Domestic Abuse Investigation

A defendant convicted of felony domestic assault will receive a presumptive stay of execution with at least 45 days incarceration. 15 days must be served consecutively. If the defendant's criminal history score raises the conviction to a presumptive execute, then the court must impose sentence. If the court does not impose the sentence, reasons for the departure must be put on the record.

Domestic Abuse Investigations
Minn Stat. 609.224
Ch. 408, Art. 3, Sec. 24

A domestic assault investigation is required if (1) defendant is convicted of committing domestic violence, or (2) committed domestic violence offense but convicted of a different offense arising from that same incident.

The investigation must include:

evaluation of defendant including circumstances of the offense
victim impact information
defendant's prior record
chemical dependency assessment
amenability to domestic abuse counseling
recommendation regarding contact with the victim
recommendation regarding domestic abuse counseling and aftercare
recommendation regarding chemical dependency evaluation and treatment if alcohol or drugs are found to be contributing factors
recommendation for other "remedial action or care" which could include educational programs, one-on-one counseling, mental health programming
consequences for failure to comply with court orders

The investigation report will be considered private data.

The investigation must be conducted by an investigator approved by the court, the local corrections department, or the Commissioner of Corrections. The investigator is not to have any direct or shared financial interest with domestic abuse treatment providers.

An appointment for an investigation is to be done as soon as possible but not more than one week after the defendant's court appearance. The investigation is to be completed within three weeks of the court date.

There is a $125 fee for the investigation. If the fee is waived or payments are allowed, the court must make written findings on the record that the defendant is indigent or that the fee would create undue hardship for the defendant or defendant's family.

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