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Programs Branch User Report

AN INTEGRATED RESPONSE TO WIFE ASSAULT: A COMM UNITY MODEL

NO. 1984-27

m

the Solicitor General of Canada

Hv 700 .C2 J3 1984

■11.

5

Secretariat

RARY 01- IHE

SEP 25 1984

BiBLIOTHÈQUE MINISTÈRE DU SOLLiCliEuR GÉNÉRAL

--)1V 'quo C -,3?)

gt[

Peter Jaffe Carole Anne Burns

Department of Psychology The University of Western Ontario

London, Ontario

AN INTEGRATED RESPONSE TO WIFE ASSAULT: A COMMUNITY MODEL

NO. 1984-27

This working paper was prepared under contract for the Research Division and is made available as submitted to the Ministry. The views expressed are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Ministry of the Solicitor General of Canada. This working paper may not be published, cited or reproduced without permission of the Ministry.

This working paper is available in French. Ce document dé travail est disponible en français.

TAELE OF CONTENTS

Page

Fo r'ar

Acknow 1 t.doements 44 — ='.%=--- 4-'ve. Summary iii

1. An Introduction to Wife Abuse 1 Research

2. The Criminal Justice System's 8 Response to Abused Women

(a) A Study of the Criminal 11 . Justice Response in

London, Ontario

(b) Victims' Persmective 20

(c) Summary of Research Findings 26

3. Recommendations 29

(i) Improving Police Intervention 30

(ii) Victim Advocacy Service 34

(iii)Treatment for Assailants 39

(iv) Educating Professionals 46

(a) Co-ordination of 48 Human Services

4. Impact of the Research Findings on 50' the Community

(a) Working Assumptions 51

(b) The London Co-ordinating 54 Committee on Family Violence

5. Conclusions 6 1

References 64

Appendices

A. 7nad,..r.r-ac'es 'n th.= -rd 4 17.'onal 68 Responses to Abused Women by the C- , m4 nel us.ce, iedL cal, Mental Health, and Social Service Systems

32

87

88

Table of Contents Cont'nuerl

Appendices Cznt'd

3. Code Sheets for London Police Force 75 Remorts

C. Code Sheetà for London Police Fort SO Private Information Case History and Charge Sheets

D. Code Sheet for Family Court Files

E. Code Sheet for Data from London Police Force Computer Files

F. SupplementaryInformation from Police and Court Files

G. Letter Sent to Females Who Ead Call ,.d the 94 Police

E. Interview Form 96

Z. Selected Case Histories ?rom Researcher's 110 Interviews with Abused Females

J. Supplementary Information from Interviews 123 with Abused Females

K. The Needs of Battered Women 135

L. Recommendations for Improving Traditional 138 Responses

M. Community Response to Abused Women 140 Questionnaire

Memo to Police Officers Concerning 141 Charges to be Laid

O. Victim Information Card and Directive 1 42 to Officers

P. Newspaper Article. Criminal Charges More 145 Likely: Police Acting Against Wife- Beate-à;. The London Free Press, July 13, 1981.-

38

126

178

129

130

LC'S"' OF TABLES

Pace

1. Tyme c= 7'nju-v 7 n="cted on V'ctims 1 4 Ac-cr= 4 ng "o mol , -= Remo-t

2. Treatment cf Injuries Received by 16 Females who were Assaulted

3. Court Dispositions for Various Types of Charges

4. Interviewed Females Who Were Satisfied 24 or Dissatisfied with the Criminal Justice System Intervention

5. American Victim Advocacy Services for Abused Women

6. American Counselling Programs for Male Satterers

7. A. Location of Assault 89 B. Witnesses to the Assault C. Ethnicity

8. A. Length of Probation Orders & Condi- 92 tional Discharges

B. Conditions of Probation Orders C. Details of Fines and Jail Sentences D. Presentence Reports

9. Occupational Classifications of Working 124 Males and Females

10. Interviewed Females who Contacted Various Community Agencies

11. Abused Females' Expectations of Police Before They Arrived at the Scene of the Assault

1 2. Abused Females' Responses as to What Police Of = cer Should Have Done

13. Su7-=.- 'ors = -cm Abus..d F=mal== who Laid Char=s as to what the justic= o= the te.c= .hould have Don= or Should 4 o in "h..

List of Tables Contnued

P.ce

14. Responses from ?..buse' Females whc Laid Charges as to What rhe Crown Attorney Should have Done or Should Oc in the Future

13. General Recommendations From Victims 1 34 of Family Violence

LIST OF FIGURES

1. Flowchart of Decisions to be Made by 7 Abused Females

2. Extent of Violence Used by Males Against Female Partners 13

'22

/1/ . , Lnspector John Robinson LiSpecial Services London Police Force

FORWARD

The Police are the agency which respond most frecuently to complaints of wife/spouse assault and, therefore, are in a most advantageOus position to implement changes in attitudes toward such activities. However, in order to be effective in implementing change, the Police must first change their own attitudes and approaches to the problem.

The preliminary thrust of this Committee and any other committees which may develop to improve the Criminal Justice System's response to wife/spouse abuse was, and must be, to effect a change in Police policy so as to demand an action-oriented approach leading to the laying of criminal charges where the necessary evidence exists. The Policy must then be "sold" to each individual officer as being necessary and appropriate.

The Police are the "grass roots" of the Criminal justice System and are able, through a consistent and reasonable approach, to impact the system in a manner that will alter the attitudes of the other segments of the system. .

IT WILL NO7 SE EASY OR QUICK BUT 17 MUST BE DONE.

THE GLOBE AND MAIL. F7-1DAY. JULY 9. 19S2

Po lice should la‘f charge • • • ".....")•••• I • •••• i.,‘ sy

01-rAw:t. - Te Conimprts iir...nunousr.v pubcc torccs yrsterday to lay cliarges regularly in wifo-abuse cases. Ponce generally troat wife fiat. terng as an internal faintly matter and are hesi-tant to iay charzes. Conser:ative MP Arnold Ma-lone told the Flo-uit:e. "Theuent failure to lay cnarges pinces a heinous burden on the wives, vvho have to then ascertain as to whether or not it is prucient to have charges laid," the MP for Crowfoot said. He commended the pv.ilice force of London .

Ont., for its policy of remilarly ayin:: charges in all cases where rmsonabie and prrg:11;,ie grounds ex. ist. And MPs from ail thrc.i-a ttarties applauded as he suggestt.,d that the Commons encourage ail police forces r.0 ireet • ife abuse "as !hey are inclined to do with any cnarge of common assa. ult."

ACUNCWW:=G7erer"

The present research was funded bv the Research

Division of the Ministry of the Solicitor General of

Canada. The opinions expressed reflect the views cf the

authors and do not necessarily indicate any formal

statements or policies of the Department of the Solicitor

General of Canada. The authors acknowledge the feedback

they received from Dr. Gerry Leger, the research advisor

and liaison with the Department of the Solicitor General

of Canada. The London Co-ordinating Committee on Family

Violence was an important guidance in developing the

recommendations and in reviewing the data. Finally,

members of the London Police Force, particularly Inspector

John Robinson, Constable Rusty Fulton, and the Family

Consultant Service staff, were extremely helpful in

providing access to data and provided a clearer understanding

of the criminal justice system process.

-4i 4-

EXECWTIVE SUMmlr,.v

The time has passed when Canadian communities

cari deny the high incidence of wife assault. 1n the past,

individuals and public agencies have avoided the i s sue

by refusing to intervene in most cases and by dismissing

the violence as an isolated event or as a characteristic

of a more serious disorder. The fact is that between

10% (MacLeod, 1980) and 50% (Straus & Hotaling, 1980; Walker,

1979) of all women'are continuously being beaten in their

own homes by male intimates who are attempting to make

them submissive to their control and demands. The continual

threatening and assaults, in conjunction with a negative

response from community agencies, causes most abused

women to lose.any hope of circumventing the inevitable,

escalating cycle cf violence.

The first step in changing this pattern of

violence against women is the development of coMmunity

awareness about the problem. Only when members of society

express their intolerance for family violence, will males

be deterred from using this form of control. Human

service professionals, in pa--"^”la-, must clearly define

their perception of family violence, the reasons whv it

occurs, and the roles and needs of the victim and the

batterer. Professionals must also distinguish between

-iv-

the real and imagined limitaticns of their service =andates

and professional capabilities, in order that they might

view themselves as appropriate interveners in these

cases.

The next step in addressing the problem cf

wife assault is to provide intervention strategies and

services that specifically identify the violence, are effective

in convineingthe male that his behaviour is wrong, and

also which often support the victim. Furthermore, the

services must be well integrated into the community so

that all professionals are sensitive to the problem and

can share in the task of meeting the wide variety of

needs presented by victims and batterers.

The present report represents one ccmmunity's

response to wife assault. rt was assumed that the community,

through the leadership and advocacy of the criminal justice

system, could improve services to victims of family

violence by becoming more aware of the dynamics of the

problem and by realizing the limitations in existing

services. The model for ccmmunitv response was based

on the elements of service co-ordination and research

direction. The co-ordination of services was operationalized

through the creaticn of a co-ordinating ccmmittee on family

violence which includes 1-=tr-=sentatives frcm the police

force, the Crcwn attcrney's office, the Justices

of the Peace, family lawye-s, mental health professicnals,

researchers, social service professicnals, and the prcbaticn

IrL _ ..... was mand=c="

tc advise and studv research cn w''e as ------'-- _

and z- -ev'=w c-h=- "c= - = --- = ' 4 n''n-s, e'e"ee 4e." V

-h= ca.. =se=--n s--"v "cc-se' cn '==cc't'n=

how w''= assau't cases a-= c -ccessed t-cugh the criminal

fustice =water. and the fcllcwing data highlight the

cf a -eview cf =lice and court files:

- te -w==n :=n- =-Y =n' :un= cf L979, 222 females -h= L.-n"mn C'tv ?olice Force reporting an assault or a -'--=ac=-1=d bv th='- ca-tn=r cr ex-parce:;

- zh= mc=z ccrtcn type cf violence used against the females was kicking, biting, cr hitting her with a fist;

- ool'ce laid six charges (2% cf cases) of assault- causing ^cd"v harm en" nc czh=- ch.-r=s we-= 1 .1d tv

- pclice cfficers advised en cf the vict'ms -c "=v own charges;

- 17% cf :he famales who were alle;ealv assau - c=d w=-= by police cc seek ==,..."-=' azzention cr were taken co a creacm=nz centre;

- only 17% cf the females whz called the mc''c=

'SP; zhe. z:D •• ce casa z- cc--- h." ch= assa 4 lanc; and

z- w'zh'r , wn ch: e

0- wcz-c f cd cc z

'eze-m'z.= zf w .L.fe assau.:z

znzez-.- enzzzn zney rece:. -,-e, an azzemzz we= zz

-vi-

inte ,-v 4 w all of the 7 4 ct 4 ms who had c= 11 --- ,' the malice

4 n the eirsz half o' 1979. Si:‹ty-cwc females (23%)

wer= 4 nte-74 .=wed and ..rmcmt=d te 'ol 7 ow4 ng 'nfo ,-mation:

the females had been assaulted an average cf 35 times beear-e 1 979;

- 51% of the wcman wanted the pclice to lay assault charges;

- 66% of the interviewed females felt that their partners had some type of problem which led to the abuse including excessive alcchal consumption ,and emotional and psychiatric difficulties;

- 62% of the females who proceeded to court reported that the process helped to reduce or terminate the violence; and

- only half of the females were satisfied with the police intervention and of those proceeding to court, half were satisfied with the justice of the peace's response and only 31% were satisfied with the Crown attorney's intervention.

Throughout the development and execution oe the

research study, membersof the London Co-ordinating Ccmmittee

on Family Violence provided input in clarifying the

criminal justice prccess, interpreting the results, and

suggesting changes and innovations in the current service -

delivery system. The results of the research study in

conjunction with the committee members' evaluaticns led

to the following recommendaticns for an effective, integrated

ccmmittee respcnse:

a) encourage the London Police Farce to change pclicy which wculd allcw then to Lay mcre charges cf assault in wife assault cases;

-vii-

) establish a self-help group for batterers with the cc-operation of judges for court-mandated treatment;

C) establish a victim advocacy service to provide assistance through,the criminal justice system process, counselling, and information; and

d) improve public and professional education on the issue of wife assault.

Since these recommendations were endOrsed by

the professionals in the various community systems, there

has been a commitment to implement the policies and programs.

For example, the London City Police Force has changed

their policy regarding the necessity of witnessing a

common assault and the result has been a dramatic increase

in the number of assault charges (both C.C. 245(1) and

245(2)) being laid by police. The treatment group for

assailants is currently in omeration and negotiations for

government funding for a victim advocacy clinic are

underway.

Finally, members cf the London Co-ordinating

Committee on Family Violence and other committee professionals

are advocating an improved resmonse to wife abuse by

keeping other members in their departments informed by

examining interna l policies, attending speaking engagements,

and mart'c'ma"no 'n con=-=nces and media events.

