X

Affray – s 93C Crimes Act 1900

Affray charges are considered very serious and carry serious penalties which is likely to cause you a great deal of stress.

Our specialist defence lawyers in Sydney have an enormous amount of experience, appearing daily in court for assault charges, and helped thousands of clients prove their innocence.

Our experienced experts will provide you with immediate practical and realistic advice with a focus on getting your charges dropped or downgraded before it even reaches a hearing. We have a proven successful record of getting charges dropped and downgraded over and over again which makes us specialist leaders in the industry.

Call us now on (02) 8606 2218 to book a free first consultation with an experienced Affray Defence Lawyer.

Your Options in Court

Our highly experienced expert defence lawyers can give you immediate advice on possible defences available to you for Affray charges with the best way to maximise your chances at proving your innocence.

Before you can be found guilty to affray, the police must prove beyond reasonable doubt that you used or threatened to use the unlawful violence to another person or property. The police must then prove that your actions in doing this would normally cause a person of ‘reasonable firmness’ to fear for their safety.

Defences to this charge

You are NOT GUILTY to this charge if:

  • A person of ‘reasonable firmness’ present at the scene would not fear for their safety. The person of reasonable firmness does not need to have been at the scene.
  • You acted to protect yourself in self defence after fearing for your safety, provided your actions were a reasonable response to the situation you perceived at the time. Alcohol can effect that perception and is a factor the court will take into account.
  • You were not the person involved. This will turn into an identification issue.
  • In relation to your conduct, you did not intend to use, or threaten to use violence.
  • You were not aware that your conduct may be violent or threatening.

There may be other defences available, for example, duress or necessity.

Our leading Sydney Criminal Defence Lawyers have successfully proven our clients innocence, achieved not guilty verdicts, for some of the most notorious bikie gang members in Sydney. We have a proven track record of successfully fighting these charges in court, and on actually getting the charges dropped before it even reaches a hearing.

If you decide to plead guilty to affray after receiving thoughtful and well informed advice from an experienced criminal lawyer, the next step is to begin the process of preparation for your sentence.

The following is a critical guide on how to prepare for your case to maximise your chances at getting the most lenient possible punishment. This has been prepared by our highly experienced specialist criminal lawyers to assist you.

25% discount on punishment

The earlier you enter a plea of guilty, the greater the discount you receive on your punishment. This leads to a more lenient punishment by the Judge and is called a ‘utility discount’. This is why it’s very important to receive experienced and realistic advice as early on in your case as possible.

Pleading guilty early is also considered an expression of your remorse allowing the Judge to further reduce your punishment, making a goal of getting a section 10 in some cases more realistic.

Good character references

Well drafted good character references can significantly reduce your punishment if it comes from the right people expressing the right things about you for the Judge to read. The effect of it should express your otherwise good character.

A good character reference is a letter addressed to the Judge by people who know you. Each letter should express your remorse, insight, embarrassment and write about the good things they have seen you do in the time they have known you for. This could include charity work.

Each reference should be tailored to your situation and come from people best suited to your circumstances. It can be from your partner, family member, employer or colleague, or even a letter of apology from you. Our experienced specialist lawyers will guide you in this process and only hand a reference to the judge after it’s been thoroughly reviewed first.

Negotiate to drop charges

Your charge can potentially be dropped or even downgraded to a less serious charge resulting in a much more lenient punishment.

This can be achieved by very carefully reading the police evidence, picking out every inconsistencies in it, and then tactfully approaching police with that knowledge, in a way that will maximise your chances at getting your charges dropped or downgraded early. Surprisingly, our expert lawyers have achieved this countless times while maintaining a high rate of success with a proven track record.

Negotiate facts

After pleading guilty, you will be given a punishment by the Judge after he or she reads the police facts of what you did. This is usually drafted by police and can often be one sided painting you in the worst possible light with some half truths.

For this reason, our experienced lawyers will negotiate these facts and change it to reflect you in the best possible light resulting in a much more lenient punishment. This is often achieved by our defence lawyers by only approaching the police after analysing the police evidence and pointing out all the inconsistencies and problems.

Psychologist reports

Our team of expert lawyers have hand selected a few of the best and well respected experts in psychology & psychiatry to prepare specialist court reports for you.

Guided by our expert lawyers, these reports will be used in court to explain to the Court, rather than justify, what happened, why it happened, and the reason the court should give leniency in order to set you up at the best possible chance at getting the best result.

One of the main functions of getting this kind of report is to express your insight, remorse, and whether you were suffering a mental condition at the time of the offence that will allow the Judge to reduce the punishment to get a section 10, and in other cases, to avoid prison.

Maximum penalty

The maximum penalty the court can impose for this offence is up to 10 years imprisonment if your case goes to the District Court, or up to 2 years if it stays in the Local Court.

The courts generally do not impose the maximum penalties, which is reserved for the most serious offenders. The courts often do not impose full time imprisonment and generally avoid it as a measure of last resort only. There are many other options of punishment than imprisonment noted below.

Types of penalties

Types of penalties the Judge can impose on you include any one of the following:

  1. Section 10 Dismissal
  2. Conditional Release Order
  3. Fine
  4. Community Correction Order
  5. Intensive Correction Order
  6. Full Time Imprisonment

Our leading Sydney Criminal Lawyers are extremely well versed in the law, and highly regarded for their preparation and appearances in court. They will present the most compelling and persuasive submissions to the Judge placing you in the best possible position at getting the best possible result.

Call us now on (02) 8606 2218 to book a free first consultation with an experienced Affray Defence Lawyer.

FAQ

Affray is where you commit unlawful violence towards another person where that violence would normally cause people to fear for their safety. The unlawful violence can even be just a threat or actual use of violence. This is considered a more serious offence than common assault.

Good Character Reference Guide for Court

HOW TO WRITE AN APOLOGY LETTER FOR COURT