Bride-burning
occurs when in-laws consider the dowry to be inadequate.
Dowry
is a payment of money or articles during, before, or after marriage by a girl's parent to her in-laws.
Female Genital Mutilation
includes procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs of girls and women for non-medical reasons without any health benefits
Female Feticide
is the act of aborting a fetus because it is female.
Femicide
is the killing of women because of their gender and has been made a crime.
Honor Killing
the traditional practice in which men kill a female relative who is believed to have brought dishonor upon the family or community for forced or suspected sexual behavior outside of marriage.
Violence Against Women
- Acts of violence include threats of violence, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.
- Violence can include physical, sexual, or psychological violence within the family, community, or condoned by the state.
United Kingdom
Same rate of violence against women as the United States
- 1 in 4 women experience intimate partner violence over their lifetimes
- Between 6-10% of women suffer intimate partner violence in a given year
- 57% report repeat victimization
What are the two common points of law in European countries?
- All acts of intimate partner violence are recognized as crimes and fall under the provisions of the penal code.
- Victims are allowed to request measures of protection from the state, which vary from financial assistance to restraining orders.
Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE)
est. in 1995, it now stands in 46 countries. Its headquarters in Vienna, Austria the organization participates in the UN study on violence against women.
- they also helps collect data on violence against women and children
UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
the UN created it to provide financial and technical assistance for innovative programs and strategies that promote women's human rights, political participation and economic security
Afghanistan
- Legal reforms have been made but there is no official reporting on violence against women.
- Violence ranges from forced child marriages to public execution
- Amnesty International reports alarming numbers of females attempting suicide by dousing themselves with gasoline and setting themselves on fire.
Australia
- Similar rates to U.S.
- Legislative changes have been made to give police more authority to act in cases of suspected partner violence.
- Aboriginal women are overrepresented as victims of violence.
* Appropriate intervention designed to improve access to legal services for aboriginal females has been instituted
Canada
- Violence against women is a persistent and ongoing problem.
- There is no specific criminal code for violence against women.
- Codes that most commonly apply are assault, sexual assault, criminal harassment, threats of violence, forcible confinement, and homicide.
India
- Violence against women is related to the "dowry death", "bride burning", & female feticide
- India has been proactive in passing laws to protect women, but the laws are routinely not enforced.
Malaysia
- Malaysia has a dual legal system of Sharia law and civil law, and they act independently to protect the diverse population that is predominantly Muslim.
- In 1994 the One Stop Crisis Centre was formed but lack of funding has called into question its current effectiveness and existence.
Mexico
- Societal acceptance of violence against women is a pervasive problem in Mexico.
- One in five women live in a relationship of physical and/or sexual abuse where domestic abuse is considered to be the most prevalent form of violence in the country.
- Legal reforms have been made but do little to challenge the patriarchal, macho, and misogynistic structure of its society.
Mozambique
- Polygamy is a common practice.
- Not until 2009 were domestic violence and marital rape recognized as crimes.
* The police have been given more power to act on these complaints.
- Domestic violence continues to be a serious and widespread problem, more than half of women are believed to be victims.
- It is also illegal to engage in sexual activity while knowingly infected with a contagious disease.
People's Republic of China
- Legal provisions on domestic violence are too general and lack criminal justice response measures.
- Sexual abuse is rarely studied and incest is not acknowledged.
- In 2005, a "peaceful family" plan was launched and more than 27,000 organizations and 400 shelters have been set up across the country.
Peru
- Domestic violence laws were passed in 1997 and 2011, but violence is still a serious problem.
- Enforcement is considered weak and few men are ever prosecuted. The legal system is slow to respond to complaints and does not take them seriously.
- The WHO has ranked Peru as having one of the highest rates of physical or sexual violence by a partner in the world at 70%.
Philippines
- Philippine law criminalizes physical, sexual, and psychological harm against women and children from family members but enforcement is not given high priority.
- Corruption by police to include abuse of females in custody is common.
- Divorce is not legal and this leaves women with no real options to leave a spouse other than a legal separation or annulment.
Republic of Iraq
- The true figure for women who face sexual and domestic abuse in Iraq may be as high as 73%
- Honor killings are widespread.
- Over half of the population is under the age of 19 and they hold strong patriarchal attitudes.
* A majority of Iraqi men believe they have the right to beat their own wife, to prevent her from going to a medical center, to control the type of dress code she follows, and to force a female child into marriage before she is of legal age to marry.
- The government generally ignores or trivializes violence against women, and the abuse is rarely reported.
Romania
- Aggressive relationship behavior is considered normal.
- Many victims are unaware that domestic violence is illegal.
