Assault & Battery Should my girlfriend file a police report???

D

dm10017

New Member
Jurisdiction
New York
Time/ Location: About 8:40p, New Years Eve, in upstate New York.

Upon arrival to our cabin upstate, NY...we have the following folks staying around us.

A girl, JANE 26 whose older brother JOHN is married to BETTY. BETTY is friends with my gf, ANN

John has been cheating on Betty with another girl who he works with. They are in the middle of a huge disagreement and divorce is on the menu. I found this out, because I had actually kissed Jane in an intoxicated state the second night

I told this to my gf Ann who is obviously not happy but we communicated to each other and still stayed with each other without a fight or argument.

Betty with her daughter has learned about the infidelity and was communicating with her mother in law and letting her know about what is going on with her husband, John and what is about to happen considering divorce.

John was highly intoxicated and was staying with his mistress and his sister/ friend on the same grounds. At dinner around 8p Jane had been upset that Betty had contacted her mother about the situation and approaches both Betty and Ann by yelling aggressively. Jane also decides to boast and brag about kissing me, and that "I have picked her over anyone else. " Jane gets into a physical altercation with both Betty and Ann in which she grabs Anns hair and Ann grabs Janes hair. A Huge clump of hair (like my3 fingers combined) was pulled from Janes head during the altercation which lasted minutes. Ann also sustained small scratches on her face and hands.

No one had called the police that night. The issue was really the divorce about to happen and I stupidly kissed a girl that was an immature and naive person to stick her face into her sister in laws business and decide to pick a fight with her friend as well in which she ended up with the hair pulled.

Now the brother John contacted Ann to demand that she pay for damages or a police report will be filed. I am on Ann's side and she was defending herself.


Should Ann file a police report about the incident with the authorities: at all? upstate where it happened? or in NJ, where she lives.

I would appreciate any advice as I Want to make sure Ann will be alright. I told her to take pictures of her injuries but at this point because it is after the fact....is it all heresay?
 
Booze and stupidity. Inseparable.

At this point the police anywhere aren't likely to take any of this seriously.

Ann is free to tell Jane and John to pound sand and defend herself in civil court if she gets sued.
 
adjusterjack said:
Booze and stupidity. Inseparable.

At this point the police anywhere aren't likely to take any of this seriously.

Ann is free to tell Jane and John to pound sand and defend herself in civil court if she gets sued.
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I agree about booze and stupidity...coupled with a fight on ice and accidents happen. Thank you for your comment.
 
John may be touring the line for extortion. It probably would not be wise for him to do anything.

All parties involved likely need to STFU and move on.
 
dm10017 said:
Should Ann file a police report about the incident with the authorities: at all? upstate where it happened? or in NJ, where she lives.
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She could make a police report if she wanted, and the place to do that is where the fight happened as that is where the matter would be prosecuted if charges were ever brought. The problem is that I doubt any charges would be brought against anyone out of this. As the parties to the fight didn't report it immediately after, the police will rightfully believe that the matter was not one that was terribly urgent to those involved. More significantly, if the only evidence here is the testimony of the persons involved and relatives/friends/spouses/lovers of those involved there is a real problem in proving to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt who was the aggressor in the fight. Chances are the stories of the two sides will be significantly different on that point. Since all the witnesses are biased, it would be difficult for a jury to sort out which story is correct and that is a set up for the prosecution to lose. Thus, it would not be a very appealing case to a prosecutor.

dm10017 said:
I would appreciate any advice as I Want to make sure Ann will be alright. I told her to take pictures of her injuries but at this point because it is after the fact....is it all heresay?
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My first comment is that the fight sounded quite juvenile. I'd expect that of kids in middle or high school, perhaps, but not supposedly mature adults. Neither side looks particularly good here, and bringing this matter to a jury would likely not make anyone come out well.

My second thought is that all of you probably should stop talking about this incident and just let it go. Have your girlfriend treat the scratches she got and hope they heal without infection. She certainly can take photos of the injuries to help if she does get sued, though I think a lawsuit is unlikely to happen.

Finally, in the law the term hearsay (not heresay) has a very particular meaning, and that meaning is different than most of the public thinks it is. The rules of evidence have the general rule that hearsay evidence is not admissible (though there are exceptions to that). Hearsay is a statement that was made outside of court that is offered in court to help prove the truth of the matter asserted in the statement. For example, if Fred tells Barney "I saw Dave steal the phone" and then Barney is put up on the stand testify what Fred said in a trial to prove that Dave took the phone, that would not be allowed because Fred's statement to Barney was hearsay. Instead, they'd need to have Fred put up on the stand to testify about what he saw Dave do.
 
I have news that John went back up with his sister, Jane and friend (witness) over this weekend and filed a police report. The friend had reached out to me via text to ask me for Anne's specific address, as they gave her address to the police but dont have the number, They said they would have to drive down with the police and I told them to, "beat the sand" in other words and good luck. The jurisdiction is almost 4 hours up north New York so that sounded like complete nonsense...I was just curious if anyone can share the protocol. Can these people just cry bloody murder with visible injuries? [Can someone just smash their own head and go get someone arrested initially? ] Obviously an investigation and due diligence to prove but what happens in the initial period... Do the police just record the statement, will they reach out to Anne somehow? Will she have to give any information, statement, etc.?

Advice is appreciated. Many Thanks.
 
dm10017 said:
Do the police just record the statement, will they reach out to Anne somehow? Will she have to give any information, statement, etc.?

Advice is appreciated. Many Thanks.
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What the police will do is impossible to say. A lot depends on how credible they deem the report that they were given, whether the report has enough to establish a crime may have been committed, what resources the cops have and what other cases they have to work. Anne is not likely to be required to give a statement. For that she'd have to be served a subpoena. But she might be contacted and offered the opportunity to provide a statement. She likely should not say anything to the cops without the advice of an attorney.
 
Based on what you have described here I would expect minimal resources to go into this report.

There is absolutely nothing for you to do. If police want to contact anyone involved they will know how. As for the distance involved, it is not uncommon to request assistance from the local jurisdiction. If you should be contacted you have no obligation to make a statement, nor anything to gain from trying to defend yourself or explain the situation. Exercise your right to remain silent and this will go away.
 

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