April 17, 2019
Assault and Battery on a Family Member
A wonderfully supportive mother of a young college student asked her son to clean his room. Son felt that mother’s requests were unreasonable and began videotaping mother with his phone as he lay in bed. Mother got agitated and tried to grab the phone from son. Son called police and police arrested mother. Police charged MOTHER with assault and battery. They arrested mother despite the son admitting that he bit his mother. The Essex County district attorney sought cash bail believing that the community member who had lived and worked in the area for thirty years and had no criminal record would flee the jurisdiction. Attorney Barabino asked for and received personal recognizance with some conditions pending trial. A trial was sought as the district attorney refused to dismiss the charges. Ironically, it was the mother who woke up son and drove him to court for her trial. At trial, Attorney Barabino sought that the young man be appointed a lawyer for a Fifth Amendment privilege, despite the district attorney believing that one did not exist. The judge allowed Attorney Barabino’s request and the victim asserted his Fifth Amendment right to self-incrimination. The judge dismissed the case.
Result: CHARGE DISMISSED AT TRIAL via Fifth Amendment Assertion.