1 AN :r7RODUCT=ON 70 W7FE ASUSE RESEARCS

Wife abuse has become a topic for research

study only since the 1970's, when various women's organizations

began to establish services and shelters for battered

women at the grassroots level. As it became more acceptable

for women to expose the violence they were experiencing

in their homes, mrofessionals were astonished at the

large number of cases coming to the attention of the

emergency shelters, police, doctors, and social workers.

It became obvious that this was a problem which reached

epidemic proportions.

One of the first goals of many researchers

was to approximate the incidence of wife abuse in our

society (Gelles, 1980). Estimating the incidence of wife

assault has been very difficult because many abused women

will not contact outside sources of help and even when

they do, many mrofessionals do not know how to deal with

family violence. Often, records are not kept when the

violence is reported. In the mast, researchers have

estimated that one in ten (e.g., MacLeod, 1980) women

living with a male partner will be assaulted during the

relationship; however, more recent studies have

incidence cf wife assault much higher. Straus and Hozaling

-2-

(1980) review a survey conducted with 2,143 Amer , oan

families and report that "the true incidence for violnce

in a marriage is probably closer to 50% or 60% of all

couples than it is to the 23% who are willing to descrihe

violent acts in a mass interview eurvey" (p.31). The

reasons why they selected a higher rata than the one which

was reported were (a) many people under-report incidents

of violence which they feel are flot serious enough

to constitute an assault; (b) some feel that abuse is

normal in a relationship; (c) very serious incidents of

violence are. too embarrassing for some respondents to

reveal; and (d) the survey onlv included married people

and did not contain data from separated or divorced couples

for whom violence may have been a causal factor in the

marriage break-up.

Since the reporting of wife assaults to community

agencies is nct standardized, researchers have had to rely

on other sources of information in order to estimate the

prevalence of wife abuse. One indication that the rate

of wife abuse is very high in Canada comes from homicide

records. Heckler and Cauld (1881) report that 30% of

the homicides in Ontario, 25% in British Columbia, and

48% of the homicides in the Prairie Provinces resulted from

domestic relationships. We can reasonably assume that

these homicides ve:rv small fraction of all

women who are being beaten by their partners and are receiving

-3-

iries which do not result in their deaths.

Family violence researchers have tried to

identify factors that are associated with the occurrence

of wife abuse (Genes, 1980) and one of the most salient

characteristics of this type of violence is that it is

transmitted from one generation to the next. It has been

estimated that 50% of abusers have witnessed their fathers

beating up their mothers and between 20% and 40% of the

victims also observed parental' violence (Gayfcrd, 1975;

Galles, 1976; Langley & Levy, 1977). :n addition, Langley

& Levy (1977) report that 40% of assailants were abused

themselves as children. When these males grow um, they

view the act of exercising control through violence as

a legitimate form of dominance and will resort to this

"normal" response when faced with situations of insecurity,

stress, and conflict. Similarly, women who have watched

their mothers being beaten on numerous occasions learn

that they must be submissive to men and that they are the

appropriate victims of their husbands' violent outbursts.

In fact, many abused women feel very responsible for the

violence perpetrated by their male partners and assume

guilt for the male's action.

The>rP is another cycle in family violence that

does not take place across generations but Occurs within

a particular relationship. :f a woman has been hit once,

she will probably be hit again (Shainess, 1979). The

-4-

male 's by the control he b=s teen e.^'-=

attain through hurting and intimidating his mate. :t is

this continual abuse that follows a cyclical pattern and

Walker (1979) conceptualizes it in three distict phases.

The first past is characterized by incidents cf tension

and conflict and may result in minor assaults cà the wcman.

During the second phase, the major assault(s) takes place

and the male's behaviour resembles being 'out of control'.

Many batterers do not remember the acts they coMmit

during this period of blind rage. The third phase of the

cycle is the aftermath of the violence when the male is

extremely loving, kind, and contrite. He becomes charming

and manimulative with the woman and with anyone else

who tries to intervene and his worst fear is that the female

will leave him.

Another common feature of wife abuse is the male's

reliance on alcohol, particularly when the violence occurs.

Research indicatesthat at least one-half of identified

abusers have been drinking immediately befcre the assaultive

incident and many are heavily dependent on alcohol to

relieve feelings of stress and anxiety (Eglev, 1961;

Fleming, 1979; Gayford, 1973; Goode, 1979; Roy, 1977).

Many abusers blame the alcohol for making them commit the

assault and they believe that if they stcpped drinking, the

violence would te.rminate as well.

-5-

Othe= factors that are assoéiated with wife

abuse include the following: (a) in amproximately one-

half of the identified wife assault case, the violence

commences or becomes very severe when the female is pregnant

(Lanclev & Levy, 1977; O'Brien, 1971; Walker, 1979);

(b) the male attempts to isolate the female from family

and friends so that she is completely dependent on him

and he becomes obsessively jealous cf any outside contacts

she makes (Chaoman, 1979; Gelles, 1972, Eilberman, 1980;

Langley & Levy, 1977); (c) the male is often very

dissatisfied with his job and his financial situation (O'Brien,

1971; Straus et al, 1930); and (d) wife abuse occurs in

all socioeconomic classes but the majority of cases which

come to the attention of the police and other community

orofessionals are from the lower classes since they have

fewer alternatives for help or escape (c-elles, 1973;

Straus et al., 1980).

The reason why wife assault is so prevalent in

our society is because manv males are convinced that they

have a right to dominate and control females. When this

power claim is threatened, phys'cal =o-c=. 4 3 ,..egarded as

a legitimate method of regaining control, especially since

males are socd t o ===ss 4 v= and females are

soc4.1-.A -z b= vzct"ns (Chapman, 1 973; Straus et a',

1980 ; wa lk.-, 1979). ma ,-tin (1976) reports that the violence

provides mcment= -7 m -cm the ma l.t s e..14ng cf

anxiety about '.. 4 s ‘."= ,-- 4 v-ess as a man. This theory of

-6. -

dcminaticn and se=a 1 inecualitv is supper-ted by the f , neing

that abuse cften mccurs in relaticnships where the female's

educaticnal and/cr cccupaticnal status is higher than the

male's aangley & Levy, 1 977; O'Brien, 1971).

Since much of the research in this field has

focused on the prevalence, causes, and factors asscciated

with wife assault, little attention has been given to the

wav community agencies respcnd to these cases (see Appendix

A for a review of the literature on the traditional

responses of criminal justice, medical, mental health, and

social service systems). This is an important aspect of

the problem since most abused women feel that they can

never tell community professionals and those that do

report it usually have been abused for a Long pericd of

time. It is imperative that abused women receive appropriate,

supportive interventions when they identify themselves;

otherwise, they will resolve themselves to a situation which

they perceive as unavoidable and insoluble.

,/■ . unta -è outslue aneney? (115-17i2-:

Ives

( STOP no,'" contaCtS

201 ice?

emeli wants to

ay charge?

solicd refer mer elsewhere?

solici lay charge?

yes

I Police refe,•

I

i -Family Consul .snelter -hospital

ie yeS 1 3M

;emale attends

Court

Chareete

CC Z4S-2

—7— (.....«,-- . •

fri..dlp 77\ essiultra 1.1

her p.rtner

. .. --.........1 1

F i criare 1

Interview with Justice of the Piffle

C)aree: e

CC 245.2 CC24S-1 CC 745

• CC 245-7 - rate.iml marl

C: 24S-I curmon e.sault CC 745 - thmeLehinh

Figure 1. rim. ■ hlre. of is tn to! mdUm by dhuu.d rreirmrolmq Ouf.'. irk; ,,,,, y Imo', 1 dyinq . 9 . 11

thrown' th. p,.',..

fe.orr,

-8-

2. THE CR=AZ SUSI"TC'e RESPONSr T.r) A3US;7.7, WCY-eN

One ccmmunitv system that is contacted by a large

number cf abused wcmen is the criminal justice system

since their mandate is tm intervene in the commission

of criminal acts, which includes physical violence

against another person. The objective of this research

study was to investigate the wife assault cases reported

to the criminal justice system in London, Ontario, and

to describe the ways this system responds to wife

assaults.

Figure 1 outlines the typical process that the

abused female who seeks outside help must go through

beginning with her involvement with outside agencies.

For many abused women seeking outside interventicn,

their first contact with the police department occurs

immediately following an assault.

When the police cfficer arrives at the scene of

an alleged assault he has a number of options available

to hi.: (a) he may arrest where there is sufficient

evidence tc establish that an assault causing bcdily

hart ha s cccurred and an arrest is necessary to establish

the assailant's identify, to prevent a ccntinuaticn

of the offence, or to ensure that the assailant will

aPPea= in court; ( o) !le may cause an assauIt causing

bcdily harm informaticn tc be laid and a summcns issued

-9-

where it is deemed not necessary to effect an arrest;

(c) he can advise the victim of her options to proceed

rider the provisions of the Familv Law Reform Act or

the Criminal Code; (d) he may arrest the assailànt

pursuant to Section 31 of the Criminal Code of Canada and

hold him in custody (no charges are laid) if he does

not have grounds to believe that an assault causing bodily

ha =m has occurred but has reasonable and probably grounds

to believe that if he leaves, a breach of the peace

is likely to continue; (e) in London, Ontario, the

officer may call upon the services of the Family Consultant

team who are trained in crisis intervention; (f) he

may attemmt to mediate the dispute and, if unsuccessful,

advise one of the parties to leave the scene; (g) he may

refer the parties to other agencies in the community;

or (h) he may take no further action if he feels that

the danger to the victim is not likely to recur.

If a woman decides to charge her partner with

assault causing bodily han, common assault, or threatening,

she must make an appointment to see a justice of the peace

at the courthousewho decides the following: whether or

not a charge should be laid; what type of charge should

be laid; when the cas e. will be heard in court; which

court will hear the case; and whether a warrant or summons

should be issued to the male. Once a decision has been

-10-

made by the justice of the eace to process the charge,

the woman must arrange to attend an inter7iew at the

police station where an officer records the details

of the assault or threat. In cases where the pol:ice

officers have laid assault charges against the males,

the women do- not have to go through the ateps of

seeing a justice of the peace and going to the police

station for an interview.

' In all cases where the assailant has been charged,

either by police or by the victim, the woman receives

a .subpeona to attend court as the Crown attorney's

witness. If the assailant pleads not guilty, the case

goes to trial and the woman is called to testify on

the stand. If the man pleads guilty to the charge (s),

the woman does not have to appear.

A) A STUDY OF THE CR=NAi SvS-"I'M PONz 7." :N LONDON, ONTARIO

Most abused women who seek help from the criminal

justice system, call the police. These women seek

immediate protection frein their assailant. in order to

investigate the types of cases which come to the attention

of the police and to determine the department's subsequent

response, a sample of assaulted women was selected from

the 'London City Police Force occurrence reports usinc

the following critera:

1) the abusive incident occurred between January 1st,

1979, and June 20, 1979; 2) the female reported to the

police that she had been assaulted or threatened with

violence bv a male to whom she was ma-4 d, separated,

divorced, or living with in the saine residence; 3) an

assault was defined as any physical force which was

applied on the female without her consent; and 4) a

threatened assault occurred when the female believed

that her oartner was going no assault her.

information from the following sources was

recorded on code sheets: (i) the occurrence reports

wh4 ch =-e e:11,:, cut by the police officer after he

-as investigated the call (see Appendix 3); (ii) the

che-ce. she.ets and the oz"v.te information case histories

wh' ,-h are comolezed a'te- the 'em.'. c- •ne. office-

1 mh°7-tv-sic

-7Z-

;

e , ..s '==. Aax E:.

The tcmal number of alleged assault

assauts ccmr-itted against a wcman bv her partner or

ex-partner, and reperted to police was 222,.wit.1 15 of

t.....=se women calling the col'^= tw'c=.

Zicure 2 disclavs the zyte cf viclence used

acaihst the fema'es and shows that the mre- zvte

cf viclence was k'ck'ne, b' - 'nc, or h'tt'nc the f

with a closed fist. Ter wcmen (5%) were it with.scmetbir.g,

e'ght (4%) were beaten up and in 12 cases (7%), the male

either zhreatened the female with a weapcn or actually

used 't on her.

The -v-e G e in-H-v that the z===.e

of the vic'o.s -e e-,- (63) receiv=. ... iisih1e :a:

bruis.Lng, lace-azicns and '-actu-es, to

injuries. :n 7 4 cases (39'.) was

bur. the 'njur:.e= w=== not tc th .c -"--=-.

shculd be :zef that the 1nvestiating --"'-=-=

-

cases.

30 - Number 1) 1

Cases.

