Domestic Battery: Charges Dismissed at Trial

Client was facing several felony counts of domestic battery causing great bodily injury under Penal Code § 273.5 with a prior domestic battery conviction and multiple prior strikes. He faced over 10 years in prison if convicted at trial and was offered four years in prison as a plea. After extensive investigation and trial preparation, the District Attorney dismissed all charges on the day of trial.

The case arose from an altercation between our client and his girlfriend, Jane Doe. On the night in question, the client and Jane stopped at a restaurant to pick up a to-go order. While the client was inside, Jane stole his phone after he received a call or text from another woman. When the client realized his phone was gone, he tracked it using his iPad to a nearby hotel, where he found Jane at the front desk checking in. He demanded his phone back, grabbed it from her hand, and left the lobby. Jane ended up on the ground during the scuffle and later called the police, claiming he had beaten her and stolen her phone.

When police arrived, they spoke to Jane, who gave a complaint statement that became the basis of the police report. A hotel manager, who could not see the lobby from his office, gave a vague “yes” when an officer suggested that a woman had been beaten and robbed in the hotel. His statement was copied into the report as if he were an eyewitness. Meanwhile, the front desk clerk initially told the officer that the client only appeared to be grabbing his phone, but that statement was conveniently left out of the report.

The District Attorney aggressively pursued the case because of the client’s prior history, and the initial plea offer was four years in prison. The client first retained another attorney, who urged him to accept the deal. He refused and retained Griffin Law Office to take the case to trial.

Our team launched a full investigation. We uncovered that Jane had over 20 prior law enforcement contacts for prostitution, including a case where she filed a false police report under Penal Code § 148.5(b) to cover up a blackmail scheme against a former “john.” We located the prior victim, confirmed the scheme, and obtained evidence of her pattern of dishonesty.

We also interviewed the hotel manager and clerk. The manager admitted he had no line of sight to the incident from his office, and photos proved he could not have seen the lobby. The clerk’s statement, which matched the police body-worn camera footage, supported our client’s version that he was simply retrieving his own phone.

Armed with this evidence, including prior false reports, impeachment material, and proof of a fabricated eyewitness account, we prepared for trial. In the days before jury selection, we presented the entire case file to the prosecution. On the morning of trial, the District Attorney dismissed all charges, acknowledging they could not secure a conviction.

Our client went from the brink of a four-year prison sentence and the risk of more than 10 years if convicted to complete freedom, thanks to diligent investigation, trial preparation, and aggressive advocacy by Griffin Law Office.