Nothing is worse than being charged with an offense. That said, most people do not know that even after they have been accused of a violation, they still face the risk of being subject to additional charges if held in contempt of court. What does contempt of court mean? This blog explains the subject in detail. Also, contact an attorney to know more about how they can help you with contempt court matters.

An Overview of Civil and Criminal Contempt

Contempt of court, or simply contempt, is engaging in conduct that disrespects or disrupts a court proceeding or the willful disobedience of a court order. Contempt is divided into two types— civil and criminal contempt.

Civil contempt is the willful disobedience of any judge-issued order. The remedy for being guilty of civil contempt is a possible jail term and a fine. The jail term and fine are not meant as a punishment. Instead, these sanctions aim to make an individual comply with the court order, restore the legal rights of the individual who was wronged by the defendant’s failure to comply with a valid court order, or move an underlying proceeding along. Examples of acts that may result in you being held in civil contempt of court are, without limitation:

  • Not paying child support as the court directed.
  • Violation of a validly court-issued restraining order.
  • Failing to appear in court as required for proceedings.
  • Neglecting to join or attend parenting classes as directed by the court.
  • Failing to obey the child visitation timetable as the court ordered.
  • Failing to produce particular documents before the court.

Criminal contempt refers to conduct that disrespects, disobeys, undermines, or attacks the court’s integrity, dignity, and authority. In California, criminal contempt is described under PC 166. Under this law, doing any of the following will result in you being held in criminal contempt:

  • Publishing a false account of court proceedings.
  • Violating a judge-issued protective, or stay-away, order that involves dependent adult and elder abuse or domestic violence cases.
  • Declining to take an oath as one of the eyewitnesses.
  • Refusal to answer crucial and significant questions at a court proceeding when the law does not exempt you.
  • Engaging in rude, loud, or disrespectful acts disrupts a court hearing.
  • Willfully failing to comply with a valid written court order.
  • Taunting the clerk of the court or breaching the peace.
  • Willfully failing to obey the terms and conditions of an injunction.
  • Insulting the court judge.
  • Talking to the jurors inappropriately.

Whereas PC 166 lists several behaviors that qualify as criminal contempt, the most prevalent violation is failing to comply with an order issued by the court.

The distinction between civil and criminal contempt is not always definite. Judges have wide discretion in classifying contempt acts and consider given factors. For example, we have seen that disobeying a legal court order may fall under both criminal and civil contempt. Judges use different aspects when determining whether an act falls under civil contempt or criminal contempt of court, including the type of the underlying case (is it a criminal or civil case?) and how severe the contemnor’s act is. 

Additionally, judges generally enjoy the discretion of deciding who to accuse of contempt and what type of contempt they will be held. Parties the judge may hold in contempt of court include jurors, witnesses, any party to a court proceeding, a person in/around a court proceeding, lawyers, and officers/staff of the court.

Criminal Contempt Prosecution

A criminal contempt charge becomes a separate charge from the underlying case, which is not the case in civil contempt. Also, under civil contempt, we mentioned that judges impose different remedies to compel the person in contempt into adhering to the judge-issued order they have violated and not as punishment, but things are different under criminal contempt. If a person is accused of criminal contempt, the penalties are punitive. This means the penalties aim to deter future contempt acts by punishing the contemnor regardless of what happens in the underlying case. A person guilty of contempt cannot secure their release by deciding to adhere to the court.

If someone is accused of criminal contempt, they generally have their legal rights guaranteed, including the constitutional right to a lawyer, the right to a jury trial in given cases, and the right to present a defense. The prosecution must prove criminal contempt charges beyond any reasonable doubt. For example, the prosecution must demonstrate the following facts beyond doubt if you have been accused of criminal contempt for failing to comply with a court order:

  • A court issued a lawful order.
  • You knew the order was out against you.
  • You possessed the present ability to adhere to the order’s terms and conditions.
  • You willfully neglected to do as required.

As concerns knowing that the court had issued an order, the prosecution must demonstrate that you knew about the legally-issued order and even had the time to read it. Willfully, on the other hand, means doing an act on purpose or willingly. It is essential to remember that children and adults can face prosecution for failing to adhere to a legally-issued order.