I 0 I 0 Il

to

2 (I

_

21 20 -

10 -

0

Figure 2: Exient of Violence Used by Maies Against Peina le Parinels

G)

1•1

1

GO -I

!,0 _

4 0 -

n Cl/ (P 4 ) J., • .-- 1 / 4 ) C: 'T /

I 1 Q1 I. •r-- 7., C.11 I) .0 ..-- .e- CD a/ C: 0 .0 I1) C: ...e n t: Al -X •r- . 'I I 1:1 e § 1 L•r- 01 11 0 1 gi ^ 1_11 .C: '11 II1 1:1 ILI -1) I-) I/1 ( ) ----- .C: :1 f .1 al CZ as I: «I •r- X :,,e -g-- I i (II I I 81 ) ( l. sit ,-•r- • - • c) I b I. •11 0 1 I ) In .1: C) at -%e 01 I:: . ■

- .: 1 -• 0_ _1 1: 1 1- 41 tll s' (10 tli C: Cl 1 1 CI 01

1- g- g- I i In 01 C.) si) t) 8.5,-- if. 111 r: 1- I 1 Ill III C: 0 1: i: t.. 0 :1 t. 1 .--• .3.- L. •r- L 0 01 I b 1-:*— W ta .11 I I I b 1 ) 1 ) • 0 tit ti 1.1I In •ol '..V: 0 .e, 1.1 1f1 ..(«I t) 53 -e: 'e :1

cf :njury Frequency Pcat %)

191 101

-14-

" -

Nc injury 49 2S

Ilc visila injury 74 / - .., '../

le , 17

.Isceraticn 27 14

• :fracture • 3 1

Se - cus Mu'tiple Injuries 5 3

* :nformation cn injuries was missing frcm 37 police occurrence reports.

-15-

w'th other reports that abused ==m=1==

saljv ec- _ _

Table 1 shows -hat "E. ==ma'es (E2% c= ==se-' - = ,= ====' ,=swe-= not

a=v's=,' =c. ,4 d'd nr-r. c for o.aot. "h's percenteg= does noz

include the 40 f=mel=s who were threatened and not essault=d o-

the43 . cases where the officer did not record the treatment

required.

Although 3 zeà cf the females -= ,- ='v=d visible

injuries, police officers laid only six charges (3% of

sample), all cf which were assault causing bodily harm.

One hundred and thirty-six women (62%) were:advised about

laying private informations and 86% of this rout were advised

to lay charges of common assault. Only 5% of the females

wer= adv'sed by police to contact the local shelter for

• battered women.

The numbe- c= t'=es that the Icr..4on Pol i ce 7c -- =

w=-= invlvei w"h the males 'n this ser.- 1 =, cric: to =n 4

after the study d, was cb=ained from the tolice comtute,-

Ea-ween Zanua=v :97E and Decembe= 197E, males

he.4 an ev=rece o= ='v= pol i ce interventions for = v=r'ety

c= ====.-"n= oth== th=h ==m"y troubl= traffi c

f_chtihg with others, etc.:, and the females had callad

the police to r=r - -: family trouble incident.: ch ah a...erage

83 116

3 4

TOTAL 139 100

-16—

TA3LI /

Treatment for :nfuries Received Only 3y Females Una Were Assaulted Acccrding to Police Reports

Treatment Sought Frequency Percent (%) of Assaulted. Wdmen

None

Advised by police ta see doctor

Advised by police to go te emergency 3 2

Taken by police to U. • 8 emergency

Eospitalized 5 4

-17-

of 1.1 occasions. Between July 1979 and Aor'l 193 1 , the

males were involved with police an average of 2.5 times for

various reasons and police were called by the females an

average of 0.9 times for family trouble.

Only 37 of the females (17%) who were in contact with

the police during the six month period, subsequently laid

private informationsagainst their assailants. Fourteen

of these women (38%) applied for a recognizance to keep the

peace in addition to the assault charge. Nine women charged

their martners during this time without calling the police,

and six charges of assault causing bodily harm were laid by

police.

After the female has laid a private information with •••••••••••

the justice of the peace, she must go to the police station

to have a constable record the facts of the assault and the

case history. These records reveal that almost all of the

women (88%) had been assaulted by their partner or ex-

partner prior to the current assault.

The average length of time between the date of the

offence and the final court disposition was 75 days. Table

3 shows the dispositions for the various types of assault

charges and applications for recognitances to keep the peace.

Ove= half of the charges were either .dis=issed or withdrawn.

Only three males were fined and three males received jail

co

TABLE 3

Court Disuritions for Various Types of Charges

• TYPE AND FREQUENCY OF CHARGE DISPOSITION DISPOSITIONS

POLICE LAID PRIVATE INFORMATIONS AS PERCENT- AGES OF ALL TYPES OF

Assault Assault Common Threatening Threatening CHARGES Causing Causing Assault (in addition Bodily Bodily to common Harm Harm assault

Dismissed

J. - 8 3 4 24%

Withdrawn 1 2 3 4 8 27%

Suspended Sentence 1 1 7 - - 14%

Conditional Dis- - - 2 - - 3% charge .

AbsolUte Discharge 1 _ 3 _ _ 5%

- Fine - -- 3 - - 5%

Jail 2 - 1 - - 5%

Entered Recognizance.

_ _ 8 1 14% to keep ihe pence

Warrant outstanding - - 1 - 1 3%

TOTAL 6 3 20 15 14 100%

sentences, none of which ex,- .1 30 days. Only 9 of te

males (31%) who were charged with threatening :ha ir paner,

entered -- cocn -", =ncas to k=,m the oe=c...

Additional information which was obtained from

police and court files can be found in Appendix F.

ma-t""i-=" _ au iuteview. .. thnc Sixty-two (29%) . e

-20-

• • • ̂ •:r^

..... ■ =

vio 1 === e ° 7 a'-out th= se-v 4 c=s th=v r=c=iv=

various agents cf the crimina 1 justice system, an attempt.

was made to contact a" of ••:-.e women who contacte the

police 'n the fi -st hale o= 1 979 retorting e l"" 41 V vic 1 =nce and

those who c ent to the =tic= ce th.= te="= tt I.v a ch.-c=.

An ampt was made -o 1 cc=t= the women betwe-=n Zecembe-

193C and April 1931 and the initial contact with :hi, femaL.ie

was mad , on the =='ethone. 1:h= -=search==

if she was williny to receive a lette: explaining the stu:2.y

and asking for her participation (see Appendix.G). Afte: :ha

female :ad received the lette:, a follow-up zelephc...a ca:1

was -=;= -^ e=t=--in= wh=the- cr not she wa= in

were interviewed, 11! 3 3%) could not be located, and the

• • • :amaininc 39 (In) we-= not interesz=e i “ n partic . pat....- ng•

- A3. cf the women who war= intevriewer.: _ad been invo-%*ec w_._

the pc.oe ""--"^"" ^e, ^= 1: ' -- Z C- -r;..

-•

re c l, c z

on = inz==w ez -n

ncne cf zhe assa_l:Ints was

r..na femaLes' pa= . cf

cn1y.

The r.=sults indicate that victims of wife assault

who seek assistance frcm the criminal justice system have

experienced an extensive history of abuse, long before they

call the police. Eighty-six percent cf the femalés indicated

that they had been assaulted an average of 35 times (range

is 0 to 312) before 1979, and thirty-eight females (61%) had been

assaulted an average of three times in the two years between

1979 and 1981.

Forty-two females (68%) indicated that their partners

had been drinking when they were assaulted in 1979 and

almost all of these women felt that alcohol was a contributing

factor to the violence. During the two years since 1979,

most of these males (82%) have been drinking the same amount

or more. Sixty-six percent of the females indicated that

their partners had some type of problem which led to the

abuse and which had gotten worse since 1979. The problems

identified included excessive alcohol consumption (26%),

emotional difficulties (45%), uncontrollable tempers (10%),

and psychiatric disorders (7%).

The females had an average of two close .friends

or relatives with whom they could discuss the abuse (mode

is 0). Most cf the women (77%) became involved with social

and community agencies as a result cf the physical abuse and

other problems in the relationship. The children were involved

with outside agencies in 33% of the cases and family doctors

--A.- -c feee vic ..cz expa- ••■ ••••••,

•■• •••••=. 17 • . -‘«e the i tc thC wcm.r1.

assault charge and twenzy-seven females (45%) tO La; an

cf fama.Les.

c' evsc==ai.f. tc C.'sccva- the

were asked if the situation shculd have :teen hand1= 4

diffe-ently. Thirty-eight females (51%) wanted the office:

felt that the c":c=-s d" nct -=smcnd fas- =ncu. ,-h -c the c=' 1 .

••• ••1 ••• 1

c= (/0)

* .z*

and 13 women (2:P1) want=d the mc"c= o ffice: 'cc -emova -h=

assailant frcm the premises.

A numer cf the interviewed wcmen suggeezed

that mcl'ce cf' 4 c=rs shculd adcot a d'"=-=n'• =t -t 4 d=

towards wife assau , cases. The wcmen := 1 - th.: mcl'c=

office: should try tc show more understanding cf the situaticn,

respect the rights cf the victim and women in general,

acknowledge the se----eness cf the assaults, and nct presume

--,.=-,= • --c

••••••■■=•••••....:**"'7-..-.

• office cf the • • c = . av

c:".a.rgaeae-7ainaz thai:aasaLlanza.

Mcs: cf fa:ca.:as' _ ,

a=a'r.sz ap:zears

zr, 1...a= a favc -.:-." . = cn

-23-

since sixteen women (62% of those proceeding to court)

reported that the court action contributed in reducing or

terminating the abuse.

Table 4 shows the percentage of females who were

satisfied or dissatisfied with the intervention they received

from various agents in the criminal justice system. Half

of the women were satisfied with the police intervention and

50% of the females coing to court were satisfied with the

response :rom the justice of the eace. Over half of these

respondents indicated that the justice of the peace did not

adequately explain what the charges meant or what they should

exmect in the courtroom. Only 31% of the females receiving

court intervention were satisfied with the Crown attorney's

response with 33% reporting that they received no support or

understanding from the Crown. Moreover, 67% of the victims

indicated that the Crown attorney did not spend enough time

with them in order for them to understand the situation and

be advised of the proceedings (see Table 15 for a complete

list of the females' recommendation).

Fifty-eight percent of the females who went through

the court process felt that the length of time between the

abusive incident and the final court disposition was too long

and 35% of these women were wo-- 4 ..A about being assaulted by

the male during this time.

— 4 —

Table 4-

Percentage of interviewed Females Who Were Satisfied or

Dissatisfied with the Criminal Justice System Intervention*

Criminal Justice Satisfied Dissatisfied System Agent (%) (%)

Family Consultants 65 27 (n=29)

Police** (n=62) 52 48

Justice of the Peace 50 35 (n=26)

Crown Attorney(n=26) 31 50

.--*Where the responses to a particular agency do not add up to 100%, the remainder indicated no feelings in either direction.

**In addition, all of the females who laid charges were very satisfied with the police constable who prepared the Crown's brief.

-25-

Particular case histories recorder: from the

interviews with the females were selected to illustrate the

circumstances surrounding the abusiveness, the history of

the couple's relationshim, and the general pattern of

response from criminal justice and other community service

systems (see Appendix 1). Zt should be noted that these

histories reflect the perspectives of the abused females

only. The interviewer recorded the alleged events as they

• were reported and made few attempts to validate the accounts.

Most of the case histories reveal a large number of serious

assaults and extreme forms of threatening behaviour,

many of which may have ended in the female's death had she

not left her partner. : Furthermore, the histories illustrate

the numerous opportunities for agencies to intervene more

effectively in these cases and the females' increasing

frustration with these attempts.

Additional information that was recorded in the

interviews with the abused women is presented in Appendix

J.

used bv the male was at least as sericus kicking, biting, or s

4.L.1= ==r9.mle, Twenty-one .percent (61) Of

-2E-

e--=

.n' 'nt=rviews with victims of w 4 == =': 'nd'cate

that wc==r. who .-= 'n contact w 4 th zh= oclice are experiencing

sericus assaults. so% cf the cases, the ty-pe of viclence

•••• •

the victims received injuries that were v 4 e."Clas col 4 ce and

were ■=r•.«-2=A y the c==4co ■•. OnlV 7% o e -h= = 11 =o=d'v =ssaulted

wcm=n w=-= advised t: ■ = e: 4 ■ =7 ■ ■ --=------• .-= -he SeriZU2-

ness cf many cf these assaults, hcwever, the police force does

not encourage officers to act decisively, sucs that charges were

Laid in Only 3% of the cases. bver 60% of the wcmen wanted the

po 7 ice to cha-g= the male but most women who call the police ara

4 neormed that if th=v w.nt further action w 4 ":'n the cr'r... 4 na/

justice system, they must pursue it themselves.

The result of enccuraging victims of violent

cr.nes, ■ ■ . . who are a==.. .nms,

tn= 4- own wav zh -cu.th tn= como'=x 4 t 4 == c= th= crlminal justice

system is that cniv 17% cf abused wcmen whc call the pc1:.:e

- -cc==' to ■ = 1 .• .1 4 = ••• e • ••• ••• •• • r.

