Often, continuing to live with your partner after an assault charge makes things more complicated.

It is not uncommon for there to be a bond condition of “No Contact” after an arrest for Assault Bodily Injury – Married/Cohab. It is also not uncommon for there to be an Emergency Protective Order (EPO), usually in effect from 31 to 91 days. Whenever there are any conditions or orders issued by the court that say you cannot be in contact with your partner, you need an attorney to have that addressed. Even if the arrest was a result of a misunderstanding, and even if your partner does not want the District Attorney’s Office to prosecute you, these sorts of bond conditions and orders remain in effect until otherwise modified by a judge (if the judge agrees that there should be a modification). Violating the bond condition of “No Contact” or the restrictions of an active Emergency Protective Order could result in separate criminal charges, more jail time, and worse consequences for your current case.

It bears repeating that a bond condition of “No Contact” and/or an Emergency Protective Order remains in effect, even if the arrest was unreasonable and your partner does not want the prosecution to move forward with the actual charge. Where there is a bond condition of “No Contact” and/or an active Emergency Protective Order, you cannot and should not return to the same place as your partner. A criminal defense attorney should be able to request a hearing to modify (or amend) conditions of bond in respect to the “No Contact” bond condition and/or the terms of an Emergency Protective Order. Usually, if a modification is agreed upon by both the criminal defense attorney and prosecutor, and granted by the judge, the condition of “No Contact” is changed to “No Harmful or Injurious Contact.” In the absence of a final protective order issued in civil court, this modification should allow you to return home, communicate, and be with your partner without putting yourself at risk of picking up another criminal charge for violating a bond condition or protective order. If there is a condition that lists an address you must stay away from, that address should be removed as part of the modification.

Even if you are seeking to reconcile with your partner, or the arrest was the result of a misunderstanding, a judge has the authority to deny any motion to modify a “No Contact” bond condition and/or Emergency Protective Order. Sometimes, this is the case where you and your partner are not actually married, or do not have children together. A handful of factors can affect a judge’s decision to deny or grant a motion to modify conditions that currently make it unlawful for you to return home and even communicate with your partner via phone, text, email, and even a third party like a mutual friend. But if the court has made no decision to modify a “No Contact” bond condition and/or Emergency Protective Order, you must stay in compliance with the conditions as they are. Otherwise, you are placing yourself at risk for another arrest(s), another charge(s), and a lesser chance of a favorable outcome in your case for Assault Bodily Injury – Married/Cohab.