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ENM Law News: 2008 ICC charge dismissed for lack of service

by | Oct 19, 2017 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

What happens when there is an alleged violation of a civil Protection from Abuse order (PFA)? The alleged violation results in an Indirect Criminal Contempt charge (ICC). This is a criminal charge which can result in a jail sentence of up to 6 months and a $1,000 fine.

A client recently came to us because of a 2008 warrant for Simple Assault and ICC charges in Berks County. Back in 2008 this client was charged with Simple Assault and Terroristic Threats against his girlfriend and violating a PFA which was granted on the girlfriend’s behalf. The client left town without dealing with the charges and warrants were issued for his failure to appear. The client had no dealings with police or issues with the warrants until a couple of months ago when he attempted to update his immigration status and learned about the warrants. He was ineligible for a change in his immigration status while the criminal cases remained on his record so the client hired Berks County criminal law attorney Attorney Nevins to help him.

Attorney Nevins first brought the client into court to address the outstanding warrants. Once that was done, the preliminary hearing for the Simple Assault and Terroristic Threats charges was rescheduled. Attorney Nevins appeared on the client’s behalf and the charges were dismissed because the alleged victim from 2008 did not want to testify. Attorney Nevins then appeared in PFA court to represent the client for the ICC. Attorney Nevins was told that the alleged victim did want to testify for the ICC hearing. Upon reviewing the evidence against his client, Attorney Nevins noted that the client had not been properly served with the PFA back in 2008. Service of the PFA is a necessary element that the Commonwealth must prove before a defendant can be convicted of ICC. Attorney Nevins took this discovery to the Assistant District Attorney assigned to the case and convinced him to withdraw the charge.

Thanks to the hard work and attentiveness of Attorney Nevings, this client was able to leave Reading with no criminal convictions. Attorney Nevins has filed to expunge the criminal charges so that his client can move forward with his attempts to change his immigration status.

If you have a warrant for an old criminal case in Berks County or if you’ve been charged with an ICC charge for violating a PFA, contact our knowledgeable criminal law attorneys at 610-372-5128 or email us at [email protected]

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