Penalties of Violent Crimes in Nevada

The State of Nevada is riddled by violent crimes in the form of domestic violence with battery, murder homicide, manslaughter, robbery, and more. As violent crimes in Nevada are perpetrated through the use of deadly force, the corresponding punishments are grave. Once you are being indicted for them, your rights and freedom as a citizen will be threatened. Below are information about the penalties should you find yourself facing them.

Battery and Assault

Assault is attacking a person through the use of physical force such as punching, hitting, kicking, stabbing, and more. This is a violent crime that is punishable by a misdemeanor which includes six months in jail and fine up to $1,000. If a deadly weapon is involved, expect the assault to be a category B felony, which should mean one to six years of imprisonment and fine that are not more than $5,000.

When this is done inside the premises of home or towards family members, it turns into a domestic battery. This is a category C felony that could also turn into a category B felony when a weapon was used.  

Murder Homicide

Of course, killing a person constitutes some of the heaviest punishments not just for committing violent crimes in Nevada. For a first degree murder homicide (which is a planned way of killing), a life imprisonment with or without the possibility of a parole or a death sentence shall be imposed. For the second degree which is unintentional killing, 25 years or a lifetime of imprisonment with the possibility of parole should follow the accused are the penalties.

Manslaughter

Offenders of voluntary manslaughter or the “heat of passion” crime is punished by one to 10 years of incarceration. Notice that manslaughter does not have a life imprisonment punishment option. This is because voluntary manslaughter is usually carried out due to rage or the heat of the moment; these acts are never premeditated.

Rape

Rape has always been violent in nature and people found guilty of committing will face the charges of a category A felony. The type of penalties depend on the age of the victim. Nonetheless, all consequences include life imprisonment and a sex offender registration.

Kidnapping

Kidnapping is very complex when it comes to penalties that it can bring down. If the victim sustained injuries during the act, the kidnapping becomes a category A felony which should warrant life imprisonment. If the victim comes out unscathed, category B felony should be charged and this leads to life or 15 years of imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving for five years.

Robbery

A robbery is also one of the violent crimes in Nevada that holds a category B felony. A minimum of two years and a maximum of 15 years of prison time shall ensue once charged to the accused.

It is only fitting that violent crimes in Nevada are reprimanded through harsh penalties as to serve as a reminder of their magnitude. Now, if you are currently charged with any of the crimes mentioned above and firmly believe that you are falsely accused, work with a Las Vegas criminal defense attorney to avoid the life-altering costs.

Are there Sex Crimes Involving Domestic Battery?

Domestic violence encapsulates all types of abuse that you can think of such as battery and sexual assault. Sometimes, these kinds of maltreatment are carried out together by the perpetrator, causing the victim to suffer both physically and emotionally. Now, does committing sexual crimes during a domestic battery struggle warrant separate charges or are they all under the umbrella of domestic violence? Read this post to find out.

Sexual assault in domestic battery

Sometimes, when an abuser is committing battery such as hitting and beating, they also commit sexual assault. For example, a husband wanted sex from his wife. When she refused, the man repeatedly beat her and then forced himself on her (a.k.a. marital or spousal rape). This could count as both sexual assault and battery. However, know that they are two different entities under domestic violence and they can be an element in other similar cases. They can also be done together or be an ensuing result of one another. For instance, the female victim is injured due to forceful sexual action done by her partner that is without consent.

According to National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), intimate partner sexual assault is likely to cause more injuries than an attack from a stranger or an acquaintance.

Charges of sex crimes in domestic battery

Currently, you cannot be charged separately with sex crimes in a domestic battery case. However, if the sexual crime was too severe and it endangered or harmed a child during its perpetration, then you can be incriminated with child abuse or with the respective punishment for the sexual crime. For example, your battery was also associated with child pornography (you pimped your own child) then you will most likely be imposed with a category A felony which means life imprisonment.

If you beat your spouse and rape him or her in the process, you are committing spousal rape which is punishable under Nevada’s rape laws. This means you can both be charged with domestic violence and spousal rape; both carrying severe punishments.

Beating a spouse or any member of a family is bad enough. Interspersing it with sex crimes makes it inhuman. If accused of these actions, know that you can defend yourself if you firmly believe in your innocence. Of course, to successfully achieve acquittal, you need to have a domestic battery lawyer at your aid.