,e wcmen ■■■■■ •:,. ■ ■■ .■■■■ ■■■■ the

..= ee Z.' thems=ives, :hat the viclehoe has

terminated, cr :hat the wcman must ha ,:e provoked the viblence

and, the: -a, it. The -==--= cf the inter... ==-

-27-

led to another. conr.lusicr. -the negative attitudes cf many

criminal justice acents serve to inform the victim that she

does not have a right to proceed to court and when she

does, she will receive minimal support from court'officials.

In light of these attitudes and the fact that manv of the women

are still being threatened by the assailant, it is not

surprising that some abused women return to the situation or

want the charges withdrawn.

The dispositions of the cases that do proceed to

court reveal that most charges against males who assault

their partners or ex-partners, are either dismissed or withdrawn.

Even when there is a finding of guilt, it is very unlikely that

the assailant will be fined or sent to jail. it should be

noted that the rate of withdrawn charges in London, Ontario,

is still much lower than the 75% or higher reported in other

communities (e.g. Hogarth, 1978). Despite this indication

that the court is not willing to take these cases very

seriously, ove: 60% of the victims who were interviewed,

reported that going to court had a positive effect on the

level of violence.

The profile of the assailant is a male who has

a drinking problem and who often engages in violence when

drunk. He often has had extensive involvement with police

beats h's pa-tnr frequently, .and, according to the .f.males,

is in ned cf psvchologioal and emotional counselling.

-28-

The victims have received numerous beatings, do not have a

good support system of fr 4 ends and fam'l'=, and have turned

to manv sources in the community for help. The psychological

effects of the violence for many women has been devastating.

It is important to remember that abused women who

look for help in the community, have been assaulted frequently

and are among the few victims who find the courage to involve

outside agencies. The last thing that these women need is

a negative response from community professionals; instead,

they require support and underetanding.

-29-

3.

Th results c' the--===n-study and o-h=- "-=-.-u-=

in the field, sugoest that not enough is being dore for 7iCZiMS

and assailants cf family violence. Oneof the consequences

is that many abused women who look for help return to an

abusive situation without any hope of escaping the violence.

Even these women are among the very small percentage of

victiMs who will identify themselves. Assailants are rarely

convinced that they are doing something wrong and, instead,

are left to continue the serious assaults on their partners.

In the following recommendations, the police

as well as other criminal justice agents are being asked to

treat violence between family members no differently than

violence between strangers and to lay charges against males

whocommit criminal acts of assault. New services are

recommended to guide the victims through the cdurt process

and provide treatment for assailants. Allhuman service

ssionals are asked to better co-ordinate their efforts

on behalf cf victims of family violence and become increas'ngly

responsive and knowledgeable about the trauma and issues

involved. All of the recommended changes and services seem

c-r7van'-v o'nat '3 c-r-r'zt-' cc clav'n ,-

.n activa rcl= 'n prevnt'ng a pattern cf violent ^-.h.v'c/%r

in e -;,:

-30-

• • • ! :re ■•••• • • •-• •••••• • •-• •••••

the ma=t, pc , '-= • nze. throughout

Nc-th b="e.n =mr zh='r 'nade- ,-u=t=

procedures and pccr attitudes in responding to wife assault

calls. While most victima want the mclice to provide

protection for them bv removing the male or laying charges,

most officers merely separate the couple for a few minutes

and leave when the violence ceases:

lie (the officer) believes that his job is to quiet things down and leave to avoid makng an ====st, "a k==ir, zh= ma""..=- unreported, and to settle the problem without resorting to criminal charges, the court, or lawyers (Langley a Levy, 1979, p.175).

Many of the police ofe'^= ."s who respond to domestic

violence calls have not acquired the skills necessary for

dealing with these cases effectively. Loving (1980)

reports that the officers themselves "expressed a need for

clearer policy direction and relevant training programs for

handling these calls" (p. 32).

Even when the o .Fficer -e=1 4 zes that tol'oe 'nz="vent'on

is not sufficient in a particular case, he still must have

adequate diagnostic skills to make such a decision and must

know what social services are ava 41 =" 1,= in the community.

:n th.› mreeenz study. , 't was apparent chat these =k"1=

=== 'mmorz=nz 'o- the -"' ,"="s z- cons":=- 4 nm the.-

-31-

only one-,-- , =-11=- oe al l f ailv Ço 1 =nc= -="s w=-= -=e=--=A

to the police crisis workers who ara traininc in making

t:-=me -=== --="s t^ -ormun' -y =c=no'=s.

unfamiliarity with community agencies 'm -=''=cted by the

fact that only 5% of the victims were referred, by the

officer, to the emergency shelter for battered women.

The need for police officers to adopt a dnt

approach toward wife abuse is supported by many of the victims

interviewed in this study. The prevailing attitudes which

are detrimental to the abused women include •ot

the need to offer her support and understanding, and

presupposing that an assault on a woman is not important

and that she probably mrovoked it. Many of the victims interviewed

in this study felt that the assailant received more support

from the o ,.s than the victim.

Another belief which is held by some officers

is that violence is a normal male response when women behave

insubordinately (Potter, 1978). All of these misconceptions

about wife assault contribute to the officer's failure to

view wife assault as a criminal act; consecuently, assault

charges are often not laid bv the officer. :n addition,

Emerson ( 1 979) reports tha- amorox'ma-=lv half o= ="

s nc: ; nvc 1 7„.7. Jr. thi s typ,, c=ce:

zhv :.:me-'=nce no ?e-son. 4 n wife

abuse -." =. ne.= =-- zn. s .

chanceto • • _ .c:en w-- -"-- •to

-32-

police =o-

:mmrcv=mnzs 'n th= r=emcn=e tc abused

wcmen shcu:d inc'ude ,-txt=n="7.. r..cru't and in-service

which focuses on the nature and extent of domestic violence,

the risk of escalating violence, and the officer's respon-

sibility in separating the couple, making ree..-. 1 s, and laying

charges (Dutton, 1980; Loving, 1580; Martin, 1976). As

the criminal justice system's front-line workers, police

officers have the responsibility cf informing batts

that society does not condone violence.

The current police policies in most cities dictate

an avoidance of arrest and minimal intervention in wife abuse

calls (Loving, 1980). Furthermore, many police departments

do not view wife beating calls as "police work" (Loving,

1980); instead, they see them as civil matters or as cases

requiring social service intervention only. Straus et al.

(1980) state that "the no-arrest guideline probably is more

closely followed than any other in the training manual because

it so clearly fits the experience and values of the police.

(p.44).

Although police policy the investigating

officer's ability to charge or arrest to a large extent, it

should be noted that the officer's attitude plavs an im.pertant

role 'n th=. ormcss. :n etroit, 'ch'an,

=0.• exoe, renedial 1 --tc."s 1 = - 'on was massed to allow

'emale hee nowhe-e

, .

-C ° '°°V° nm n--- - nn - = = m

-33-

misdemeanor assault cases. Even though the

primary turpose c' the leg'slat'on wae - emove 'mpe ,4, ments

the cs decision to arrest, the arrest rate actually

decreased after the legislation was passed (Buzawe, 1981).

One recommendation for improving police intervention

is to have officers conduct some type of follow-up with the

victim and assailant, especially in cases where the assailant

was not interviewed by police following the assault. This

recontact with the family would help to reinforce the seriousness

and unaccemze^v cf such behaviour to the male (es-lly

since 29% of the males in this study were no t even interviewed

by the officer), and ensure that the female is in no immediate

danger for having called the police. Other researchers

support the development of this type of police intervention

(Hogath, 1979; Loving, 1980).

One other police procedure which needs to be examined

is the practice of separating the couple following an

attack. If the couple is separated for the night (which is

un1 4 ke1y), it 4 s usua • ly the female who is asked to leave

and stav somewhere else. This often involves waking young

ch".4 -en end ''nd 4 nc e motel, relative or "rien' who 's

nn

• - • . . .. Mcst wc==.n

leave the c'c=hs back and nc . -e • --e

the me 7 . , s hct -emoved 's ne usua:ly cwns cr cents

-34-

the d .-=nnot "-e h's h-me -nl==

= ---=sr="4 . The same s cc ol=l=s who =s=a-ulz th='-

:It or =x-o= --n=-s W:1Z CWnS o- rents

the dwelling. Over two-thirds cf the victims in 1::his study

wanted the males removed and/or arrested.

there is a need for police throughout Canada

to examine more closely their re-sponse to family violence

and their respcnsihilitv in .preventing more serious crime.

Heckler & Gauld (1981) report domestic disputes were

responsible for 30% of all homicides in Ontario, 25% of

British Columbia homicides, and 48% of hcmicides ccmmited

in the Prairies. The authors suggest that many criminals

are produced ir 'amilies where violence is common and that

mare attention shculd be paid to violence-producing situations

in families. This strategy would not cnly serve

to reduce the number cf sericus crimes (e.g. murder, rape)

but would also interrupt the patterns of family violence.

(ii) Victim Advccacy Service

While scme victims ce family violence mav ca// in

the police after a number of assaults,these cases -=:---=sent

a small proportion cf the women who are being assaulted

in the:: cwn hcmes (see Appendix K for a review of the needs

of "-ett=-=d wcmen). 7=w o 4 the cases chat a-= remcrted to

police m--o==,-.7 to cou-t: the mr==en: study 'nd'ost=s chat

cr.lv 1 7% cf a 11 partner assau't and threatening calls -=,-='ved

-25-

by mclic. r.su"-ed ch.--.s be'ng laid. :n to

en=u-e fLl c -'m'ha' svst=r 'nvolvem.nt 'n 'am'

violenc e , se-74 -e= z- be =str-^l'shed w4 "

the Crown attorney's orocessing charges; as well

as assist the victims in cases where officers have laid

assault charges. Furthermore, women who lay charges against

their partners usually need more support that victims

of other crimes, if they are to proceed with the charges.

The following factors are characteristic of most abused women

and serve to deter them from calling the police, from going

to court.or result in charges being withdrawn:

1. abused women are emotionally and legally attach..d tb their assailants;

2. they are usually economically dependent on their assailants;

3. their assailant is often the father of their children (85% of the interviewed females had at least one child from the relationship).

4. the victim may still be living with her assailant (86% cf the females who called the police were living with their assailant);

5. abused wcmen have no perscnal systems (the average numb.r c' close contacts "^r zhes= "=ma'.s was two);

6. .s a -=sul- cf numerczs beabincs, abused wcmen ha -7e little s.e. 1 '-con'"4 =nce and ma v and

'n -h= wcm.n n.v= e negative

-36-

respcnsa frcm both the •criminal "ustice s-...sr.m= -^=

sasfed w'th -h= 4 nz.-7=nt' ,-n th= zh=

.hd p=

ctims were

.szice :2f while half cf

In =dd 4 t 4 ch, the v 4 ct'r= cf f ai.Y v4 0 1. =nc= .r=

required tc tackle the criminal listice system alcne, unlie

other victims of crime, because the morce fail tc Vied

these assaults as criminal matters. As a result, the woman

feels helpless, is ill-prepared in the courtroom, and receives

no legal advice (Hogarth, 1973).

There are a number cf services which an advocacy

system should offer to victims cf family violence who have

laid private charges or who will be witnesses to the police

officer's charges. These functions include the following:

4 contact females who have called the police reporting family violence;

inform the complainant about wife abuse, the legal prccess, her legal opticns, and possible court outccme;

refer the ccmplainant to medical treatment facilities, housing services, public assistance, legal aid, vocational prcgrams and other communitv resources;

iv. communicate with the prosecutor and ensure that the case is properly prepared (e.g., photograph e of injuries, witnesses, medical records);

V. communicate with the police department and keep them informed about the case;

provide cran -=-= wh=n tr,d ■■• • ■ and day .■ necessary to victims attending court; and

=c-cm-anv Lande ‘'o court .

(Zutton, 1980; 1=':=- .; Walsh, 1379; :ermen, 1:331.; Wayne, 1979).

-37-

;-...otn== s=--vc= wn'cn some =bus="=m.'.s m=y

request at this time is counsellinc about tne abuse, her

=mom'cnal 'utur= goals and 4 =c's'cn-mak'nc.

:n fact, 39% of the victims interviewed in the present study

indicated tnat they needed some vv .-be of sumportive counsellinc.

Most abused women are not aware of the resources in the

community which can respond to their needs. For example,

only 35% of the victims interviewed were aware of the local

shelter for abused females. While some advocate programs

offer this type of intervention and information service,

most programs associated with the zolice and prosecutor's

office refer the females to other counselling acencies in

the community.

A number of victim advocate programs have been

established in the United States and Table 5 lists a f=w

of these services. Most of the programs are located in

the prosecutor's office, receiving referrals from police,

prosecutors, hostitals and other community agencies. These

agencies handle a large volume of clients and are successful

in increasing the number of assault charges being processed,

.s -4,. 11 as 'hcr=as:hc the conviction rate for tne.= case.

