A 31-year-old man from Clarkston in Oakland County, MI has been arrested for assaulting his girlfriend and smashing the windshield of her car. Police say that the domestic violence happened as a result of an argument between the pair, because she wouldn’t lend him her car.
According to Bloomfield Township Police, officers were called to the scene of a domestic disturbance at 2:30 am, by a woman who had been beaten up by her boyfriend. When officers arrived, the woman explained that Andy Fugate had tried to take her car.
She told officers that she hadn’t wanted him to drive because she was concerned that he had had too much to drink and may get into an accident. But it appears that Fugate didn’t agree with his girlfriend’s assessment of his sobriety.
When she refused, he forcibly took the keys from her, assaulted her, and then jumped up and down on the car’s windshield to break it, before finally driving away in the vehicle. According to the police report, Fugate “punched, and jumped on the windshield until it was completely shattered.”
Officers began searching for Fugate, and found him not long afterwards on Woodward Avenue. He was driving the car he had taken from his girlfriend, but was only travelling about 30 miles per hour, and was unable to stay in his designated lane. An officer pulled him over and arrested him.
Smith was transported to the Oakland County Jail, where he remains after being granted a $100,000 bond by Judge Diane D’Agostini. He appeared before Judge D’Agostini in the 48th District Court recently, where he was arraigned on numerous charges.
These include Domestic Assault, Malicious Destruction of Property, Operating while Intoxicated, and Driving on a Suspended License. Fugate entered a plea of ‘Not Guilty’ to all of the charges, and was scheduled to reappear in court for his next hearing on September 21, 2016.
For those of you who may be unclear on the difference between Assault and Domestic Assault, we will break it down simply for you. Domestic violence, or Domestic Assault happens when a person assaults or batters any person who in a domestic relationship with them.
This means that the only difference between a standard assault charge and a domestic assault charge is the victim’s relationship to the batterer. Also, it is important to remember that the victim need not be injured for the prosecutors to bring a domestic assault charge. That will often make this a ‘he said, she said’ situation.
Being falsely accused of domestic assault is a terrible experience It is often a case of nothing more than the word of the alleged victim against yours and cops sometimes jump to quick conclusions about who to arrest and charge.
If you or a loved one have been falsely accused of domestic violence, assaulting a spouse or partner, or any other assault charges, contact our office immediately. This kind of case is going to need an experienced attorney, which is exactly what our Kronzek Firm has. Attorneys with decades of experience and skills that have been honed through years of diligent hard work and countless successes. Call us today at 1 866-766-5245.