Domestic Violence Lawyer in Greensboro, NC
Need a domestic violence lawyer in Greensboro, NC? Is someone being held at the jail right now? Domestic cases can be held up to 48 hours with no bond, and we can often get the case in front of a District Court judge early and get them out before that. A guilty finding can also cost you your guns for life under federal law, which no North Carolina judge can undo. Call any hour.
Tell us what happened
Private. If someone is in the jail, call instead. The phone is answered by a person at any hour.
Sending this form does not make us your lawyer yet.
Do not call, text or message the other person. Not to apologize. Not to sort it out. There is almost certainly an order telling you to stay away, and breaking it is a new crime that can land you back in jail.
Expect to be held up to 48 hours. In a domestic case a magistrate is not allowed to set your bond. Only a judge can.
Ask about your guns on the first call, not after. This is the part people find out too late, and by then it cannot be undone.
- Which charge did they give you?
- Will I go to jail?
- What a conviction does to your gun rights
- Three different meanings of “domestic”
- Why you can be held 48 hours
- She says she wants to drop it
- The restraining order is a separate case
- What does a domestic violence lawyer cost in Greensboro?
- How to choose a domestic violence lawyer in Greensboro
- Our criminal defense team
- What clients say
- Where we practice
- Questions people ask us
Which charge did they give you?
There is no single charge called domestic violence in North Carolina. There are several, and they are not the same. Look at the paper they gave you.
| Charge | How serious | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Misdemeanor crime of domestic violence G.S. 14-32.5 |
Class A1 misdemeanor | The newest one, in place since December 2023. Using or trying to use physical force, or threatening someone with a deadly weapon, where you are in one of the listed relationships. |
| Assault on a female | Class A1 misdemeanor | A man 18 or older accused of assaulting a woman. Nobody has to be injured. |
| Simple assault | Class 2 misdemeanor | The lowest one. A push, a slap, a swing that missed. |
| Assault by strangulation | Class H felony | Choking someone. A felony even with no lasting injury. |
| Communicating threats | Class 1 misdemeanor | Often charged alongside one of the above. |
The new charge matters more than it looks. G.S. 14-32.5 was written to match the wording federal law uses for a domestic violence misdemeanor. That is the wording that triggers the federal gun ban. More on that below, and it is the single most important thing on this page.
Will I go to jail?
Most domestic charges are Class A1 misdemeanors, which is the most serious kind of misdemeanor.
| If this is your first charge | What a judge can do |
|---|---|
| Misdemeanor crime of domestic violence | Jail is possible. Up to 60 days. |
| Assault on a female | Jail is possible. Up to 60 days. |
| Simple assault | No new jail time. Probation only. |
| Assault by strangulation | A felony. Prison is on the table. |
Those numbers go up if you already have convictions behind you. The chart is in G.S. 15A-1340.23.
Expect more than jail to be on the table. Domestic cases commonly bring a no contact order, a stay away order for the home, a required abuser treatment program, and in some Guilford cases GPS ankle monitoring.
What a conviction does to your gun rights
Read this part even if you skip the rest.
Federal law bans anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from owning or even holding a gun. It is 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9). It is federal, so a North Carolina judge cannot lift it, and it does not expire after a few years.
Here is why the new charge changes things. G.S. 14-32.5 was written to track the federal definition. It spells out the relationship as part of the offense itself. That makes a conviction far more likely to count as a domestic violence misdemeanor in federal eyes than older charges where the relationship was never written into the charge at all.
In plain words: a plea that looks small in district court can take your guns permanently.
Tell us on the first call if any of this is true for you.
- You own guns, or there are guns in the house.
- You hunt.
- Your job needs you to carry one. Police, security, military, armed services.
- You have a concealed carry permit.
A felony conviction of any kind also ends your gun rights in North Carolina, separately from all of this.
This is not a reason to panic, it is a reason to tell your lawyer early. Which charge you end up pleading to, and how it is worded, is exactly the sort of thing that gets negotiated. It can only be negotiated before it is done.
Three different meanings of “domestic”
This confuses people, including people who have been through it before. North Carolina uses three different lists of relationships in three different places, and they do not match.
| Where | What it covers |
|---|---|
| The charge G.S. 14-32.5 |
Current or former spouse, parent or guardian. Someone you share a child with. Someone you live with or used to live with as a spouse, parent or guardian. Someone in a similar position. A current or recent former dating relationship. |
| The 48 hour hold G.S. 15A-534.1 |
A different list. This is what decides whether a magistrate can set your bond at all. |
| The restraining order Chapter 50B |
A third list again, used in the civil case. |
Why it matters to you. You can fall inside one list and outside another. Someone can be held 48 hours but not face the new charge. Someone can face a 50B order without any criminal charge at all. Do not assume that because one thing happened the others follow.