What Happens After a Domestic Violence Arrest in Nevada

An arrest for domestic violence follows the same procedure as any other seizure of an offender, the only difference is that domestic violence can be treated with caution and, sometimes, force when the perpetrator is seemingly violent. To know what happens and what one can do after one has been arrested, continue reading. 

Capture and booking

Unless the police have a probable cause to arrest you at once because of an immediate threat, an arrest warrant is needed before an official apprehension is carried out. A warrant of arrest will be issued if there is enough reason and concrete evidences. Police can do stakeouts if there are rumors of you being abusive to your family or apply for a warrant of arrest immediately when a victim shows up in the police headquarters and directly tells about a perpetrator’s abuse. Once the alleged abuser is in their hands, he or she will be taken for booking where he she will be inspected, where his or her personal information will be taken, and where he or she will be turned over for detention.

Rights of the arrested

As per the Miranda Rights, a person under arrest is entitled to keeping his or her mouth shut during the entire arrest and eventual booking. Of course, one has the right to an attorney who should help the accused and even supply the answers to the interrogating police. If dealing with a battery charge, an accused needs a domestic battery lawyer.

As the defendant, he or she also need to watch out for certain things that can be used later such as how the police treated the accused, how they went inside his or her house, and how they took evidence of domestic violence (if possible).

Arraignment and trials

A domestic violence arrest will not instantaneously turn into a trial. An arraignment or a hearing where all the charges will be explained to the defendant shall commence before the official legal proceeding. It is also in this phase where the defendant will have to plead guilty or not guilty. If he or she goes with not guilty, the case will proceed to trial. Here, the prosecutor shall prove the defendant is indeed guilty and in return the accused will dispute the claims through the use of pieces of evidence and defense statements.

If the defendant plead guilty, he or she will follow the plea bargain that preceded the decision. For example, a defendant pleads guilty of domestic violence, the charges will be reduced from felony to misdemeanor. Note that there should be enough basis for the judge to allow reduction of charges.

If there is one thing all this information denotes, it is that an accused needs a domestic battery lawyer by his or her side. A reputable one will ensure that all the steps that one will take are lawful and helpful to the case.

Intent on Battery Domestic Violence Cases

When a Las Vegas citizen is facing a battery domestic violence case, clear intent is required to convict him or her. A lot of instances of unintentional physical harm can be caused by accidents, if you believe this is how it is for your case, better get the help of a Las Vegas domestic battery lawyer to help you. Nevertheless, here are further information about the subject matter.

What is battery domestic violence?

Domestic violence consists of different elements of abuse that can be done to a person. One of the most common types of domestic abuse is battery or hitting, punching, kicking and even doing tricks to cause physical pain to a person. When you are found guilty of domestic violence carried out through battery for the first time, you could face misdemeanor charges. Now, if the offense was done for the third time in seven years, a category C felony which carries one to five years in prison, shall be imposed on you. Depending on how your domestic battery lawyer will plead your case, there is a chance that your charges will be reduced.

What is intent?

Intent is the motivation behind such actions of a person. Battery domestic violence cases require intent to be justified and the intent should be of malice or in a nature that is meant to harm a person through unwanted physical contact. However, even if there is no harm that befell a person, just the resolve to commit the act is enough to criminalize the defendant.

Having said that, the perpetrator of battery cannot be sentenced if there is no intent. You can cite this as a defense once in court. For example, at home you were swinging your arms for an exercise routine and you hit your wife in accident as she suddenly appeared. This cannot be used for your conviction as you have no way of knowing that your wife will turn up in time for the specific movement.

On the other hand, there are situations caused by negligence that could be considered as intent and be used to add to fuel your undesired criminal sentence. An example, you fail to return sharp objects scattered around the house after a construction project and your children get some cuts after stumbling on them. While you do not have any intention to harm your kids, you have the right mind to know that it can result to an accident, in one way or another.

There were at least 33 homicides in a domestic setting in Las Vegas last 2015 and we all know that these victims died due to battery. If you do not want to be a part of these staggering statistics, know that you can defend yourself with your domestic battery lawyer to come render innocent of the crimes. Intent is a powerful factor in battery domestic violence cases and if it is not ill in temperament or does not exist at all, you have a chance for acquittal.