Process'ng cr'm, n=1 charges .-='n=z abusers n.s

the of the amcun: c' vic.ence 'n

=o- exant.e, -ne abus ed w,m.n interviewed in the z-u=r

NAME AND ADDRI- SS or PROGRAM

Battered Women's Project Seattle, Washington

-35% of cases prosecution -91% convicted

926 cases prosecuted

Table 5

rive American Victim Advocate Services for Abused Women

LOCATION

City attorney's . office

NUMBER OF CLIENTS SEEN IN 1980

1.200

REFERRAL SOURCES

-contact all women calling police to report family violence .

PROM:01110N AND CONVICTION RAlES

678 cases prosece?

57% convicted

1,108 Pinta County Victim Witness Program Tuscon, Ari7ona

County attorney's office

law enforcement-56% County attorney-23% Other sources - 21%

Victim's Informalion Bureau of Suffolk Inc. Smithtown, New York

Westchest County District Attorney's Domestic Violence Unit

Counselling centre

County attorney's office

hotline-2300 office-230

most cases self-referred -other referrals from police and attorney

1400 police

-police -hospitals -social service agencies

Women Against Abuse Domestic Abuse Clinic Philadelphia, Pennslyvania

District attorney's office

3041

-39-

v--_---- was reduced cr rr..nazed =z

result of -curt interven-'on 'n 62' ,= _ne cas es.

addition, S'=h ( 192 1 ) sa=s that court action se-v=s to

educate not only the abuser, but the criminal .:,.u.s'!ice agents

as wt= 1, :

The proceeding often has a sobering upon the offender, shows the defense attorney that the prosecution is serious, educates the court and provides a transcrit for the preservation of the testimony (Sieh, 1981).

(iii) Treatment for Assailants

hi le the victims and their children must be given priority in support services, prevention of domestic violence requires treating the offender (Ganley & Harris, 1978, p.1).

In the past, a considerable amount of literature

has concentrated on the victims of family violence, investigating

their responsibility in provoking the attacks and the

reasons whv they stay or refuse to press charges. Very

little attention has been focused on the perpetrator, largely

because abusers are unwilling to admit to their behaviour

and,consecuentiv, unwilling to seek help. Loving (1980)

concludes that "the most direct way to reduce the problem

would be to alter the behaviour cf men who are motivated

to beat women"(p.21).

The .buse ,1 feraes who were interviewe ,' 'n th'm

study the need for providing therapy for their

partners. One-half of the victims felt that their partners

sce -vm.= ce -cunse"'nc and 5 ,1";% indicated zhaz thee

males ce cbem wh'-h 1 .,=d cc zh ,-- abuse nd

wh'ch had goztr. wcrse 137 9 . .1 mcng the mrcblems

cited were excessive alcchol consumpticn, emoticna:1 difficulties,

uncontrollable temers, and psychiatric disorders.

As a result of recent attempts t2 identify the

wiee abuser, a number of American researchers (Boyd, 1977;

Egley, 1981; Everett & Checker, 1980; Fleming, 1979; Ganley

& Barri, 1973; Geller, 1973; Walker, 1 979; Wetzel, 1980)

have developed profiles of the abuser. The following

list contains the mcst commonly ident'e'd characteristics

of the batterer: •

- explosive tamper;

- extremely dependent on his victim;

- blames victim and others for his actions;

- attempts to isolate female frcm others;

- extreme jealousy

- adherence to traditicnal sterectypes;

- low self-esteem;

- denial of the violent acts;

- minimizing the sericusness cf the assaults;

- manipulative with others;

- withdraws frcm close intscnal ccntact

- abused as a child;

- alcchcl and/or drug dependence; and

- a refusal to seek helm.

One o f the mcsr- characteristic cf the

abusi;e male 's h's unw"l'ncns= cc admit -c h's v'c'=nc;

-41-

'n=z==d, h= bl=m.=s ot"- .1=rs (-sua"v the v'e -i'r) fer h's

preblems. Abusers that seek hale, de sc in an attempt te

convince their partners te stay or cerne back, but this

source of motivation is only temporary, especially if the

female later agrees te return to the relationshie (Egley,

1981). Senna (1981) reports that "in his (the abuser's)

mind, he= leaving him has caused the depression and so

all he has to do is 'get her back', and the problem will

be solved" (p. 6).

it appears, therefore, that the most effective

way to ensure that the male receives treatment is through

court-ordered treatment (Dutton, 1980; Frederiksen et al.,

1981; Loving, 1980). In the United States, assailants who

involuntarily attend counselling are ordered to attend

either in lieu of prosecution or as a condition of probation;

however, we feel that counselling should not replace prosecution

but should complement it, since there must be an admission of

guilt before the abuser will proceed to take responsibility

for his own life and make the required changes (Dutton,

1 989; Everett & Checker, 1930). Furthermore, since the

males are most susceptible to treatment during the crisis

eeriod immediatelv follow'ng the assault (Everett &

1 9 80; 7 =i-man, 1 93 1 ), 41- 's r=cemmend=d that the eol'c=

officer :el' the mal= about any av="='-i= counsellino

trencr=m= 'n 1- 14.= co=m-n'-y.

-42-

ce: issue 'n ccunsell'ng assailant= is the

type cf int=*.v=ntin used. - bout , = cr grt-t.

Although some men may bnlv e ot'vated bv the hoc=

reconciliation w'th the victim, familv counsel"ng is not

recommended as a primary mode of intervention because the'

violence is not a funczion cf the quality cf the relationship

(Ganley & arris, 1978; La Violette, 1981; Purdy. Nickle,

1982). Furthermore, when family therapy is used the violence

is usually nct terminated (Egley, 1981; Lerman, 1981),

and relationship and communications issues distract from the

primary goal of stopping the violence (Egl=y, 1981).

addition, when family counselling is used the victim is

implicated as being at least partially responsible for the

abuse she receives.

A number cf counselling programs for batterers

have been established in the United States over the past

five years. Table 6 contains a list of American programs

where information was available on such variables as type

of counselling, type of number of clients, and

intervention strategies and evaluation techniques used.

Almost all cf the programs offer groun counselling with

the philosophy being that if the male can share his experience

with cthe*. s in the same sit-. - if-n and re ,-=i7= subto--i =tcr

his group peers, he will be less defensive and more wi"ing

to accent. change. Ove: h='= c= the orcgr -,..ms a'=c

individual counselling in addition to group therapy, and

F.4

name and Address of Program

Alternatives to Aggression Madison, Wisconsin

Alternatives to Violence

tongheach, California

Beacon Clinic 6teenfield, Mass. ------------- --- Domestic Assault Program lacoma, Washington

Domestic Intervention Pr. Miami, Florida

F.MIR6f Boston, Mass.

-- —

Family Services of Duluth

Croup Services for flatterer Montgomery Coi mut

House of Ruth

Pa 1 t !more , flat y I and

Men's Resource Centre Portland, Oregon

Page Behavior Program Ohio

- .

Spouse Assault Crisis Centre

Muskegon, Michigan ------------- ----- RESOLVE Fayettville, N.C.

Shelter-Based Counselling

YMCA Domestic Crisis Centre Michigan

Siales Ailitudes Toward Women Brun Sm A-Role Identity

Si al es • flet k Depress ion - -locus of Control

r 9. ! 'ewe !, one year

follow 7 op- 1 months

Stales locus of Control _ -Assertiveness -Multiple Affect

ladministored berme ar.1 after gnome)

-82% effective for all levels of violence

follow-un- 6 months Prfective

group better than Ind.

-75%- 80% effective

type of Counselling. Type of Re ferrai number of Length of Counselling Techniques and Areas of ----- foiirt- Clients Treatment Concern

Group Ind. Couple Voluntary ' ' Orde •

• • A 12 10-12 -assertiveness training, anger diary. (75%) (25%) sessions relaxation, cognitions

Open lts -relaxation. assertiveness, * • * years alternate beh., Identify feelings

A A * a -anger control, alternate behs.,

tcao:::: 511::: I lis it ir ie ts: rs ok rit: Inns 4 weeks -assertiveness. physical exercise.

* * a (residents) - vocational training

A A 196 3-6 mils.

-behavior modification. conflict A A Open 4

6 mths. resolution, relaxation. commui-

years Ication skills

M A A A -ego dynamics, violence as child

-conflict skills, social skills.

* * ) en/ 0 sessions p"blem salving m proup

0 * • * wen 2 3-6 mths.

years

-anger control. relaxation, A a 30 physical exercise, alternate

behaviors

-self-care. relaxation. 0 12 weeks alternative behaviors

a a * * 104 -alternative behaviors

-contracts, anger control. a * * 78 emotional awareness. "mull-

cation', stereotynic behaviors

* A * -anger cues. assertiveness, ' (101) (70i 8 weeks ) 110 relaxation , time-out cuntrol

* * * a 8 weeks -contracts, social skills

Ivaluation

follow-uR 7-5 years «ciales-i.onflict lactic

American Counselling Programs for Hale flatterers .

-44-

sassicns araalsc cond ...:cced in cases wnare clients

p : cs cr e-- w .. -r.c mc „ r -

. . - --= in- =ns - v= c-cm zne.

conduct couple counsellinc and, in most cases, th.is counselling

is jointly sponsored by a support service for the victim

(e.g., transition home, advocacy service).

The primary goal of the American counselling groups

for assailants is the termination of violence. These males

are also encouraged to engage in more positive activities,

take respo ay for their own behaviour, adopt more

acceptable channels of displaying aggression and reacting to

stress, and develop a better understanding of their own

emotions. Some of the techniques used .ost àften to accomplish

these goals are assertiveness training, monitoring feelings

of anger, relaxation exercises, physical activity, social

skill training, and alternate-behaviour learning.

In order to define the abuser and the problem of

violence against women in terms which are meaningful for

intervention strategies, each agency must make certain

assumptions concerning this issue. Fol'cwing is a list

of the most common assumptions about family violence made

bv service providers:

(a) the male is solely responsible for his own '.-=‘hev 4 - , 'r;

(b) until the male takes responsi^ 4 " -y for his own behaviour, the violence will continue;

-45-

(o) violence is a learned behaviour;

(d) violence is a socially condoned method of achieving male dominance and controlling females;

(e) most males are no t in touch with z4eir own emotions; and

(f) abusive males fear intimacy and maintain distance and control in interpersonal relationships.

There is an obvious lack of systematic evaluation

of assailant therapy programs; however, when evaluations

are conducted, they indicate the programs are very effective

(59% to 82%) in terminating the violence. Much of the

effectiveness data cornes from self-reports of the victim

and/or the assailant as well as follow-up studies of three

months to five years. A few prograMs have used standardized

tests such as the Conflict Tactics Scales and Locus of

Control, to assess the degree of behavioural and attitudinal

change.

There is a great need for intensive evaluation of

programs dealing with batterers and future research studies

should investigate the most ye type cf referral (voluntary

or court-ordered) as well as the most appropriate time cf

intervention (a.g., during crisis). Furthermore, a more

=Dcs.ct measure c= behav 4 oura" and att 4 tud'nal chance 'n the

abusers must be made in order to gain a clearer understanding

of the batmerers'personalitv, tive mebncds cf

croup prbc‘=es, and the '="caz'ons =-= the v'cb'm returninc

to the assa'lanz. F'ne"y, beseabchebs must develcp more

-46-

cf me.=su-'ng the

v) educ=t'ng P-m=ssicnais

Women who experience domestic violence recognize

their need for outside assistance and often contact other

agenciee besides the police. In the present study, 71%

cf the interviewed femal.=s had e-tended at least one agency

in the ccmmunity for help; thirty-cne percent went to their

family doctor, 86% sought psychiatric or psycholcgical

treatment and 27% received some other fo rm of counselling.

Thirty-nine percent of these females felt that the" needed

some type of counselling during the pericd of violence and

11% felt that their children needed to talk to a ccunsellor.

A literaturereview cf the traditional respcnses

of the medical, mental health, social service, and criminal

justice systems to abused wcmen reveals that these intervention

attempts are not always appropriate. There are four basic

similarities in service inadequacies amchg the varicus

ccmmunity systems:

(a) a limited awa:eness or an avcidance cf the issues surrcundng ===. 4 ' ,7 v 4 c 1 =P-c=;

(b) suee treatment of (e.g., :;udicial leniency, administration o' drugs);

-47-

a t.nd‘=ncv to ^lame the victim for crovoking the violence; and

a lited nr.ber o= == e e'—'-=1 3 acenc'..s lectinc = 1 =^k c= co-ordination between and within the criminal ju=tic.., medical, mental health, and social service systems.

These four inadequacies involve the systems'

philosophies and how they perceive their roles in handling

family violence.

Tn addition to these problems, there are a number

cf procedural changes which need to be made in order to

properly assist the abused female. The importance of

responding appropriately to abused women is expressed by

King (1981):

The damage done to a battered woman's self-esteem and self-reliance by experiencing repeated acts of violence is increased when social health, mental health, and criminal justice institutions respond inadequately to her recuests for help (p. 4).

