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From the Gavel Daily newsroom

Is Self-Defense Still an Option When Both Partners Were Injured?
Domestic ViolenceOct 21

Is Self-Defense Still an Option When Both Partners Were Injured?

A Casper, Wyoming jury acquitted a man of strangulation and domestic battery after a trial where both people were hurt. Here is how self-defense works when injuries cut both ways, and who has to prove what.

Domestic ViolenceOct 20

Who Still Has to Pay Cash Bail on a Houston Misdemeanor?

A federal judge refused on October 5, 2026 to end the ODonnell consent decree. Most people arrested on a Harris County misdemeanor still go home without paying cash. Family violence, protective order and repeat DWI cases are handled differently. Here is who gets released and who gets a hearing.

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Domestic ViolenceSep 28

What Happens When the Victim Wants to Drop Domestic Violence Charges?

The accuser says they want to take it back, but the case keeps moving. Here's why the prosecutor, not the complaining witness, controls a domestic violence case, and which evidence can be used without their testimony.

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Domestic ViolenceSep 23

What to Do the Day a No Contact Order Lands in Florida

A Florida no contact order takes effect the moment it is handed to you, and on October 1, 2026 breaking one becomes a crime of its own rather than just a bond problem. Here is what counts as contact, what the new law adds, and the moves that matter in the first 24 hours.

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Domestic ViolenceSep 17

Domestic Violence Gun Rights: Why a Misdemeanor Conviction Ends Them for Life

A misdemeanor domestic violence plea can look like the cheap way out of a case. Under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9) it is the one disposition that ends firearm possession permanently, with no police or military exemption, and most people find out years later at a gun counter.

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Domestic ViolenceSep 14

How a Domestic Violence Misdemeanor Moves From No-Contact Order to Trial

A stage-by-stage domestic violence case timeline for a misdemeanor charge: the hold, the no-contact order, arraignment, discovery, confrontation rights, plea offers and trial.

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