Whatt o do if I got into a fight with my roommate because he came home under the influence of alcohol and other drugs?
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Whatt o do if I got into a fight with my roommate because he came home under the influence of alcohol and other drugs?
I had warned him several times to stop coming back home like that as I did not feel safe being around him. He pushed me and I pushed him back. No fists were thrown, we simply wrestled around for a bit and i ended up restraining him. I called his parents to notify them of what happened and he said that if I did that he would call the cops on me for assaulting him. The cops came and I got arrested and arraigned on a assault and battery charge. His parents are on my side and want all the charges to be dropped but I understand that it is the DA’s office against me and not him personally since it is a criminal case.
Asked on December 17, 2012 under Criminal Law, Massachusetts
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
The DA can pick up charges and file them, even when a victim is not cooperative. Of course, their chances are much slimmer of winning when their victim was too drunk to remember-- but some younger prosecutors will try to go forward anyhow. In the meantime, that doesn't mean you are without options. The first is to get statements from his parents (preferrably notarized). If you are comfortable talking for yourself, you can try to give these statements to the prosecutor yourself so that they can reconsider their decision to go forward.... but keep in mind that every statement you make to the prosecutor could be used against you later. If you are not comfortable talking for yourself or you are concerned about your words being twisted against you, then use a criminal defense attorney to communicate the information. You can hire one or request a court appointed attorney to help you. If you can get the correct version of events to the prosecutor, you may be able to avoid a trial altogether and get the charges dropped. Even though you feel the DA's office is against you, consider that their opinion is only based on one set of facts. Often, their assessment of a case will change as they receive a complete picture.
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