Since crofessionals from the various community

service systems are experiencing difficulty in responding

appropriately in cases of family violence, it is imperative

that they become more informed about the issue and more

(.4 \

w4.114 no to d...1 ?eccmendaticns for ' -m -ov 4 nc

4-he". -=cone.- e 4 nclud. "s - =n'ng 4- 0 the 4.7 4 --"m

treating the abuse .= mo-e than a secondary svmptcm, and

becoming more knowledgeable about ccmmun'tv -.mc.--c== that

can int.-yen., more ef=4..t 4 v ,=ly (se., Acm=nd'x for

-48-

-=y 4 =w c' methods for immrcving response).

determine what commun'ty mrcf=ss'mnals need in order 7..t

improve their intervention, a ;ueszi.cr.naira coula

distributed to members of the various service 5v ans,

including psychiatrises, psychologists, doctors, nurses,

counsellors, social workers, and clergy members (see

Appendix M).

Another method of providing information to

professionals is through conferences and workshops, where

participants can gain insight from research in the field,

as well as share their concerns with other practitioners.

Conferences should emphasize the need for community

systems to co-ordinate with each other in order to

adequately provide . for all the victim's needs.

(a) Co-ordination of uman Services -

The need for the various human service systems

to share information and expertise, as well as make referrals

to each other, is apparent from the preceding discussion.

Zn addition to establishing a communication and ral

system with the criminal justice system, there is a pressing

ne4td for oth- egnci=s to dvelop 'ntrasyt=m and 'nt=rsvstm

-Although the present report has focused on the ,'‘==monse o' the c-'min=' . usz'o= svez=m,' it is obvious that progress in this field is equally dependant on close cc-operazion among tha% mer.“-= 1 , nta' h=lth, and social service systems.

4

-49-

• ( Bass er. = r.p '1 =7Q)

.6 •

r For •••••••••,,1 p r,

ha s been recommended that social workers get input from

other community groups that entounter violence (Star, .1930)

and that mental health practitioners consult with other

clinicians and agencies (King, 1981).

- A more integrated network of communication would

help not only the victims but would also serve to educate

the agents and relieve their sense of isolation which can

cause them to become frustrated when intervening in family

violence. :>ccording to Dutton (1930), educating service

providers about the issue of wife abuse should be the primary

goal of the agencies:

Regardless of whatever structural changes, policy changes and outcome options occur, it is most important the educative attitude- change programs be established for professionals working with wife assault cases (p. 92).

There are no 'miraculous' solutions for changing

the pattern of violence in families; instead, progress in

intervention strategies will be dependent on an increased

awareness of the issues involved, as well as a commitment

for providing a coherent and co-ordinated response. Systems

that have avoided the problem or = 4 ned it as being

need -0 redirect ■ ^=4^ attention

.n integrated solution to violence in the

someone else's restonsin _ , _

ere.:7 , 1v.

-50-

4. Ore 7:=NCS ON (—MMUN---e

The m-bb'.am 'n zn's r=ccrt , s now can

a communitv become more responsive and effective in dealing

with wife abuse cases? uring the earlv stages of the research

study, it ecame =parent from ^*- 1 'minary results, observations

and literature reviews that community professions who come in

contact with victims and assailants in wife abuse, are often

reluctant to even identify wife abuse cases, let alone provide

some type of effective intervention.

In London,Cntario, an attempt was made to co-ordinate

these various human service systems and increase their

awareness of the issue by providing them with a forum for

discussing wife assault issues, collecting research information

on the community professionals' response to the problem and

providing them with relevant literature on other attempts

made in North America to address the problem. Community

members representing the criminal justice system, social service

systems, and other local croups established the London Co-

ordinating Committee on Family Violence, to discuss the problems

and issues related to intervening in wife assault cases

and to ocer='"on. 1 ' , ., :-..commendat'ons e0r commun'tv changes.

A r esearch mars= was also added to the commi=t= for th

purpose of providing information on the extent cf the prcblem,

'n'o-m'ng the r., r^e-s cf cu-rent -= ,==.-ch findings, and to

-51-

rescond to any needs for data identified by the various

committee mbers.

Before the committee was even formed, a,number

cf assumptions had to be made about the most amprocriate

response to wife assault, methods of e-ing community

change, and the relationship between research goals and

community efforts In the present report, an emphasis was

placed on the criminal justice system's responsibility in

responding to these cases but it is important to note that

progress in this field is also demendent on appropriate

responses frein the medical, mental health, and social service

systems. Furthermore, co-ordination between all human service

systems is essential to ensuring that all of the victim's and

assailant's needs are met by the community.

Working Assumptions

a) Communities change in much the se way that

individuals change. Behavioural science suggests that individuals

chance their behaviour through feedback, education, and

social reinforcement or support for new patterns of action.

The feedback within the zresent context is provided through

data on the criminal justice resmonse to wife abuse as well

a= v'ot'ms' =cco-nts c= o=n be

- .-rouch = r=v 4 .-- w c= the l'==ratu-= wh'ch

out"ns ='=.",== =x-er'=nc ,== and rocr=m= •=lsewhr=. Rei.. "

1 .

can be mrcv" ,4 thrturh grcum supper.: within a comm'zzee,

tes":»v= r=r.ecn 4 m'cn thr-uch '-eccm 4 ng awar cf a

serious sccia' treble:: sic h as wife ahuse, and endeaveurs

to chance traonal human services responses.

b) One important step in community change

is the identification of key agents and agencies within the

community. These agents must be brought tcgether in an action-

oriented committee setting which reflects leadership skills,

interest'and enthusiasm for change in the area, resources

for implementing change, mediators to balance polarized views,

and advocates on behalf of the victims of wife assault.

It was assumed that the initial selection of the committee

members has to be somewhat arbitrary and that a natural

prccess over tire would develop the most appropriate working

committee.

c) It was assied that the criminal justice

system was the primary ystem to respond to wife assault and

the ystem whose response needed the most improvement. This

view implies that wife assault is a criminal offence and not

simply a private familv matter sutable for civil act'en.

was also assumed that the criminal justice system is a majcr

initiate= cf sccial change.

The c-4-2 4 nal 4 ust 4 c.s svssz c=nnc -'- e^t 'n

'sc'at'en when trying 7.c. change ccmmunity respcnses tc wife

-51-

assau't.. The effectiveness of the criminal justice system

is demendent on the response cf other human services such as

the medical, mental health, educational, and social service

systems. Services cannot exist in a vacuum or redfine a •

problem as someone else's responsibility. We assumed that

a major roadblock in effective community resmonse to wife

assault was the tendency for the criminal justice system

to divert and define family violence as more appropriate for

other human service delivery systems. At the same time,

these other systems viewed the problem in the same way

and awaited a response from the criminal justice system.

We assumed that there existed a major communication gap

between the different community agencies that dealt with

wife assault.

e) :t was assumed that research could have an

impact on community change if it was formative in nature.

Formative implies that the research is designed, analysed

and reported bv the committee in such a way as to promote

change and procram. development. The researchers were

viewed as being integral parts of the committee rather '-han

external agents. It was assumed that the research and the

committee process were partners in an ongoing interactive

cattrn C e idea formation and su--eecu=n7.

f) :t was .n=S -7:°"" that kncw 1 .= ,4 == c = =xm<z-'.=nc

e2.sewhece 'n crth Am-'ca was necessa=v bu: no: s-=='-'.=r17.

-54-

fr chance. Az some 1 ..ve's, CU7 .=summt 4 on wa= -h.: .

'co. co=mitz.e must have f'rszhand excerience on the

men: and =.‘come ce tne mr—b 7 -.171 'n ode- =o- '- to bem==n'nceul

cm them.

g) Integration and co-ordination are essential

components of the effective operation of the criminal justice

system. An effective criminal justice system response is

hindered by conflicting policies and procedures between the

various divisions of the system.

h) It was assumed that most agencies and human

service svstams need not undergo massive changes or seek

new funding in order to respond effectively to wife assault

cases. For example, if the criminal justice system was as

responsive to violence between family members as it is to

violence between strangers, a major accomplishment would

be realized.

2) The London Co-ordinating Committee on Family Violence

The London Co-ordinating Committee on Family

Violence was formed by a number cf community professionals,

partic-lm-ly criminal justice agents, who where interested

in providing becter services to bettered women. :!he members

include the London Police Force, Crown attorney, justices

cf the eace, troba'on and pa-ml= ^": ,-=-s, family lawyers,

the London Status cf Women Action Group, the Family Consultant

--

Service, family counsellcrs, social service agences, and the

staff of the shelter for battered women.

During the first meeting, the committee .members

outlined the goals of the committee and decided =hat although

they were interested in investigating all types of family

violence, the initial focus would be placed on wife assault.

For the purposes of the committee, wife assault was defined

as "any form of physical assault or threat against a female

by her male partner or ex-martner". The definition was

not restricted to 'legally' married spouses. Following is

a list of some of the issues identified uring the initial

series of committee meetings:

(a) there is a need to co-ordinate all of the service systems responding to assaulted females;

(b) all divisions of the criminal justice system need to be co-ordinated with one another;

(c) the possibility of police laying more assault charges should be investigated;

(d) an attempt should be made to reduce the number of withdrawn charges;

(e) clear guidelines about which court should hear these cases (Family or Criminal) should be sec out;

(') =n =xamnat'cn cf '".=, e iveness c' bcth criminal and civil proceedings should be made;

(c) -^. c= hiring .n = —" ,- "ntstudent ' -on cc acC as Crown for chese matzers snculd be examined;

-56-

:h) ecszenz rcs :c - court orde-s and --= ,..00n'-ancesn== ,4 to b= axa ined and c

(i) the lack cf pr-+-= ,--ion for women pending trial should be investigated; and

(j) methods of increasing the involvement of mental health and social service professionals in these cases should be explored.

The committee representative from Adult Probation

and Parole was very interested in establishing a therapy

group for assailants through the Ministry of Corrections.

This member took it upon himself to investigate the possibility

of establishing this service and received from the committee's

research person a considerable amount of literature an existing

assailant services in the United States. The committee

discussed the various aspects of a treatment group such as

when treatment would be initiated (e.g. immediately following

an assault or following court sentencing), whether the service

will be voluntary or mandatory, and who will be making

rals to the group (e.g., police, Family Consultants,

judges, etc.). A proposal for the assailant treatment group

was submitted to the Ontario Ministry of Corrections outlining

the goals cf the program and the details or operation.

At the same time the assailant therapy orogram

was being discussed, the committee's representative from the

London Police Fore- c. 'n'ormed "1= committee th=t os

were being 'nstruct=d to lay common assault oharo=s 'n c==e=

of wife assault when they had reasonable and probably grounds

-57-

to :bel'eyc= zh=t the cffence occurred (see Appendix N ). :n

add't'cn, the directive 'ndicated that these charges would

be n.=ard 'n F=m:ly Court only when the assailant and v'mtim

were living together; ail other cases were tc go to Criminal

Court, including all wounding charges.

Another change in the London Police Force

policy involved the preparation of a Victim Information Card

which had been endorsed earlier by the committee. This card,

which was handed to victims by investigating officers starting

July 17, 1981, contained the officer's intended or recommended

action, the officer's name and payroll number, agency addresses

and telephone number, and brief information on alternative

action (see Appendix 0). The general public was also informed

about the change in police policy . in a newspaper article which

explained the details and intent of the change (see Appendix

P). It was agreed that similar press releases would be

drafted periodically or when major developments occurred

(e.g., establishment of therapy croup for assailants, establishment

of victim advocacy clinic, conference, etc.).

The commit= ,= also 'ocused its attention on

increasinc the understanding of the public and pro=ce 4-nals

to the prcblem cf wi=e assaults. A cuesticnnaice was

trd amprmximatelv 500 rssicnals in the ccmmunity whc may have

intervenedw'th =bused wcrPn (=-=-= Apmehdix M). Prm=,=sz'on='=

-53-

social workers, counse"o-s,

scaz- s, msycholocists,

1.- civ=d a r=mort ^n th= r=, su'zs o' cust'onn.='r

and specific comm.,nts. R,-- stonses , o th‘= communi=vstionna 4 ==

indicated that the professiona's were seldCm in contact with

abused women and rarely saw abusive males. Professionals

indicated that they often made referrals to other community

agencies, with the Women's Community House being the agency

to which . the largest number of referrals are made. Two-

thirds of the respondents endorsed a need for more community

agencies who specialize in the area cf familv violence. Most

of the professionals saw the need for increased co-ordination

between the criminal justice eystam and other systams.

All of the practitioners that received a copy of the questionnaire

were also sent a final report of the questionnaire results

as well ms a - ,."nce list and an outline cf other activities

in the community.

In addition to gathering information on wife abuse

from professionals in the community, the committee decided

to sponsor a conference on wife abuse entitled, Wife Eatterinc:

Obstacles and Routes to Solutions. 3oth professionals and

the general public were invited to attend the conference

which included discussion about the problems facing victims

and remedies for both victims and assailants.

-59-

The impact of the change in police policy

-egarding the laying of charces, was also an immormant issue

for the , in order to assess the impact

of this change, information was 'rom police and

court files on cases where police had charged the assailant.

