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Misdemeanor Assault and Battery

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Dwaltony

Junior Member
I currently reside in Massachusetts. This incident must be prefaced with something that happened earlier in the night. My friend and I were at a party and took a taxi home because we had been drinking. I got into the cab after my friend and I assumed he informed that cabbie that neither of us had cash and asked if we could use a credit card. I told the cabbie where to go but he got lost in the exact same part of town he was hired to work. When we got back to my apartment, the till read 80 dollars, double what it should cost. I asked the cabby if he took a credit card. At this point, he locked the doors, slammed the barrier shut, and took off. He pulled up next to some police cars and told them what happened. I couldn't hear exactly what was said and, to be honest, I couldn't really understand him to begin with. I talked to the cops and told them what happened. The cabbie agreed to be paid only 40 dollars (which I find interesting, as he demanded that we pay him 80 when no officers were around. I got cash out of the ATM and he drove us home while the cops followed.

Once back at our apartment, a friend and I were about to enter my apartment when two males got off the elevator. One of them yelled something down the hall that I could not make out, but it was obviously not polite. I yelled back and one of them responded by saying he has "kicked the **** out of people bigger than me before" as he walked towards me. I started walking towards him and his friend tried to hold him back. He got by him and came towards me. As we got closer, he took a swing at me and hit me on the jaw while sort of pushing me at the same time. My balance wasn't the best as I had been drinking and I slammed into the wall, causing a dent. I tackled him and we rolled around on the ground. No more punches were thrown. Both his friend and my friend pulled us away from each other. He proceeded to tell me that he "was going to kill me" and that he would "shoot me" with his gun. I didn't make much of it but started to walk away. He ran to his apartment and got his older brother. I turned back when he continued to yell stuff, with no intention of fighting (I know I should have just walked away and wish I had). No further physical altercations happened, but he continued telling me that he would "kill me" by shooting me with his brothers gun. Realizing that this was not the best situation to be in, I walked away and my friend and I entered our apartment.

Not 20 minutes later the police were knocking at my door and began questioning us, the same officers who we had dealt with earlier. Two talked to me in the apartment while another questioned my friend in the hall. I told them exactly what happened, making sure to reiterate the point that he had threatened to shoot me. Once they were done questioning me I walked out into the hall to see what was going on with my friend. The officer outside was telling my friend that it was a bull **** story and that he didn't believe him. One of the officers then told me that he "heard me talking about how I beat up some kid" through my apartment door. I'm not sure how this was possible considering I had been in my bedroom, with the door closed, talking to a girl on the phone while my friend was watching TV in the living room by himself. I received a statement today saying that I was being charged with Assault and Battery. No one was injured in the altercation. I have an appointment in front of a magistrate to decide whether or not anything further should happen. The note that I recieved states that the officer was the Complainaint and the Complainant type was Police, not citizen, which leads me to believe that it was the officer who deemed this necessary. I am wondering what I should from here on out. I have no prior record other than when I was in college. A friend of mine stole a fire extinguisher and we were stopped by University of Albany police walking back to our car, a classic case of wrong place wrong time. This resulted in an ACD charge which means that my record was cleared as long as I fulfilled community service requirements and had no further troubles for the next 6 months, so I assume that is no longer on my record.

I am wondering what to do. I do have a job and make fairly good money, but 80 percent of it is tied up in Student Loans and Rent. I do not have the money to hire an expensive lawyer. The other problem is that my witness, my friend, lives in Seattle so I would have to fly him out. Essentially it comes down to the police report against my word, but I was not sent any kind of report with the notice telling me I had this appointment. What should I do? Should I get a lawyer? Should I fly my friend out? Should I try and get a public defender? Should I be worried? I really don't understand how this all happened, as I didn't throw a punch, didn't threaten anyone with a gun, and left the scene while the other party was still upset. Any and all help is fully appreciated.
 



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