Can I persuade someone to drop charges?

What is the name of your state? Virginia and I have no criminal record (yet anyway).

Recently a former neighbor offered money to my fiance if she would sleep with him. Of course she refused, but 2 days later, I seen the man who attempted to solicit her and I slapped him once, and when I did his glasses came off and apparently (according to him) broke. There were some verbal unpleasantries spoken by both of us afterwards and the whole thing was over.

However, he managed to have Assault and Battery charges brought against me, and the magistrate would not press charges against him for solicitation.

In order to avoid legal expenses that I currently cannot afford, I am considering having someone contact this man, as much as I am morally opposed to doing so, and offering him enough money to replace his glasses if he agrees to drop the charges.

My questions are-
1. Are there any possible repercussions for this? For example, if he refuses to drop the charges, will this look bad on me in court?

2. Are there any laws prohibiting me from doing this?

3. If I do not offer to pay for his glasses before court and I do not get legal counsel, what are the most likely outcomes (charges dropped, reduced, fines, etc.)?

4. Any other suggestions?


Thanks in advance for any help that someone may offer.

You slapped him, you admitted it.

You are guilty. Plea down if you can.

Have your fiance speak to an atty in your area about a sexual harassment suit against the other guy. Some areas are friendly to that sort of action whereas some others are not.

The DA can bring charges against you even if the guy you hit does not want to. That is the person you need to worry about, not the guy you hit. Making the offer to the guy you hit may help change the DA's mind. Call the DA's office and see if they will accept your offer of dropping the charges in exchange for buying new glasses for the guy you hit.

Thanks BB_Wolfe, and I may plea down, if necessary, but since the man is the one who pressed the charges, is there anything legally stopping me from trying to persuade him (through a 3rd party) to drop the charges- essentially paying for his glasses?

I spoke to an attorney who feels like he can most likely have the charges dismissed, or taken under advisement. The problem is that I can't come up with enough money that fast, but I may ask for a continuance if possible. My point in saying this is that, under the circumstances, I think that I may be able to have the charges dropped, but if I can avoid paying attorney and court costs, then I will swallow my pride and pay for this guys glasses.

As far as a civil suit goes, we haven't really had time to talk about it, but we may pursue that if we find an attorney who will not require a huge retainer- but for now, I just want to get through this. Due to job, etc., I would really like to keep my record clean.

Thanks Racer. I tried to call their office but the receptionist said that they couldn't talk to me before court. If it makes any difference, this is a Class 1 misdemeanor, so maybe they don't want to waste their time discussing it beforehand?

I had hoped that they would at least listen to my side of the story and make some sort of recommendation.

You could be charged with tampering with a witness. Once the state brings charges, it is not up to the victim, but up to the prosecutor whether to dismiss charges. Your side of the story does not show that you're innocent, but proves you are guilty. It is illegal to slap people, no matter what they say to you or yours.