On the dating relationship question, the law borrows the federal definition. It means a continuing serious romantic or intimate relationship, judged on how long it lasted, what kind of relationship it was, and how often you saw each other. A casual acquaintance or someone you just know through work does not count.
Before you agree to anything, ask what it does to your guns
Photos fade. Messages get deleted. Witnesses stop answering. And the plea that ends the case quickly may be the one that costs you the most later.
If there is a no contact order on you, one wrong text turns a probation case into a jail case.
Call (336) 379-0539Free consultation, answered 24/7Why you can be held 48 hours
In an ordinary arrest a magistrate sets your bond within a few hours. In a domestic case they are not allowed to. Only a judge can, and the law gives them up to 48 hours. It is in G.S. 15A-534.1.
- They take you to the jailGreensboro arrests go to the Greensboro Detention Center on South Edgeworth Street. South county arrests usually go to High Point on East Green Drive.
- The magistrate cannot release youNot in a domestic case. This is the part families find hardest to understand, and no amount of money fixes it. A lawyer can, by getting you in front of a judge.
- A judge sets conditions, up to 48 hours laterIf no judge has acted within 48 hours, a magistrate must then step in. This is where we can shorten the wait. We can often get your case in front of a District Court judge early and get you released before the 48 hours are up, rather than sitting in the jail waiting for the clock.
- Conditions come with itExpect a no contact order and a stay away order for the home, even if it is your home and your name on the lease.
- First appearanceAt the courthouse on South Eugene Street. Your bond can be looked at again. A bond motion is often the fastest thing we can do.
Clerk: (336) 412-7300
Open 8:30am to 5:00pm, closed 12:45 to 1:45
(336) 641-2700
(336) 641-7900
(336) 379-0539, answered 24 hours
Someone is in the jail right now? Call before you do anything else. The 48 hours is a ceiling, not a fixed sentence. We can often get the case heard by a District Court judge sooner and get them released early. Waiting for the clock to run is the one thing that guarantees the full 48.
There is more detail on how domestic holds work.
She says she wants to drop it
She cannot drop it. Neither can you. Once police charge you, the case belongs to the State of North Carolina. It is the District Attorney who decides whether it goes forward, not the person who called 911.
She can tell the District Attorney she does not want to go ahead. That can matter. It is not the same as dropping it.
The DA can still push the case. They can send a subpoena, which is a court order making her show up. Plenty of domestic cases go forward on photos, 911 recordings and what officers saw, even when the other person says nothing at all.
Here is the trap that puts people back in jail. Someone hears “she wants to drop it” and picks up the phone. If a judge ordered you to stay away, that call is a new charge on top of the first one, and it looks far worse to a judge than the original. Let your lawyer deal with all contact. You stay silent.
The restraining order is a separate case
A 50B order, sometimes called a DVPO, is a civil case. It runs alongside the criminal one with its own hearing date, usually within about ten days. Winning one does not win the other.
The part people do not expect is the guns.
| What happens | Detail |
|---|---|
| Surrender is ordered | If the court makes certain findings, it must order you to hand over all firearms, ammunition, and your purchase and concealed carry permits. |
| How fast | Immediately when you are served. If that is not possible, within 24 hours at a time and place the sheriff sets. |
| How long | For as long as the order or any order replacing it is in force. |
| Storage costs money | The sheriff can charge a storage fee, and it has to be paid before anything comes back. |
| Getting them back | There are deadlines. A motion generally has to be filed within 90 days of the order ending or the charges finishing. Miss it and the sheriff can ask the court for permission to dispose of them. |
This is in G.S. 50B-3.1. If you have been served with a 50B, bring that paper too. The hearing comes round fast and missing it is how people end up with a year long order they never argued against.
What does a domestic violence lawyer cost in Greensboro?
The honest answer is that it depends on whether there are one or two cases to fight.
| What | How much |
|---|---|
| The criminal case | Quoted as a flat figure on the first call. |
| The 50B hearing | A separate civil case with its own hearing. Ask whether it is included or quoted separately. |
| A bond motion | If someone is being held, ask what it costs to get this in front of a judge quickly. |
| The first conversation | Free. |
Make sure any quote tells you whether the 50B is covered. That is where people get a surprise bill.
How to choose a domestic violence lawyer in Greensboro
People search for the “best” domestic violence lawyer in Greensboro. No lawyer is allowed to tell you they are the best one, and any firm that does is breaking the North Carolina State Bar advertising rules. What we can do is tell you what actually separates a good domestic violence lawyer from a bad one, so you can judge for yourself.
| Ask them this | What a good answer sounds like |
|---|---|
| “What does this do to my gun rights?” | They should raise the federal ban before you do. If guns never come up, keep looking. |
| “Does your quote cover the 50B too?” | A clear yes or no. Two cases means two pieces of work. |
| “How fast can you file a bond motion?” | If someone is sitting in the jail, this is the most urgent thing on the list. |
| “Which charge are they likely to offer?” | How a plea is worded decides the gun consequences. They should know the difference. |
Ask us all four. The gun question especially.