- A medical-legal approach has developed, which requires a certificate of injuries to be presented to prove victimization, which rarely occurs.
* Even if the certificate is obtained, chances are slim the case will be brought to justice.
- Funding for domestic violence initiatives is considered a luxury.
- Marital rape is not against the law.
Russian Federation
- Approximately 20-30% of all murders take place within the family and are increasing each year.
* In Russia 13,000 women are killed each year, compare that to 1,181 women in U.S.
- Police don't handle calls of domestic violence seriously
* Victim has to file her own charges as a private citizen, collect evidence and get witnesses
* Russian police tell victims they will not respond until there is a corpse.
Scotland
- There are several legal orders and increased funding for domestic violence victims.
- LGBT victims are equally protected.
- Also protected are partners who are married, cohabitating, or otherwise, or are ex-partners, regardless of marital status or gender.
- A domestic violence case is reported to the police every 10 minutes. 15% of victims are male with a female perpetrator.
Thailand
- Passed domestic violence legislation in 2007. Any person can report the abuse in addition to the victim.
- Crisis centers operate in some state-run hospitals along with hotlines, temporary shelters, and counseling services.
- A family violence law manual was put out by the government and judges and police officers across the country have attended gender sensitivity training.
Child abuse & Neglect
- tbAny act committed against a child by a caretaker that causes death, harm, or risk of harm-- physical, or sexual or psychological.
- the failure to provide care and protection
Elder Abuse
may involve physical, sexual, or emotional/psych violence and neglect, abandonment, or financial exploitation
Intimate Partner Violence
refers to violence committed within an adult intimate relationship, regardless of gender and generally is part of an ongoing complex pattern of violent behavior
Neglect
failure to provide care or services for a person when there is an obligation to do so
Physical Abuse
use of force or threat of force that may result in bodily injury, physical pain or impairment. it may be internal, external or both
Psychological Abuse
the intentional infliction of anguish, pain or distress designed to control the victime
Sexual Abuse
nonconsensual sexual contact of any kind.
* a person incapable of giving consent
* unwanted touching, rape, sodomy, coerced nudity, sexually explicit pictures.
British Common Law (1600's)
- women and children were no longer viewed as property, but the results were the same.
- Upon marriage a man and woman become one but the rights of the woman are then subordinate to those of the male.
- There is evidence of some legal restrictions on the extent to which a wife might be chastised.
*A husband could not beat his wife but was limited to admonition and confinement.
French Law
- Napoleon formalized the civil code in France:
* Women were made legal minors for their entire lives and could be beaten, punched, and permanently disfigured.
* The Napoleonic Code influenced French, Swiss, Italian, and German law.
* Divorce was a rare intervention and only came when beatings reached the level of attempted murder.
The Massachusetts Code of 1648
provided that a married woman should be free from physical correction by her husband.
Bradley v. State (1824)
- declared that wife-beating was a husband's right.
Fulgham v. State ( 1871 )
- leading to the case: Until 1870s little protection for victims of intimate partner violence. The growing concern over child maltreatment lead to reform
Outcome: A woman should be afforded the same legal protections as other citizens
What was the first state to pass legislation making wife-beating a crime?
In 1882, Maryland became the first state to pass a law that made wife-beating a crime and punishable by 40 lashes or a year in jail.
Curtain Rule
allowed police to interfere with a husband's actions toward his wife only after permanent injury had been inflicted on her
Stitch Rule
meant a husband could only be criminally prosecuted for injuring his wife if those injuries were severe enough to require stitches-- it was overturned in 1864
African Americans
Slaves had no protections and were subjected to the sexual and economic desires of their owners.
Significant historical differences between white and black victims of intimate partner violence
Women of color seen as being strong (different from the stereotypical passive white victim
Native Americans
Native American societies were matriarchal.
European settlers did not approve of the Native American customs
* Removal of women's rights
* Forced children to attend boarding schools where they were beaten and learned that violence was an acceptable form of social control
Family Violence Today
To be considered family violence, the act must be forbidden by law and the perpetrator must be related to the victim in some way
The Federal system and each state has their own definitions and legislation
* Act
* Relationship
Intimate Partners
- refers to violence committed within an adult intimate relationship, regardless of gender, and generally is part of an ongoing complex pattern of violent behavior.
- Control
- Social isolation
- Physical or sexual assaults
- Unchecked, domestic violence usually increases in frequency and severity.
What are the primary categories of family violence?
- intimate partner violence
- child abuse
- elder abuse
How is a domestic/family relationship defined
- typically defined by blood, marriage, relationship, and cohabitation.
- Specific legal definitions vary slightly from state to state.
- Same-sex relationships where the persons reside as if they were married are considered to be domestic.
