Domestic Violence Lawyer in Chandler, AZ

Arizona's criminal code has no offense named domestic violence. The phrase is a tag put on an ordinary charge from the list in A.R.S. 13-3601(A), such as assault, criminal damage, disorderly conduct or threatening, when the two people are connected in a way that subsection names: marriage or a former marriage, a shared household now or earlier (roommates count), a child in common, certain relatives by blood or marriage, or a current or past romantic or sexual relationship. Section 13-3601(H) requires the complaint to be marked DV, and 13-3601(M) leaves the charge in its usual class.

The tag shows up first in the arrest decision. Under 13-3601(B) a Chandler officer with probable cause may arrest with a warrant or without one, even when the conduct ended before the patrol car pulled up. Where there was physical injury, or the call involved a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument that was discharged, used or threateningly exhibited, that subsection directs an arrest, except where the officer reasonably believes the circumstances will keep the victim protected from further injury.

Patrol is not always the last word. Chandler Police describe a Family Crimes Unit that "investigates any family related crime such as domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse," and a Victim Services Unit that supports victims during the investigative and judicial processes. If an investigator leaves you a message, speak with a lawyer before returning it.

After an arrest, the clock matters more than the building. Chandler Police has a Detention unit whose officers handle "the transportation, care and custody of prisoners to and from county and city detention areas." Whoever has custody, Rule 4.1 allows 24 hours from arrest for a first hearing before a judge, and release follows if it does not happen. Chandler appears on the Sheriff's Office list of cities that "hold their own Initial Appearances for city charges." A person the county books on a felony DV allegation has that hearing at the Initial Appearance Court the county runs at 2670 S. 28th Dr., which sits every day, holidays included.

That first judge sets the terms you live under. Section 13-3601(I) says every release order in a DV case must carry the conditions necessary to protect the alleged victim and any other person the court specifically designates. Often the central term is no contact: no call, text, social media message or word passed through a relative, even when the other person reaches out first. Keep the order; Chandler Municipal Court says it carries your court date.

Not every case starts with an arrest; some begin with a citation or a mailed summons, and the court says the date printed on either one is the arraignment. In both situations the Chandler City Prosecutor's Office, 250 E. Chicago St., which prosecutes criminal misdemeanors in City Court, decides whether the case goes forward. The person named as the victim does not. That person's wishes can be heard, but they dismiss nothing, and contacting them for help with the case is the very contact a release order forbids.

Do not assume the court will appoint you a lawyer. Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 6.1(b) entitles an indigent defendant to appointed counsel in a proceeding that may result in punishment by loss of liberty. In misdemeanor court, the prosecutor can avow that no jail will be requested and the judge can rule that no jail will be imposed, and once that happens, there is no right to appointed counsel at all. Arizona's Court of Appeals upheld exactly that in Campa v. Fleming, 134 Ariz. 330 (App. 1982), on a class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to six months in jail, for a defendant who was on probation and facing immigration consequences.

Avoiding jail is not the same as avoiding a conviction. A misdemeanor DV conviction means a court-ordered offender treatment program at your expense, and it can count later toward aggravated domestic violence, the felony charged on a third DV offense inside 84 months. Anyone serving probation for a DV offense is a prohibited possessor under Arizona law. Federal law can add a firearm ban after certain misdemeanor DV convictions, depending on the offense's elements and the relationship, and federal immigration law lists a crime of domestic violence among the grounds for removal. A family court deciding parenting questions may hear about it too.