Bill Murray and Domestic Violence

Posted on: June 2, 2008 at 4:19 p.m.

Bill Murray, star of Ghostbusters, Scrooged and Lost in Translation, recently found out his wife filed for divorce. Some of his wife's reasons for wanting a divorce included allegations of physical abuse as well as Murray's own problems with drugs and alcohol.

Allegations such as domestic violence tend to arise during divorce proceedings, although they sometimes turn out to be either false or taken widely out of context. Domestic violence is a serious matter, and Murray's wife could also bring him up on criminal charges if these allegations are true and can be proven in court.

In California, domestic violence carries with it some heavy penalties, although the severity of punishment depends upon whether the charge is a felony or misdemeanor. The penalties for a domestic violence conviction can include fines of up to $10,000, jail time and/or community service and up to a ten year ban on the use of fire arms (amongst other actions). This is only for a first time offense, further convictions can lead to not only increases fines and penalties, but also the possibility of being convicted under California's Three Strikes laws, which can carry a life sentence.

As is the case in this instance, drug and alcohol dependency and abuse are often involved in domestic violence matters. Submitting to treatment programs before a trial and help in these matters as it shows the court a repentant attitude and that the individual is willing to seek help to stop this behavior.

If you're facing a domestic violence charge and you need assistance in your defense, contact the attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP.

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Comments:

johnna fleischman on February 25, 2011 at 8 a.m. wrote:

it is legal rape. you lose your kids, your home, your job, you cant even get an attorney if you have no resorces other than those shared by your accuser. the law is laughing at us. this crown jewel of the womens movement is going to be our undoing because it helps victimize victims even more making it impossible to leave and start over.

Getting An Ex Back on May 25, 2010 at 8:19 p.m. wrote:

Pretty Fascinating publish. Couldnt be written any much better. Reading this post reminds me of my old room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this publish to him. Fairly sure he will have a good study. Many thanks for sharing!

johnna fleischman on February 26, 2010 at 3:04 p.m. wrote:

Domestic violence laws are out of control. It is not helping the victims. In most cases it is used to completly control an intimate partner and to legally strip them of averything including their selfesteem. Abusive people are very good at this and thrieve on their new power. Leaving victims even more hopeless, and helpless. The new laws require no evidence other than the statement of someone filing the complaint. The police if they don't arrest you make you leave the home for as many as 7 days. They don't care if you do not have family, money, food, or even shoes on when you are made to leave. If you are arrested you can not get an attorney or be released if you have no where to go. the victim has control of your money so you are at the mercy of the system and your supposed victim can destroy everything you hold dear and when you finally are released they have this peaceful contact order that is used every time they want want to remind you how much control thay have over your life. I know firsthand. The laws serve the system and are a tool for gaining unfair control over another. The reason that these laws are able to remain in effect is that most people want to beleive that our system would not allow people to be victimised like this with out real proof.

Patriot on August 17, 2009 at 6:57 a.m. wrote:

Domestic violence is a business and an industry in this country. Laws on the surface which were designed to protect battered women are now used as a method to gain advantage in custody disputes and or distribution of assets during divorce. Most all claims of domestic violence are absolutely false and misleading to the general public. The public is duped into believing that domestic violence is an ever growing problem and concern in this county when it is not. The goal of the indusrty profiteers is to break up the family unit and ultimately transfer the wealth of the family unit to that of the lawyers and others who surround the divorce industry. For the domestic violence advocate the need to constantly perpetuate the image that domestic violence is effecting every married couple keeps their federal and state dollars flowing to them in order to solve problems that do not exist. Consider that there are already laws against assault that are in every state so there is no need for special domestic violence courts to prosecute every subjective claim made.

DUKE on September 1, 2008 at 8:27 a.m. wrote:

I need help answering questions. I had to plead no contest to d.v. Last year I called the local law enforcement to make a report of d.v. I did not want my wife arrested. Law enforcement only came after my wife reported d.v. in revenge (once she found out I was in contact with L.E.). This was 19 hours after she left the house,and 6 hours after I called the L.E. A police station 1 mile from our home, which she did not go to.Then one month later police arrested me with violation of R.O. I had someone serve my wife with a responce to the R.O. to get me back in my home (kickout orders), a coworker and management of my wives work stopped the serve. My server asked what do I want to do? I had her call 9-1-1. They did not come for us, only for my wife when she called. After law enforcement failed to give this calls up in a discovery of evidence, I had to plead. Where can I go from here. I would like to get copies of these calls. How can I do it?

