A Miami-Dade police officer is accused of verbally and physically fighting with a woman, at one point allegedly dragging her by her hair, according to the Broward Sheriff's Office.
The Miami Herald reports that a Miami-Dade Police Department sergeant has been charged with
aggravated assault and
domestic battery.
The police sergeant, who lives in Broward County, is accused of striking a woman he lives with, as well as threatening her with a gun. It is unclear as to whether he will be charged with aggravated assault, or aggravated assault with a firearm, which carries a 3-year mandatory prison term under Florida law.
Crimes of domestic violence are taken seriously by police officers and prosecutors. That is because prosecutors are used to going forward on these types of cases even if the alleged victim isn't on board.
If the police took photos of the woman's injuries, and have a recorded 911 call, then that may be enough evidence for the State to go forward. If the weapon used in the alleged aggravated assault is a firearm, then so long as the police impounded the gun and the 911 tape says something about the accused having a gun, then those facts may be admitted into evidence even without the alleged victim's testimony.
Don't think for a minute that a case will be dropped simply because the alleged victim doesn't want to prosecute. Domestic violence prosecutors are specially trained in how to go forward without victim testimony. In fact, many of our laws have been put in place to enable prosecutors to go after suspected domestic violence offenders even when the alleged victim is unwilling to come to court.
While it is possible to get a case dismissed for lack of victim prosecution, it is never a guarantee. Prosecutors will try to push a case to trial. It takes a clever criminal defense attorney to recognize the correct legal exceptions in which the State can proceed without an alleged victim. There are strict requirements that must be met.
I have handled countless domestic violence cases in both Broward and Miami-Dade. Charges have ranged from simple battery to murder.
Call me to discuss your case or the case of your friend or family member.