Classical School
Central belief is that people choose to engage in crime
Rational Choice Theory
Focus to determine the effectiveness of interventions in order to deiced how best to reduce the benefits of crime and increase the cost of criminal action
Deterrence Theory
Still unknown whether legal sanctions have an effect on family violence
E.g., mandatory arrest laws
Critique:
Too simplistic, the classical school only seeks to control those who commit crime not explain why they do
Conflict School
...
Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment
(MDVE) - (1980; 1984)
The first controlled, randomized test of the effectiveness of arrest for intimate partner violence occurred
Assessed the effects of various police responses, including arrest
Finding: arrest of the perpetrator produced the least amount of repeat violence for the same victims within a six-month period.
Study recommendations:
1) Police should probably make arrests in most cases of intimate partner violence
2) Experiment should be replicated in other cities with different kinds of people
3) Mandatory arrest laws should not be adopted
National Intimate partner and sexual violence survey
Launched in 2010 by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
IPV, Sexual violence, Stalking victimization
First national survey to gather data based on the self-reported sexual orientation of the respondent
Findings:
Bisexual women have highest lifetime victimization rate (over 60%)
Among men IPV is also highest for bisexuals (37%)
Males remain the most frequent offenders overall
Links
National Incident Based Reporting system
(NIBRS)
Relationship of Victims to Offenders
NCVS
Provides information on victims age, sex, race, ethnicity, marital status, income, & education
For offenders: sex, race, estimated ages, and victim-offender relationships
Also covers:
Experiences of victims with the criminal justice system
Self-protective measures used by victims
Potential substance abuse by offenders
Use of weapons, nature of injury(ies)
positive school
Causes of crime are recognized from biological, psychological, and sociological viewpoints
Social Structure and Cultural Theories
* Culture of Violence Theory
* Gender- Role Theory
Psychological Theories
* Social Learning Theories
Culture of Violence Theory
Looks at the broad acceptance of violence in our society and concludes that its acceptance is the foundation within the family
Implied approval for violence is acknowledged and legitimizes the use of violence to settle family disputes
Need to later reliance on violence as a means of resolving conflict
Gender Role Theory
Children are oriented to life as victims or perpetrators
Girls are taught to be passive and yielding
This makes females vulnerable to abuse
Boys are expected to be sexual aggressive
Boys are taught to be in control
Sets young women up for dating violence
The media is blamed for perpetuating male/female roles
Psychological Theories
Social Learning Theories
Premise: People are not born with violent tendencies, they learn them through the environment and life experiences
Behavior Modeling Theory
Parents who use aggressive tactics, children will use the same
Intergenerational Transmission Theory
Abusive behavior is handed down from generation to generation as appropriate way to deal with conflict
Attachment Theory
The relationship that develops between the infant and his or her primary caregiver affects relationships later in life
Can produce secure, anxious, disoriented children
Attachment behavior is re-created in adulthood
Individual Pathology and Male Abusers
May result from personality disorders
Resistance to counseling and intervention suggests psychopathological problems
About 2% of the population are habitual wife beaters and display violence elsewhere
Some of these men show actual calmness (decrease in heart and respiration rate)during arguments - very controlled anger
Patriarchal Theory
Also known as the feminist approach
Questions the way women have been viewed in society
Status of women in society is related to the frequency of wife beating
Gender Inequality
Believe female offenders have been ignored and that their crimes are considered inferior and insignificant for study
The Chivalry Hypothesis
Holds that women are likely to be protected by the criminal justice system and given more lenient treatment
qualitative research
focuses on in-depth interviews, analysis of historical materials, and is concerned with comprehensive account of some event or unit.
does not rely on numerical measurements
quantitative research
a deductive model that fixes research objectives and statements.
defines the terms that are relevant for the research, follows a fixed sequence of steps, and typically measures data using NUMBERS
* NCVS, UCR
State Court Processing Statistics
Demographic, prior arrests/convictions, bail/pre-trial release, adjudication outcomes, etc.
Defendants charges with DV were prosecuted, convicted, and incarcerated at rates either equal to or higher than felony defendants charged with nondomestic violence
Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities
Domestic violence offenders rarely specialize
Often involved in criminal behavior similar to that of other types of offenders
Similar levels of drug/alcohol abuse as other violent offenders
Men in prison/jail for attacking women are likely to have experienced sexual abuse during childhood or to have been intoxicated at the time of the incident
Uniform Crime Reports ( UCR)
important how it defines rape.
penetration no matter how small
Behind Closed Doors (1980)
Behind Closed Doors (1980)
The first national study of intimate partner violence
Findings:
Spouses strike partners in one of every six households
Little difference in the rate of violence between husbands and wives