Our criminal defense team
Jason Aycoth
Criminal Defense, Felony Charges, State and Federal Court
Jason handles criminal cases in state and federal court across North Carolina. He has served as Editor of the True Bill and was Commencement Speaker at Elon Law School's graduation.
- Former President, Greensboro Criminal Defense Lawyers Association
- Elected member, Criminal Justice Section, North Carolina Bar Association
- Selected to present the Wade M. Smith Award for Top Criminal Defense Lawyer in North Carolina
Chad D. GarrettFounderJason AycothPartner
Sean OlsonPartner
Brandon GoldsboroughCriminal Defense
Stephanie GoldsboroughCriminal Defense
Rebecca ElliottCriminal Defense
Patrick BidwellCriminal Defense
Samantha HeplerCriminal DefenseWhat clients say
4.9 out of 5 from 587 Google reviews. A few recent ones:
Where we practice
Our office is two minutes from the Guilford County Courthouse.
Guilford County: Greensboro · High Point · Jamestown · Gibsonville · Summerfield · Oak Ridge · Pleasant Garden · Stokesdale · Whitsett · McLeansville · Sedalia
Also serving: Randolph, Forsyth, Alamance, Rockingham and Davidson Counties
Questions people ask us
How do I find the best domestic violence lawyer in Greensboro?
North Carolina lawyers are not allowed to claim to be the best, so judge on what they raise unprompted. Do they bring up your gun rights before you do? Do they tell you whether the 50B hearing is covered by their quote? Can they file a bond motion quickly?
Will a domestic violence conviction take my guns?
It can, permanently. Federal law bans gun possession after a conviction for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and a North Carolina judge cannot lift a federal ban. The newer charge, G.S. 14-32.5, is worded to match the federal definition, which makes this more likely than with older charges. Raise it on your first call.
Why is he being held with no bond?
Because it is a domestic case. A magistrate is not allowed to set bond on these. Only a judge can, and the law gives them up to 48 hours. If no judge has acted in 48 hours, a magistrate must then step in.
Can she drop the charges?
No. Once police charge you the case belongs to the State. The District Attorney decides. She can say she does not want to go ahead, and that can help, but the DA can subpoena her and run the case on photos and 911 recordings.
Can I go back to my own house?
Read your release paper first. Many domestic cases come with a stay away order covering the home, even when it is your home and your name is on the lease. If you need clothes or to see your children, your lawyer asks the court. Do not go yourself.
What is the difference between the criminal case and the 50B?
The 50B is a separate civil case with its own hearing, usually within about ten days. You can lose your guns, your home and time with your children at that hearing even if the criminal charge is later dismissed. It needs its own defense.
How fast do I have to hand over firearms on a 50B?
Immediately when you are served. If that is not possible, within 24 hours at a time and place the sheriff sets. Storage fees can apply and there are deadlines to get them back.
What counts as a dating relationship?
The law uses the federal definition. A continuing serious romantic or intimate relationship, judged on how long it lasted, what kind of relationship it was and how often you saw each other. A casual acquaintance or someone from work does not count.
Can a domestic violence charge be expunged?
A conviction for an assault offense cannot be cleared, and Class A1 misdemeanors are excluded as a whole. A charge that was dismissed or ended in a not guilty finding can be, and may clear automatically. See expungements.
It was self defense. Why was I the one arrested?
Officers often charge one person at the scene and let the court sort it out. Being charged is not a decision that you were in the wrong. Self defense is argued in court with photos, messages and witnesses.
What does a domestic violence lawyer cost?
The first conversation is free and you get a straight answer on the likely range before you commit to anything. The price depends on the charge and whether there is also a 50B hearing to defend.
Talk to a Greensboro domestic violence lawyer today
Bring whatever paper you were given, including any 50B. That is enough to start.
Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Olson, Attorneys at Law
317 South Greene St, Greensboro, NC 27401
(336) 379-0539 · answered live, 24 hours
Free consultation · Se habla español
This page explains North Carolina law in general terms as of October 2026. It is not legal advice about your case, and penalties and statutes change. Figures come from N.C.G.S. 14-32.5, 14-33, 14-32.4, 15A-534.1, 15A-1340.23 and 50B-3.1, and from 18 U.S.C. 921 and 922. Court and jail details come from the North Carolina Judicial Branch and the Guilford County Sheriff's Office.