The committee received a report of these cases which indicated

that within a four month period, thirty-eight common assault

charges were laid by police, whereas in the first six months

of 1979, no common assault charges were laid by police. In

addition, thirty-two charges of assault causing bodily harm

were laid by police during this same Period, compared with only

six charges of assault causing bodily harm being laid in a

six month period in 1979. •

Part cf the process of becoming momknowledgeable

about wife assaults involves ongoing education about the

issue. Consequently, members of the London Co-ordinating

Committee on Family Violence periodically received research

articles, literature reviews and summaries which were considered

important and informative. Furthermore, all members received

bibliographies which contained a list of -='=-=nce material

that could be obtained from the research person if they wished

to explore the issues further.

-h-cuchout the comm'ttee's oterations, members

a=k=A the -=s==--h=-s to '7.7=st'ta-= va-4.-"=

=nr; --oc .=s==-= =c- 1:n-= turtcse

0-1 determ 4 n'no -=x'st'nc m-cb'‘=ms and wav= -c faci . zaoe ,-h=nc=.

The London Co-crdinating Committee on Fni2.yViclence

is now in the process cf planning an evaluaticn cf new police

policies to Lay charges in cases of wife abuse. Services for

victims and oefenders, as well as a public and professicnal

(human service) education trogram will be evaluated within the

same =text. Zeta on the respanse of the criminal justice

system ta abused wives will be gathered in 1982 and compared

to 1979 data. Feedback from victims can also be analysed

over this periad to monitor significant changes. Future

research will attempt to tao the attitudinal and behavioural .

changes at all points in the London community and determine

how these changes lead to more responsive human services

in the areaof family violence.

-61-

CONCLUS:OS

The — 14 .•=s ■-= 4 -tact orln research - -=sen study ,

on a community committee mandated to imorove the criminal

justice system's response to abused women. The research was

formative in that it was intended to promote and develop new

program initiatives within the community. The London

Co-ordinating Committee on ramily Violence guided the research

and became, in itself, a major outcome of this study. The

committee process helped members to develop an awareness of

the problems facing women assaulted by their husbands, appreciate

the importance of data for validating the extent of the problem,

and encouraged the creation of more victim-responsive policies.

One of the critical lessons learned within the

committee was that there was a need for more co-ordination

in the criminal justice system. The number of conflicting

policies, both formal and informal, were astounding. The

criminal justice system was inadvertently geared to sending

victims around in circles with different authorities giving

contradictory advice to the victims. The process facing a

victim wanting protection from her husband was very much a came

of chance. The key agents in the criminal justice system

(police, court c" 4 -='=, Crown attorneys, and judges), all

had ding v4,=ws and molic 4 es that -h'r me.ro=pt'on

cf family violence. became -1 -_ear that the criminal justice

=vst=m c-.== ."v= f-hanc=. .=s m”ch as = comm"--r.‘=n -

for the co-ordination cf its mar-s.

-62-

,L __e data az - e:ed td .4 'sc- =ser4 5'; "h= o -mm'tz==

-....„ _

_-m direction, _m ,=. .1 , -c 4 hz. ,h same zh _ _ ___=__--

elsewhere in :lorth America. Abused women we-e 7a,4 = to e== 1

that their problams were not the concern of the crl:minal justice

system and the" were made to feel more like offenders in

pursuing their rights. The data was startling in demonstrating

the extent of physical violence women suffered in comparison

to the weak criminal justice system response.

The data suggests a wide variety cf needs facing

abused women. The needs are vond the solution provided by

one program or only one part of the system. The needs can

only be met through a whole spectrum of services ranging

from police intake to the court disposition. Many programs

recuire support and a renewed responsiveness from other parts

of the system. For example, police laying assault charges

assume that the Crown attorney's office has the staff, expertise

and time to prosecute these cases and, that the judges are

aware of the problem and have available resources to solve

the problems facing victims and offenders.

Just as programs cannot be piecemeal in their

response, evaluations must also have a broad base and seek a

similar level cf integration. Each new program has spinoffs

that a- the whol= svst=m. For mx.mm'=, treaz.enc p-ogram=

for asaailants may encourage women to seek the laying cf

because they are identify a concern that may have a solution.

-63-

charces and may convince police and courts to follow through

T o evaluate only the impact of the program by assessing

changes in the participants would be overlookinc a'wealth

of data.

P'e7rPeNC'eS

Bass, Z., à ?.ce, J. Agency restonmes -0 the ahused w'e=. Social Caa=wc-k, 1 979, 63, 323-342.

Blair, S. Making the legal s.- te m wor< for hatzered women. In D.M. Moore (Ed.) Battered Uomen. Beverley Bills: Sage Publications, 1979.

Boyd, V.D. Domestic violence: Treatment alternatives for the male batterer. Paper presented at the 83th American :Psychological Association Annual Convention, 1977.

Suzawa, E.S. Police officer resmonse to domestic violence lecislation in Michigan. Paner presented at the National Conference for Family Violence Researchers, Durham, Mew Hampshire, July 1 981 ,

Chapman; J.R. & Gates, M. (ids.), The V 4 ct 4 mization of Women. Beverley Bills: Sage mublic=t'ons, 1 979.

Cobash, R.E., a Oobash, R. Violence Acainst Wives. ':iew York: Th‘n Free Press, 1 979.

Dutton, D. Battered Women and the Canadian Justice Svstem. Ottawa: Solicitor General of Canada Research Bulletin, in oress.

Egley, L.C. A Shelter-3ased Grcum Counsellinc Plan for Men Who Batter, 1981.

Emerson, C.D. Family violence: A study by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. '1'he Police Chief, 1 979, Jun.. ‘=8 - 30 .

Everett, S., & Checker, J. On Prevention of Male Abuse. Champaign, tllincis: ERAF, Inc., 1980.

Fleming, J.3. Stomming Uife Abuse. Garden City, :iew York: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1979.

Frederiksen, L.W., Anderson, C.L., à Feigenbaum, R. Grcum Services for Batterers, Montgomerv County, 1 930. -----

Fromson, T. The Proor's Respcne'^" 4-ies in Sccuse Abuse Cases. Attorney Community Services, 2n. 1.973, Sepzemher, 1 - 23.

Ganley, A.L., Ea--° s, I. Ocmes+'°c violence: 2=sues 'n desimninc and immlmg=nt'nc m-cc-ams for m= 1 ., hatt=-=-s. Pape- m-esenz=,4 e" Psvono2oc't 1 A=socizzi-n, 1981.

-65-

Gayford, J.J. Wife battering: A preliminary study of 100 cases. '-,""sh M=.d'c. 1 Journal, 1 975, ,, 194- 1 97.

Ge'lr, C.A., & Walsh, S.C. A treatment model cf the Victims' B--=au ce Suffolk, :nc. New York, Unpublished

paper, 1979.

Gellmr, J.A. Reaching the battering hus band. Social Work With Groups,1978, 1(18)

• Gelles, R.J. Abused wives: Why do they stay? Journal

Marriace and the Family, 1976, 38, 659-668.

Gelles, R.J. & Straus, M.A. Violence in the American family. Journal of Social Issues, 1979, 35, 15-39.

Gelles, R.J. Violence in the family: A review of research in the seventies. Journal of Marriage and the ramily, 1980, 42, 873-885.

Goode, W. Force and violence in the family. Journal of Marriace and the Family 1979, 33, 624-635.

Hackler, J. & Gauld, L. Policies toward violent crime: Alberta as a case study. Canadian Journal of Criminolocv. 1981, 23(3), 313-329.

Hilberman, E. Overview: The 'wife-beater's wife" reconsidered. American Journal of Psychiatry, 1980, 137, 1336-1347.

Hogarth; J. Battered wives and the justice system. Faculty of Law, University of British Columbia, 1973, Unpublished paper.

Hollingshead, A.B. The index of social position. Yale University, 1958, Unpublished paper.

Jaffe, P.C.., Thompson, J.K., & Paquin, M.J. immediate family crisis intervention as preventative mental health: The Family Consultant Service. Professional Psychology, 1978, November, 551-560.

King, L. ReSponding to smouse abuse: The mental health profession. Response, 1981, 4(5), 6-9.

Langley, R., & Levy, R.C. Wife Seatinc: The Silent Crisis. New York: Robert Brooks, 1979.

La A. Alternaties -c 7'ol.nc.. Long Beach, C.': vMe-A, UnmUbliS'ned paper.

Le-man, L.G. C-'r , na' p-ms..--ut'on cf -..."f= bearers. Resocnse, 1 98 1 , 4(3).

Loving, N. Re=rona'no -c couse Abus= and W'== Guide for Police. Wasnincron, D.C.; ".x=curiv= Research Foram, 1 930.

•.■

-86-

Macreod, L. 'e= 3at- =-'nc 'n Canada: rrn., ----- .

Ottawa: Canadian Government Publishing Centre, 1930.

ma--=-=A W".7.es. D. 1 Z .^

Martin, D. What keecs a woman o=oz - v= 'n = v'ol=nz o: The social tontec Of bat-er-ng. :nD.M. Moor= Battered omen. 3ev=- 1 =v 3 ,11 =: Sac= P-*-ons, 1 979.

Moore, D.M. (Ed.). 3a--=-= ,4 Women. 3everlev F'lls: Sage Publications, 1979.

Nichols, B. The abused wife problem. Social Casework, 1976, 57, 27-32.

• O'Brien, J.E. Violence in Divorce prone families. Journal of Marriace and the Familv, 1 971, 33, 692-698.

Pahl, J. The general practitioner and the problems of bat.= ,•=rl women. Journal of Medical Ethics, 1979, 5, 117-123.

Pfouts, J.E. Violent families: Coping responses cf abused wives . child we lee,=, 1979, 57, 101_111.

Potter, J. Police and the battered wife: The search for understanding. Police Magazine, 1 878, 10, 41-50.

Purdy, F. & tackle, N. Practice principles for helping men who batter. Social Work with Groups, 1982, 4(4).

Rammattan, J. Meade, Cerre, M.L. & Porto, M.L. Physically abused women: Satisfaction with sources of help. The Social Worker, 1980, 48(4), 162-166.

Rounsaville,B. Battered wives: Barriers to identification and treatment. American Journal of Orthomsychiatry, 1973, 48, 487-494.

Rounsavil1e,3., Lifton, N. & Bi=ber, M. The natural histe--my of a psychotherapy group for battered women. Psychiatry, 1979, 42, 63-87.

Senna, A.A. Assailant Counselling Program. Muskegon, Michigan: Everywoman's Place, inc. Unpublished paper, 1981.

Shainess, N. Vulnerability to violence: Masochism as Process. Ame-ican Journal 0 4 Psvchoth=-acy, 1979, 33, 174- 1 39.

Sieh, N. E. Fam'iv Violence Prose ,-- - '^n Manual. Santa Barbara, Ca.: Countv District Attorney, 1980.

- Star, Barbara. Pattern in family violence. Social Casework.

1980, 81, 339-346.

Stark, E. , 1/ 4 i-cr, A., & W., Medicine and matria-oha' violence: The social construction of a 'private" event. rnt=-n=-'on= 1 jot , -n= 1 of ealth Services, 1 979, 9(2) 461-493.

-67-

Stark, E., & Flitcraft, A. st'ch.' deta c zne ba cre. P..c.=- t-=senz--zdthe Nat'onal rohf..-=nce for Family Violnce P.s.c.m--n=rs, Du-ham, New Hamteh'-e., July 1981.

M 1 , Ge.1s,R.Z. & St=.inmzz, S.K. Behind Closed Doors: Violence in the American Family. Garden City, N.Y.: Ancnor Press/ Doubleday, 1980A. •

Straus, M.A., & Hotaling, G.T. (Eds.), The Social Causes of Husband-Wife Violence. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 19803.

Thompson, G.M. Resolution of domestic problems in the courtroom. In D'Oyley, V. (Ed.) Domestic Violence: Issues and Dynamics, Toronto: The Ontario Institue for Studies in Education, 1978, 101-108.

Trent, D. Wife beating: A msycho-legal analysis. Women Lawver's Journal, 1979, 65, 9-25.

Walker, L. The Battered Woman. New York: Harper. & Row, 1979.

Wayne, Candace. Advocacy with the Criminal Justice System on Behalf of Battered Women. Chicaco, Illinois: Legal Centre for Battered Women, 1979.

Wetzel, L. Profile of Batterer. Champaign, Illinois: PAF, Inc., 1980.

Woods, L. Litigation on behalf of 5at-gâA women. Women's Richts Law Remorter. 1978, 5, 7-34.

=e =

-68-

., A

:r -2E77 -7 3.:=NAL RESPONSES 1'0 ASUSED ".1CMU i:;::.