The Penalties of Criminal Contempt

Generally, violating PC 166 is deemed a misdemeanor violation punishable by not more than six months in jail, a maximum fine of one thousand dollars, and informal probation for three years. However, particular incidents result in highly severe penalties. These incidents include:

  • Possessing or owning a gun when a court-issued order forbids it.
  • Violating a criminal restraining, stay-away, or protective order in a domestic violence case.
  • Violating a protective order with a past stalking conviction.

The violation will still be considered a misdemeanor in these cases, although the jail sentence will increase from six months to 12 months.

A second/subsequent violation of a court-issued order is prosecuted as a wobbler violation if:

  1. The previous crime was committed in less than seven years and involved a violent act or credible threats of violence.
  2. The court order was linked to elder/dependent abuse, sexual harm to a minor, or domestic violence.

Wobblers are crimes the prosecutor can try as felonies or misdemeanors, depending on the circumstances surrounding the specific accusation and the defendant’s criminal history. In this case, the penalties will include not more than 12 months in jail if found criminally liable for a misdemeanor. And if criminally liable for a felony, you will face sixteen months, three, or two years of a state prison sentence.

Note that incarceration for criminal contempt may start before the court adjudicates contempt charges and determines the sentence. Depending on the jurisdiction and case facts, the judge who charged you with contempt may preside over the contempt proceedings.

Generally, a criminal contempt conviction will not have negative immigration repercussions like other crimes. Some California violations lead to an immigrant defendant being subject to inadmissibility or deportation. These offenses include crimes of moral turpitude and aggravated felonies. Luckily, criminal contempt violations are not these kinds of crimes.

Also, a criminal contempt conviction does not often affect your right to bear arms. California law states that a conviction of some violations, like felonies, leads to a convicted defendant forfeiting their constitutional right to own/possess a gun. Criminal contempt is, however, not considered one of these violations.

The good news is that you can request a conviction record expungement even if you are eventually convicted of criminal contempt. Record expungement is possible if you successfully served your jail or probation sentence, whichever applies. Remember that a record expungement eliminates most challenges accompanying a criminal conviction, like difficulty securing a job, renting an apartment, securing a loan, or enrolling in college.

You Can Defend Fight Criminal Contempt Charges

You can challenge the criminal contempt charges against you by asserting a solid legal defense. Remember, the burden of proving that you committed criminal contempt lies with the prosecuting attorney. Prevalent legal defenses you can argue with the help of your lawyer are:

You Did Not Commit Contempt Willfully

As to charges of violating a judge-issued order, remember that you must have deliberately disobeyed the order for a contempt conviction to occur. This means your skilled lawyer can help you argue that you did not purposely fail to comply with an order. For example, suppose a judge issues a legal order directing you not to interact with your work colleague. One evening, you accidentally bump into your colleague at a hotel. Here, you cannot be guilty of criminal contempt because you did not willfully make contact with your colleague.

It Was Not Disorderly Conduct

Note that PC 166 lists specific conduct that qualifies as disorderly conduct. That means you can prove you are not guilty by asserting that your action did not meet the standard of unruly behavior described under the law.

False Allegations

False allegations are usually common under PC 166. This is mainly true in failing to comply with a court-issued order when a romantic relationship has ended badly and one party seeks revenge on the other. Therefore, arguing that someone unjustly accused you of contempt is legally allowed.

Comparing Civil and Criminal Contempt

Civil contempt of court and criminal contempt have various similarities and differences. One way in which they are similar is that both may result in criminal and civil proceedings. Both criminal and civil contempt cases can proceed independently of the proceedings from which the contempt charges arose.

One prevalent misconception is that criminal contempt of court involves the judge imposing penalties, whereas civil contempt does not. Both criminal and civil contempt of court might entail the judge imposing fines and some kind of imprisonment or detention. It is only the purpose of these penalties that differs.

Criminal contempt of court and civil contempt of court differ in their consequences, required standard of proof, objectives, presidential pardons, due process rights, and defenses.

