CASE STUDY: Domestic Assault Conditional Discharge

Our client, Mr. G, was at home when he argued with his daughter regarding her vehicle. Hearing this argument, Mr. G’s wife attempted to intervene by approaching him and shouting. Upset by this situation, it was alleged that Mr. G struck his wife in the head one time, leading her to bleed and eventually need stitches. This unfortunate incident led to Mr. G being charged with domestic assault.

Our client’s wife, whom he had been married to for over thirty years, did not want her husband to go to jail and wanted the conditions of his arrest lifted. The family had voiced that they were willing to attend family counselling as well as anger management programming. This would not only lessen Mr. G’s charge but also benefit them as a couple and as a family. Given that her injuries were more minor than they had originally thought, this goal seemed within reach. As with all cases at Aitken Robertson, Mr. Stiles worked closely with Mr. G and his family to prepare a strong defence to secure a successful outcome that would avoid our client being convicted of assault.

Mr. Stiles met with the Crown at a Crown pre-trial where they had a productive discussion about resolving Mr. G’s matter. Both had agreed that this matter would benefit from having a jury pre-trial as well as having Mr. G attend the appropriate programming that would allow the matter to be set for trial or for Mr. G to enter a plea.

Ultimately, after Mr. G had completed a partner assault response program, the judge gave our client a conditional discharge with twelve months of probation. This was a phenomenal outcome as Mr. G had previously been facing ninety days in jail for the charge. Discharges are not normally granted for assaults that result in injury. However, because of our client’s behaviour and his participation in appropriate programming, the judge felt confident in this resolution. This outstanding outcome allowed Mr. G and his family to move past this unfortunate situation.