had no visible injury?

Yes. A battery does not require bruising, bleeding, or another visible injury because unlawful force can be sufficient even when the contact is slight. The State still has to prove the rest of the charge. Lack of injury may remain important when evaluating what actually happened, the credibility of the accusation, and whether other evidence is consistent with the alleged conduct.

Can the complaining witness drop the charge?

The complaining witness cannot unilaterally dismiss the criminal case. Prosecutors and the court control whether a filed prosecution ends. The person's cooperation and testimony can still affect the strength of the evidence. Prosecutors may also attempt to prove the case with recordings, photographs, police observations, witnesses, messages, or other evidence.

Will I have to complete a 52-week domestic violence program?

If the court imposes a deferred or suspended sentence for a domestic abuse charge, the defendant is required to complete the assessment and the 52-week batterers intervention program. That treatment requirement is one of the significant consequences of resolving a domestic assault and battery case through a plea agreement. The program requires a substantial time commitment. A person considering a plea needs to understand that requirement along with the jail exposure, fine, firearm consequences, and other terms of the proposed disposition.

Is a protective order likely after a domestic violence arrest?

Yes. In Rob's experience, a protective order is likely to accompany a domestic violence allegation, particularly when the complaining witness seeks immediate protection after the arrest. The protective order proceeding is separate from the criminal prosecution. An order can impose immediate restrictions while the underlying criminal charge is still unresolved.

Can the other person contact me if there is a protective order?

The protected person may attempt to contact you, but that does not give you permission to violate the order. Every protective order prohibits contact, and the person subject to the order is responsible for obeying it while it remains in effect. If the protected person wants contact restored, the proper course is to address the protective order through the court. Do not assume that a private agreement between the two of you overrides the judge's order.

Can a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction affect my firearm rights?

Yes, when the conviction qualifies as a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence under federal law. Federal firearm consequences need to be considered before entering a plea because they are separate from the Oklahoma jail and fine provisions. Protective orders can create separate federal firearm restrictions in qualifying circumstances. The existence and terms of an order should be reviewed separately from the criminal charge.