When two people have spent a fair amount of their time building their lives together and then something goes wrong, it can bring out sides of those same two people that are often surprising and downright ugly. The fact is, it is not at all uncommon for a messy divorce to involve some pretty dirty tactics from both parties and even criminal charges are a possibility. To make sure your messy divorce does not also land you with an arrest and the need for a criminal law attorney, there are some things you should know. Check out these reasons you could be charged with a crime during a messy divorce.
You and your spouse get into a physical altercation.
There is never really an excuse for domestic violence, but if the two of you are still in the same home when you are going through a divorce, tensions can run really high and things can get out of hand really quickly. A physical altercation on any level at this time is most assuredly a bad idea. If your spouse ends up with injuries, no matter how much at fault he or she may be or if they are self-inflicted, you could end up with an assault charge on your hands. If it is hard for the two of you to get along and you think things are going to get physical, it is always best to get out and defuse the situation.
You decide you want to snoop around and find out what your spouse is doing.
You want to know why things have turned sour, if your spouse has a new love interest, or even how they are spending their money, so you start doing your own investigating. You add a tracking device to their car, install monitoring software on their computer, or even hide a private spy camera in the house. Believe it or not, some of these things can actually get you charged with a crime in some states.
You hide assets from the family law judge.
You are facing the possibility of splitting half of your assets or even paying alimony based on how much money you have and what you own. So you quietly tuck away some of your possessions in someone else's name or transfer your money from one account to a new account under an alias. This may all sound like a good idea, but if the judge catches on that you are trying to hide assets, you could definitely be facing criminal charges.
If you find yourself dealing with criminal charges in addition to your divorce, contact an attorney such as Robert A Murray.
