Maryland lawmakers have increased the severity and penalties for charge of strangulation, making it a felony crime instead of a misdemeanor. This change coincided with Domestic Violence Awareness Month. If you have been charged with strangulation, you will face a tougher battle to retain your rights and freedoms.

A special unit at Frederick Health Hospital is tasked with helping to investigate by evaluating potential victims of domestic violence and the injuries they’ve sustained. The findings have shown that when strangulations occur, those victims have a 750% higher chance of dying.

According to a study conducted in San Diego of 300 cases, physical signs of strangulation were only present about 50% of the time. Those signs include:

• Redness to the neck area
• Scratch marks on the victim’s neck while clawing at the attacker’s hands
• Bruising from the imprint of fingers and thumbs
• Red spots in the eyes, skin of the neck, head, and face
• Swelling of the neck
• Raspy sound or total loss of voice

Because of the substantial increase in the likelihood of death, the state legislature increased the penalty to deter this form of violence. Strangulation used to carry a sentence of 10 years; now, the penalty is up to 25 years.

Why you need a criminal defense attorney if you are accused of strangling a partner

Being accused of domestic violence can cause a lot of collateral damage before the first charge is even levied; being accused of attempting to strangle someone will only increase the level of damage. You face the loss of your freedom, potentially for decades. You will lose your right to carry a gun, which can affect your professional license. You could lose access to educational and housing opportunities.

A criminal defense attorney will:

• Review the allegations versus the charges against you to determine whether you were properly charged.
• Obtain and review all of the evidence that law enforcement has against you to determine whether anything can be eliminated or explained away.
• Investigate your partner’s background to see whether he or she has a history of similar behavior or making unfounded allegations.
• Look for mitigating circumstances that may sway a jury should a trial become necessary.
• Interview witnesses to corroborate or refute allegations on each side.
• If facts and evidence warrant it, attempt to get a dismissal of the charges.
• Guide you in what to say or not to say to law enforcement in order to protect your constitutional rights.

Law enforcement is using every avenue at their disposal to curb domestic violence because those calls are the most dangerous for everyone involved. Because of the severity of these charges, it is critical to your case and your future that you hire a lawyer quickly.

If you or a loved one has been accused of, or charged with, domestic violence, call Carey Law Office. To schedule your consultation with attorney Joseph Carey and our fierce team of legal professionals in Bowie or Crofton, give us a call today at 301.464.2500 or reach us through our contact form to tell us your story.