Every year, someone is going to ask me how to get charges dropped in a domestic violence case, because they are false. As I talk to any client, I hear this multiple times during the course of the year. They are going to be asking question in such a way as if they want to have the complaining witness that they will improperly call the victim, if someone has not been convicted of anything, there is no victim, there is only a complaining witness, or to use more technically correct legal language, a complainant. The complainant cannot drop charges. Many times, they will want the complainant to go down to the state attorney’s office, and recant, or request to drop charges. The problem with this is that the office of the state attorney is waiting for them. They expect this type of thing to happen.

Will the Charges Get Dropped?

Either that is why they are well prepared, and well prepared to do things to steer the witness to a position where they are making statements that further damage the defense case, or in a manner that will make the witness unlikely to recant the charges out of fear. There will be various different things to scare the witnesses. Finally, you cannot get charges dropped. A criminal defendant does not have a method by himself or herself to where they can get charges dropped, unless they have a case that is subject to rule 3.190C4. They know how to file a motion to dismiss and avoid a traverse, and are willing to admit that everything that the other party says is true, but somehow that does not constitute a crime within the state of Florida. Therefore, as you can see, it is very technical, and by the very nature of its technicality, it is very dangerous.

If somebody is swearing to something in a motion to dismiss, and you lose the motion to dismiss the hearing, yet wish to pursue it to trial, if they try to do this on their own, there is a high degree of likelihood this will be a failure path that can damage their case. All too often, I have seen people try to handle their cases only to have them blow up in their face. This often happens when people talk to friends, and family, where someone along the lines states, “I read online somewhere that this person handled their domestic violence case and they had a great outcome”. What this person is not saying and does not notice in many cases, is the other nine cases out of ten cases where somebody handled their case on their own, and ended up with a surprised amount of jail, or even prison time depending upon how poorly they mishandled their own case.

When it comes to getting charges dismissed in a case like this, which is something you let the lawyer handle.

What Can I Do If I Am Guilty But Want The Least Punishment?

The first thing you should do is you should tell your lawyer that this is the outcome you desire if you are guilty, and you want the least punishment possible. One of the questions I have asked repeatedly for over a quarter of century has always remained the same even though I know the answer. I simply ask “What would you like as an outcome”. Quite frequently, people will give me answers that are not related to the criminal case. I would like for the person who filed these false charges to pay my legal fee. That has nothing to do with an outcome in the criminal case that is something that can be handled after the criminal case. The thing to do if someone is guilty is instead of deciding they are going to sue people for having them arrested, or all kinds of crazy things, is to contact a lawyer who knows what they are doing. Every case looks like an upside down Y.

It goes through several proceedings, and then it is going to be settled, or it is going to trial. There are various different issues, and evidentiary matters. Defenses will be explored, possibly legal pleadings will be filed of a defensive nature, but at the end of the day, the thing to do is to enter a plea of not guilty by your lawyer, and follow the lawyer’s advice. Then do the things necessary that are likely to produce the outcome that you want. For example, many lawyers, and firms do not pay attention to very important things, because they are outside of the technical field of law. Have you ever met somebody that you instantly liked or instantly did not like? That is an aspect of psychology. In law, we give people specific dress instructions for court, because I know that what someone wears when they go to court has a direct effect on whether or not they may win at trial, or get a more favorable sentence if they just want to plead guilty, or no contest.

Real World Example

Let me give you just one example. If you take a male defendant, and put that person in a navy suit with no facial hair, you are going to get the highest rate of acquittal all other things being equal. If you take that same person, they have facial hair of any kind, and you trade out a navy suit for any other color, then you are going to find the risk of an adverse sentence with more of a twenty-five percent jump in punishment. Yet most of my colleagues in law are not talking about the importance of dress instructions for court. This implies with every client we represent. They get a written copy for both men, and women for specific dress instructions for court, that are to be followed exactly, because the person sitting in the prosecutor’s chair, or the judge’s chair is going to have a series of prejudices that they are not aware of.

The unconscious feelings and biases can be favorably tweaked by using what we call dress instructions for court. Another impact that will help a case is to make sure that your mind is in the right place. Instead of researching the law, and frankly wasting you, and your lawyer’s time when you bring them a legal case that is forty years out of date, or it does not apply to your facts and circumstances, the most important reading and researching that someone can do is master their emotional state. We call it coping with stress during criminal prosecution, because no one wants to be the person who on a Thursday did not have his mind in the right place at the right time, and say the wrong things that caused the judge to reject the settlement offer.

When they come back on Monday, and the man entered this plea of no contest successfully instead of getting four years of probation, you received thirty-five years in prison. Having the correct dress for court, having your mind in the right place, following the advice of your attorney, these things are critical to success, and they are in and of themselves the most effective way to get the best outcome in a criminal case with the least punishment.

Disclaimer: This article is in response to questions frequently asked of Mr. Cobb and is an unedited dictation transcript. Just like talk to text on your smartphone, there may be misspelled words or sentence fragments.

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