I have a friend who’s boyfriend wouldn’t leave her alone and her father came to her house with a gun and ordered him to leave. That was a little over a month ago, now the guy is trying to press charges against him saying he pointed the gun towards him. I’m thinking because he didnt call right away and that it was on her property nothing will be done, but my friend is freaking out and i want to calm her down. Thanks ahead of time.
Depends on the location, but he could be charged with assault with a deadly weapon, in most states. I’m unsure of the statute of limitations, however.
As a new attorney, 1st every jurisdiction is different. You can order a person off your property & it can be by an agent of your choosing. The issue is what was said, where the gun was pointed etc. Did the father politely say, for example -“Leave now, & if there is a problem I have a gun.” Or did he point the gun & threaten to kill the guy? There is not enough info given. I agree the passage of time is good for no police action. As is 2 witnesses against one, as there is sure to be a dispute as to what happened.
I know that in Texas, you may legally shoot a person who appears to be trying to break into your car, even if that car is parked on the street (i.e., not on your private property, no tresspassing involved). Ain’t nobody gonna steal my hoss, dangit! But I think even Texan courts would cringe at a case like this – we’re dealing with someone who took a gun from his own residence, and then traveled to another person’s residence, with the intention of threatening bodily harm to someone with said gun.
If the boyfriend attempted assault, and the gun was not directly pointed at him at any time, the father will probably get off clean. Otherwise, he may have a legal battle ahead of him. But as no-one was hurt, and what was going on at his daughter’s house before he got there seems kind of shady, jail time doesn’t seem terribly likely.
I’m pretty sure there are very, very few crimes whose statute of limitations is as little as one month. Certainly not assault with a deadly weapon, probably not going equipped to commit a crime (I know that’s the British term, but there’s a US equivalent, right?)
There is a very, very simple answer here: Get a lawyer. No one on this message board is anywhere near competent to give you advice on this topic. We don’t know nearly enough facts, and we don’t know where this occured (as noted above, the legal analysis depends on which state you’re in). Also, I expect most of us are not experts in criminal law of this nature – I know I certainly am not. You need someone who understands the law in your area and is fully conversant with all the facts of the case. That means you need to hire a lawyer. (Or rather, your friend does.)
–Cliffy
I agree with Cliffy, and will add one more thing. A good lawyer may be able to use personal connections with cops and DAs to ensure that charges against your friend’s father are never brought. If you find a lawyer with such connections, whether your friend’s father technically broke the law will quickly become irrelevant.
That being said…based only on the facts you gave us, I don’t think that your friend’s father has too much to worry about. If the ex-boyfriend goes to the cops with the story, they will likely start looking pretty carefully at him (“why did her father need to come over to protect her?”). To head the ex off at the pass, your friend might want to consider filing for a restraining order against him–but only if she feels like she is in physical danger from him.
-db
Ditto to what Cliffy said. The message board is useful for entertainment and general edification about the law, but for real life legal problems you need advice from a competent attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.
I doubt this claim. Do you have any evidence of it?
All you’ll get here is a bunch of educated (and not-so-educated) guesses. Your friend’s dad needs a lawyer, but I wouldn’t bother with one until he’s actually charged with something.