Consequences— under criminal contempt, punishment is generally final. That means the court cannot lift it by the defendant rectifying the mistake or promising never to repeat the contemptuous conduct. Conversely, civil contempt punishment can be conditional. In most cases, the court might lift the contempt charges plus the imposed penalty when the defendant fully complies with the legal order or when the underlying case is resolved. For example, if you are arrested for concealing evidence in your custody, you could be released right after you produce it. Sometimes, apologizing to the judge might even suffice.

Required standard of proof—the standard of proof necessary to prove civil contempt of court is ‘clear, convincing evidence’ That means the evidence submitted will likely substantiate that the defendant was indeed in civil contempt. Meanwhile, the standard of proof required to prove criminal contempt is ‘beyond any reasonable doubt.’ This is a much higher standard than clear, convincing evidence.

Objectives— civil contempt accusations aim to compel the defendant to obey a court-issued order. On the contrary, criminal contempt charges aim to penalize the defendant for being disrespectful to the court’s dignity or authority. This distinction also relates to the imposed monetary penalties or fines. If the fine or penalty intends to reimburse the victim, it is deemed civil contempt. And if it aims to penalize the individual who was in contempt, it is considered criminal contempt of court.

Presidential pardons— a person accused of criminal contempt of court may be eligible for a presidential pardon. On the contrary, this relief option is often unavailable in civil contempt charges.

Due process legal rights— contrary to civil contempt, cases of criminal contempt of court are considered criminal violations, and judges try to solve them as criminal proceedings. Therefore, a person accused of criminal contempt has the right to the constitutional due process protections guaranteed to people charged with an offense. These include, without limitations, the legal right to a lawyer (and for one to be appointed for them if they cannot afford one), jury trial, confronting their accuser, and being presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Generally, defendants held in civil contempt should be issued a notice of the contempt sanctions and a chance to argue their case, but a trial by the jury is not usually guaranteed for them.

Defenses— if accused of civil contempt of court, you may argue the ‘impossibility’ defense when you are incapable of complying with the order. This legal defense is unavailable in criminal contempt cases merely because the latter entails an overt act, not a failure act.

Indirect and Direct Contempt

Contempt can be indirect or direct. Indirect contempt of court is committed outside the court. On the other hand, direct contempt of court is committed close to the judge or court, or in the presence of either, for example, during a proceeding. An example of direct contempt is yelling at the judge in a manner that disrespects the court and obstructs the court's capability to function.

Civil contempt usually happens indirectly, for example, when a person is directed to turn over financial records within 30 days but fails to comply. Other examples of indirect contempt are improperly talking to jurors outside the court, declining to pay child support as the court directed, and declining to hand over subpoenaed evidence. Indirect contempt of court is sometimes called consequential or constructive contempt.

How Contempt can Impact Your Underlying Charges

You will be subject to two separate cases if you have an unresolved case and have been held in contempt. For example, if you have been charged with a drug violation and are held in contempt, you will now simultaneously face drug violation and contempt charges. Even if you are eventually acquitted of drug charges, you will still face the consequences of criminal contempt charges if found guilty.

Contempt can affect your underlying case. Consider this example: suppose you have been accused of DUI, and the judge granted bail with certain conditions, such as installing an ignition interlock device or not breaking any other law. In this case, contempt charges for failure to appear for court proceedings may lead to the court finding different ways to enforce bail conditions. That means it might order more restrictive bail conditions, such as the need to be under house arrest with electronic monitoring or put on a SCRAM (Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor).

Contempt may also have you be subject to more severe penalties than if you were only facing the underlying case. For example, if the court finds you guilty of contempt and imposes a fine, the fine may be separate from what the court will order for your original charges if convicted.

Find an Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyer Near Me

One way of minimizing the likelihood of being held in civil or criminal contempt is having a lawyer stand up for you and represent you. A lawyer's advice can assist in keeping you in adherence to court orders. Further, an attorney can fight for you when you have been charged with contempt of court. If you are facing criminal charges or have been held in contempt of court in Los Angeles, we at Los Angeles Criminal Lawyer can help you. Contact us at 310-502-1314 for a consultation and case evaluation. We will help you have peace of mind with your case.