Understandably, violent crimes are taken very seriously by law enforcement in Gwinnett County and throughout Georgia. Flipping through the local police log often provides snippets of the crimes residents are accused of, such as theft, drugs, or domestic violence. Many times, the public is never given an update, and may have a difficult time finding out if an accused person was ever convicted in criminal court.
There has been an idea circulating among victims of domestic violence and advocates on their behalf to establish a nationwide database of convicted domestic abusers. The idea is that if a person has a record of committing violence against others, it would be easy for others to be made aware of the potential danger. Similar databases already exist for other sorts of crime, like animal cruelty.
While the database is meant to prevent other people from becoming victims, and hold abusers publicly accountable for violence, such a database may also help the accused. Currently, if a person is accused of domestic violence, he or she may worry that the accusation will affect their good reputation with family, friends, employers and the community. If no conviction results, the individual would not be added to the database, making it easier to restore his or her reputation.
Those accused of domestic violence in Georgia may be unsure of the steps necessary to protect their legal rights. In many cases, people accused of such crimes turn to an experienced criminal defense attorney for help. A lawyer can help an accused client defend his or her innocence while pursuing the best possible result given the circumstances presented.