Domestic Violence Suspects to be Charged in New Orleans state court

Starting Sunday, domestic violence suspects to be charged in New Orleans state court
by Molly Reid, The Times-Picayune
Saturday March 07, 2009, 11:19 AM
Beginning Sunday, the New Orleans Police Department will arrest domestic violence suspects on state battery charges, rather than booking them in violation of city ordinances.
The move will shift domestic violence cases from municipal to criminal district court, where prosecution poses a greater threat of jail time. Through the municipal system, alleged batterers -- even repeat offenders -- were often summoned to court rather than arrested, advocates of the change have said. Defendants who pled guilty often were given probation and required to attend an intervention class, meaning that sometimes multiple offenders -- including some who inflicted serious physical harm to their victims -- never spent a day in jail, said Tania Tetlow of Tulane Law School's domestic violence clinic. The policy shift could also encourage victims to play a greater role in prosecutions, advocates have said.
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