Patriot on July 1, 2008 at 1:08 p.m. wrote:

Claims of domestic violence are used all the time in divorce actions. All lawyers who practice matrumonial law know this dirty little secret of telling their client , in subtle or direct ways to file the fales (and in most cases subjective ) claims of domestic violence. What this does is criminalize the defendant, while he looses the kids, assets, income and most horrific reputation. All based on a false claim! And if it is proven to be false and the case dismissed, the courts and all the profiteers that surround the industry encourage the claim to be made again. By doing this it generates money for the states and helps keeps the federal and state grant money coming in. The best part is for the lawyers, filing a fale DV gives the lawyers a lock in case that is forced through the adversarial process and drains the family units net worth into the pockets of the lawyers. Its all legal, thanks to feminist juris prudence. Families and men in particular are looked down upon by the courts as every day more men are criminalized and children loose a parent to false claims. Men loose their kids and family for having done nothing wrong. Marriage does not exist in this country any longer because the law is there and passed to encourage the break up of the family. Remember we need a village to raise the kids. Its not about the children. Its about keeping the federal dollars coming in.

Luiza Melikyan on June 12, 2008 at 3:34 p.m. wrote:

It is interesting to note that he was charged with the domestic violence after their divorce. I wonder if she had called the police or gotten any type of help prior to the convictions? What type of evidence would she be able to provide? Of course, since Bill Murray is a celebrity, domestic violence could not be reported so vehemetly because it would trigger the media. Non-reported domestic violence is probably common in celebrities because of their high-profile status and risk of ruining their reputation.

Samantha Chen on June 10, 2008 at 9:53 a.m. wrote:

Even though I am unfamiliar with cases of spousal abuse, I do have friends that have fallen victim to abuse from a parent. I feel that it might be easier to prove abuse between a parent and child than that between adults, since there can often be another parent witness. Also, hospitals and schools seem to be extremely careful when it comes to cases of abuse and take every precaution when there is evidence of abuse. Even when my younger sister used to get bruised on the playground, everytime my sister went to the doctor they would separate my mom from my sister and question her to inquire of abuse. Though annoying because there was no abuse occurring in the household, it showed that when public organizations are able to detect any form of abuse, they are extremely careful. I feel that domestic violence is terrible, and even though difficult to prove, they should take every measure to try and find the truth. It has severely damaged the mental stability of a couple of friends of mine, and I am glad to see that it can be punished with legal severity.

Gabe Rose on June 7, 2008 at 2:19 p.m. wrote:

I too am quite curious about the burden of proof for domestic violence. I would imagine that calling the police, or a record of calling the authorities, would be an important part, as well as perhaps testimony from friends and neighbors who could credibly claim knowledge of abuse. Domestic violence just seems like such a huge problem, particularly because of its tendency to go unreported. Certainly a difficult case I'm sure, for both the defense and the prosecutor, due to what I would imagine is the he-said, she-said nature of most cases... similar to the statutory rape post.

Nahal Hamidi on June 6, 2008 at 3:34 p.m. wrote:

I am very surprised to find out that once the police arrive at a domestic violence or spousal abuse call, the situation quickly escalates. I was under the impression that if the victim decides to press charges then the case will continue, but I was not aware that it is not up to the victim anymore. From my knowledge of abusive relationships, this is a very wise decision because most victims of domestic violence are afraid to upset their abuser and may even regret even calling the police. But the fact that it is no longer in their hands relieves the stress of the situation where the victim can no longer be persuaded to drop the charges by the abuser. The only problem in this law lies in those who make false accusations of domestic violence out of revenge or to gain leverage in a custody battle and do not realize the serious consequences of their actions. I am pleased to see that domestic violence in California is not taken lightly.

Kelly Donohue on June 6, 2008 at 2:49 a.m. wrote:

I am not familiar with cases of domestic violence at all and so what I wonder is, how much evidence would someone like Murray's wife have to provide in order to prove domestic violence? Would it simply require a compelling accusation? There is a possibility that she has documented the abuse and has solid evidence, but what if she does not? She may not have taken pictures of the bruising or scars that were caused. Isn't it then just one person's word over another? Does the court tend to side with the woman's word? After all, she may have been too scared to fight back years ago, but has now found the courage to take action. That being said, can she bring in instances that took place many years ago? Though this is a serious offence, you would think that the court would also be sensitive to claims of domestic violence, hoping to never dismiss someone who has really been a victim of domestic abuse, simply because the evidence is lacking. What is equally concerning to me in this specific case, however, is that domestic violence may simply be a false claim Murray's wife is making in attempts to acquire more money from her notably wealthy husband.

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