Lisa Pelosi: Well, quite honestly there’s no typical domestic violence case, but what distinguishes domestic violence cases is usually there are certain programs that are in existence and as part of a plea they often will have the individual get counseling with a therapist, be evaluated, do anger management, this sort of thing.
The Accused in a Domestic Violence Case May Have to Attend Anger Management Classes
Interviewer: Do they ever impose any penalties that are utilized for DUI for instance if there was alcohol or drugs related would they make someone use an ignition interlock device for their vehicle?
Lisa Pelosi: It’s more that if families want to stay together or people who know each other want to get back together, and the prosecutor believes that the person who’s arrested has not had a long history or has no history of domestic violence, if it’s a first-time case, prosecutors will work with the defense attorney. They’ve worked with me often to try to get the person who acted out or allegedly acted out some anger management and if alcohol abuse is the cause of the violence, drug and/or alcohol testing and help would with the intention of the person who is accused of abusing trying to get them help to keep the family unit together.
How Children Are Treated by the Authorities Depends Upon the Seriousness of the Circumstances
Interviewer: Can a police officer question someone’s child without consent in a domestic violence case?
Lisa Pelosi: It depends. It really depends on the seriousness of the case. Often times when there’s these cases and police are called if it’s a very serious case the children will be removed from the home and there would be endangering the welfare of a child charges brought again both parents actually. Then there’s often times a parallel case runs in family court because some of these environments the children are put in are not safe for them psychologically and often physically. The family will also have to be dealing with family court case. Sometimes children are put in foster care.
If you have a good attorney right from the beginning you can perhaps avoid that by having another family member outside the home take the child or take the children right when the events happen, meaning the arrest happens.
If Children Are Involved in a Domestic Violence Case, Child Protective Services Will Step in
Interviewer: If there’s children not necessarily directly involved Will child protective services step in?
Lisa Pelosi: Yes, in serious cases child protection agencies will come in because whatever the issues are between the parents, or between the boyfriend and girlfriend, sometimes they cross the line and when children are involved they could be in danger so sure child services will get involved. As I said, often the children are taken from the home.
In Extreme Cases of Domestic Violence, Parenting Rights Can Be Taken Away
Interviewer: Some parents may be wondering certain things like if a case didn’t involve a child, but there were children living in the house, will parenting rights be taken away ultimately?
Lisa Pelosi: No, it would have to be a very extreme case for parental rights to be taken away, but the government does really frown upon children being in unsafe situations. For example, if 2 people know each other and during the course of an argument because someone can’t control anger where someone is pushing buttons too much and causing a terrible situation, and for example, if a plate is thrown across the room it could’ve hit a child or it did hit a child for that matter, just the abuse that’s gone on in the home, it’s a signal to the police department that they need to remove the children.
Then child services gets involved and, as I said, then the family are going to be facing criminal charges, as well as having to deal with learning better parenting skills and even the court can prevent one or both parents from seeing the children until they get help.
