State v. Rothwell

The state appeals an order dismissing a felony battery charge that was being prosecuted after the appellant had been found to be in contempt of court for violating a domestic violence injunction which prohibited the appellant from committing various acts of violence against the battery victim. In dismissing the felony battery charge the court ruled that the prosecution is precluded by principles of double jeopardy, in that the contempt was predicated on the same battery. However, the contempt and the felony battery each require proof of an element the other does not, and the felony battery…