Depending on the seriousness of the injuries/assault, a domestic violence offense can be charged either as a misdemeanor assault (In Michigan 93 days in Jail), misdemeanor aggravated assault (1 yr in Jail) or a felony (up to 5 years in prison). Typically at his initial arraignment he will enter a plea of not guilty, then at his pre-trial, he should be given the option to either plead guilty and likely receive probation or some jail time, or plead not guilty and proceed to trial on the matter.