AND SCC:AL SERV:CE S?STEMS

Juszlce Svstm

Manv researchers have felt that the response

from the police and courts to abused wcmen is extremely important

since assault is a criminal offence often recuiring scme form

of immediate intervention such as police pressure, apprehension,

and a ccurt appearance. These actions indicate to the assailant

the unacceptability cf his behaviour. Traditionally, police

cfficers called to the scene of a dcmestic dispute respond

reluctantly and are mainly ccncerned that the violence does

not cccur in their presence. Oncea determination of the absence

cf violence has been made, the officers cften leave the victim

with her assailant, making few :e'-ls to other agencies,

occasionally instructingthe victim about the prcc=d1.1 ,-= for lav 4 no

charges, and seldomly laying their own assault charges or making

arrests (Dutton, 1980; Loving, 1930; WaYne, 1979 ).

If an assaulted or threatened female w'sh=s

to pursue further criminalacticn against her assailant, she

must eae, a justice of the caeca who w'll dez=-min= the 1=c 4 timecv

of the assault claim and choose whether or nct to process the

charges. Z:sually, the justice cf the peace and cther court

agents are unwilling to take the offence seriously and

'nst=ed, -4' 1 1 r=ccrm=nd a "ccol'ng c'f" oe, ---d ar. -h= end o=

which the abused female is enccuraged tc reccncile with her

assailant (Tutttn, 1930; Fleming, 1979; licgarth, 1 973; Langl=v

-69-

& Levy, 1979; Ma=4"n, 1 979; "Do -t=-, 1978; Straus, 1 930). In

fact, cases cf wife abuse are viewed by many criminal .;:ust'ce

system agents as being less serious than similar assauts

between strangers (Dutton, 1980; Lerman, 198 1 ).

The traditional response of the prosecutor in these

cases is a reluctance to prosecute (Fromson, 1978; Hogarth,

1978; Langley & Levy, 1979; Loving, 1980; Straus, 1980) due

to professional inexperience, a large volume of cases, attitudinal

problems, the low priority assigned to domestic violence, and

victim ambivalence (Dutton, 1980; Lean, 1981; Wayne, 1979).

Consistent with the response of other court agents, judges

may fail to appreciate the seriousness of domestic assaults

or feel powerless with available court dispositions and,

as a result, the sentencing of convicted assailants is extremely

lenient (Dutton, 1980; Martin, 1979; Straus, 1980; Thompson,

1978; Trent, 1979).

b) The Medical System

When a woman has been injured by her spouse she

often needs medical attention, although few abused women w411

seek any type of outside intervention. The traditional response

of the medical mrcfessicn has been an avoidance of the issue

w4 = .7. = ,=w mr=ct.""on=rs cue=t'on 4 -.g the victim about -h= source

of her injur i es (Dcbash, 1979; King, 1931; Rounsav"1=, 1979;

Stark =t. .., 1979 ). 7ev=n wh=n the '=m. 1 = confesses to -h=

-70-

doctor =hat her 'n:"u ,-"..e 'rom dr=est'-

=1.1=‘ mhysi-'=n o'z=n .n^ ' -oks fo- ozh= -

sYmptoms. =n facz, Stark at al. U379) report that only one .t.n

tan battered women who goes =the emergency ward of a . general

hospital is recognized as an abused woman; however, even though

doctors fail to identify the abuse,they do respond to this

group of women diee= --•=mtly.

The most popular intervention used by physicians

who are presented with an abused woman is the administration of

drugs, usually tranqu'l's (Chapman, 1979; Dobash, 1979;

Gayford, 1975; Pahl, 1973; Rounsaville, 1978). Ironically,

when doctors fail to identify domestic violence as the source

of the problem, they label the problem as drug abuse, alcoholism, •

or some psychiatric disorder (Stark et al., 1979). Abused

women are seldcmly referred to another agency by the practitioners,

and those that are most often go to mental health

facilities, detoxification units, and drug abuse programs (Stark

et al., 1981). These types of ot the medical

professions' belief that there must be some other explanation

for the abused female's problems, besides the violence. :n

fact, many practitioners assert that the victim is to blame

for her own misfortune (Fleming, 1979; Stark et al., 1981)

and some go sa far as to say that abused women like the violence

they rece 4 v0 (Rounsav 41 1=-, 1 979).

-71-

Another attitude which is shared by many medical

practioners is that wife abuse is a private family matter in

which :heir interference is undesirable (Dobash, 1979; Stark

et al., 1980). Chaman (1979) and King (1981) report that

male physicians are generally biased against women and habitually

stereotvpefemales as victims who need their partners' control.

Recent studies have shown that victims of family

violence who turn to the medical system are not always satisfied

with the response they receive. It is reported that only 44%

(Pahl, 1979) to Sl%(Ramrattan et al., 1980) of abused women

receiving medical intervention were satisfied with the doctor's

assistance. Stark et al., (1979) suggest that the traditional

medical response to abused women has actually contributed to

the ongoing violence:

The emerging pattern of abuse derives as much from the individual bias of the medical paradigm and the structural constraints imposed on the physician's reponse to abuse by the medical system's need to control a persistent patient population as it does from a tragic encounter between a male aggressor and a female victim (Stark et al., 1979, p. 463).

The Mental Health System

The diverse psychological effects of being assaulted

in one's own home can be devastating. Some of the most

common psycholog 4 ca' manifestations of the victimization include

low self-esteem, humiliation, depression, anxiety, and feelings

c e b.1-1 essress and towe-lessness (Chapman, 1979; Walker,

1979). Consequently, when a ba-- - e-er' woman turns to an agent

-72-

of the mental health system for assistance, the respcndent ma-;

be uncertain abcut the type of interventicn that will be most

effective, especially if the male is still living with her

assailant or is constantly be'ng threatened. Membe-s ce the

mental health system are usually as uninformed about the issues

of wife abuse as the agents of the criminal justice and medical

systems. Furthermore, mental health professionals are inclined

to define wife abuse as a law enforcement problem, whereas the

criminal justice professionals believe that mental health

intervention will be most effective.

In the past, abused women who have sought the help

of psychiatrists have been told that the problem is their

own responsibility. Many psychiatrists go so far as to assert

that the victim is to blame for the violence, and counselling

often focuses on ways in which the female can avoid provoking

her partner's anger (Dcbash, 1979; Fleming, 1979). In fact,

Fleming (1979) suggests that "the tendency to blame the victim

remains deeply entrenched within traditicnal psychiatric

circles" (p. 76).

Since it is assumed that the victim cf family

violence scmehow causes her own misfortune, the most commcn

intervention strategy consistscf labelling the female's "symptoms"

or perscnal inadequacies, such as psychiatric disorders,

drug abuse, and alcohol abuse (Dobash, 1979; R=ratzan et al.,

1980; Rounsaville, 1978). Therefcre, the abused wcman who

requests the service of the mental healtn system is often

-73-

persuaded to think that she is the 'sick' éne who uires

medication and/or hosmitalization. Finally, there is very

little mental health research which deals with innovative

and effective interventions for victims or assailants of

family violence.

d) The Social Service System

Social service professionals are inclined to

avoid the issue of domestic violence and are often suspicious

about the extent of violence reported by their female clients.

Many workers believe that the abused woman must be exaggerating

about what is really going on in her home (Dobash, 1979; King,

1979). Aside from women's shelters, few agencies in Canada

have the primary mandate of providing services to victims

of family violence. Social workers are concerned about protecting

the nuclear family and the traditional male and female roles

(Dobash, 1979; Loving, 1980). Furthermore, not unlike agents

of the other community systems, social workers tend to hold

both the female and the male responsible for any violence that

occurs (Bass & Rice, 1979). Social service professionals who

do not adhere to the traditional view of familv violence are

often hampered by a high volume of cases or may lack the support

of their supervisors for dealing directly with family violence.

Other drawbacks to this svstem's reponse to abused women include

the unav 41 - 4 't

1980), the reluctance to have any contact with the assailant

y of workers during emergency hours ;Loving,

-74-

Dcbash, (1979), and the social wc=kers' lac cf knc-e.r 1 =

-=ca.rd'ng the ccm=unitv resci=ces (3ass & Rice, 1979).

1- residence of couple 2- residence of female 3- residence of male 4- public place 5- other 8- not applicable

1- married 2- common-law 3- separated 4- divorced 5- other

1- no-one 2- children 3- relatives 4- neighbours or friends 5- other

1- yes 2- no, a relative or children 3- no, a neighbour or friend 4- no, other

1- white 2- non-white 9- missing information

1- yes no

3- housewife 9- missing information

11:111:1 L__4 5 6 7 8

1- 10 11 12

13

2o 21

2'

14 15

E::] 16

23

17

18

19

-75-

APPENDIX Charges

CODE DIE:7 FOR TME LONC0N POLICE FORCE OCCURRENCE REPORTS

SEPTEMSER 1980

E:

Occurrence Hunter

Case number

Month

Day

Location of occurrence

Principals' relationship

Persons observing occurrence

Did complainant phone the police

Female emeloyed

FEMALE

Age _

Colour

years

Mad female consumed alcmhol or drugs

Was ferale interviewed by POliCe

MALE

Ace years

Colour

Employed

Had male consumed alcohol or drugs

Was male interviewed

Suspect left before police arrived

Oid female complain of injuries

Extent of violence

24

25

/1 26 27

28

E::1 29

30

31

E.2

33

C::2 34 35

-76-- PC2

1-. yes 2- no

1- yes 2-no 9- missing information

1- white 2- coloured 9- missing information

1- yes 2- no 9- missing information

1- yes 2- no 9- missing information

1- yes 2-no

1- yes 2-no 9- missing information

1-yes 2- no

1- threatened to hit or throw something at the other one

2- threw or smashed or hit or kicked something

3- threw something at the other . one

4- pushed, grabbed, or shoved the other one

OS- slapped the other one 6- kicked, bit, or hit with a

fist 7- hit or tried to hit with

something 8- beat up the other one 9- threatened with a gun or

knife 10- used a gun or knife 11- other

Did the male complain of injuries

Injuries to male

. .

Treatment of injuries to male

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

-77-

PC3

1- none 2- not visible 3- bruises 4- bleeding 5- fractures 5- required hospitalization 8- not applicable

1- none required 2- advised to see doctor 3- advised to go to emergency 4- taken to emergency 5- hospitalized 8- not applicable

Extent of -most serious injuries

Treatment of injuries to female

Had the female assaulted the male 1- yes 2- no

1- yes 2- no

1- none 2- not visible 3- bruises 4- bleeding 5- fractures 6- required hospitalization 8- not applicable

1- none required 2- advised to see doctor 3- advised to go to emergency 4- taken to emergency 5- hospitalized 8- not applicable

Charges discussed or laid by police 1- no charges mentioned 2- police advised to lay charge 3- police laid charges 4- police laid charges and

advised that others be laid 9- missing information

1- assault causing bodily harm 2- common assault 3- threatening charge 4- other 8- not applicaole 9- missing information

If female advised to see JP, what was she advised to lay

Specific charges laid by police

Other advice given by police

Expressed wishes of female

Expressed wishes of male

44

45

C::1 46

47

ts]

49 later

50

11 51 5Z

- 78-

PC4

1- none 2- assault causing bodily harm

(CC 245-2) 3 =mum assault (CC 245-1) 4- threatening (CC 745) 5- breech of the peace (CC 31) 6- arrested on outstanding

warrant 7- other.

1- no advice given 2- nonspecific advice 3- calm down and keep the -to male

peace 4- leave premises 5- seek outside help (e.g.

WCH, PC, F&CS, medical -to female attention, legal aid)

6- other

1- none 2- arrest male 3- remove male 4- remove me 5- leave us alone

• 6- other

1- none 2- arrest female 3- remove female 4- remove tra 5- leave us alone 6- other

Family Consultant involvement

Number of underlying issues mentioned by police

Mumter of lines of material written by police

1- no 2- yes, called by police 3- yes, requested by family 4- yes, contacted by family

—79—

Cases Included in Study

London Police Force Occurrence Reports

Occurrence No.

Case No.

Date

Radio Dispatch Card

Label

Code

Occurrence Report

Label

13

14

15

16

o 19

CD 2

2 1

-3] rm

22 23

El El

25 27

29 30

31

• APPENDIX • C

CODE SHEET FOR L.P.F. PRIVATE INFORMATION CASE HISTORY AND C'HARGE SHEETS

Occurrence numper

Case numcer

Court handling proceedings

Warrant or summons 1- warrant 2- summons

Charge 1- assault causing bodily harm (CC 245-2)

2- common assault (CC245-1) 3-threats,fearing (745) 4- Breach of recognizance (746) 5- other

More than one charge laid 1- no 2- yes, 2 3- yes, 3 4- yes, 4.

• 5- yes, more than 4

Other charges laid 1- assault causing bodily harm 2- common assault

• 3- threats, fearing 4- breach of recognizance 5- other 8- not applicaâle

Date of offence Month

Day

Court data Month

Day

Principal's relationship 1- married 2- common- law 3- separated 4- divorced

number of years in relationship

Any childre 1- yes 2- no

1- Criminal 2- Family 3- other

CEEE

9 10 11

28

LI 32

Number of children

1- yes 2-no

Previous assaults

Description:

1- yes 2-no

1- yes 2- no 8- not applicable

CURRENT OFFENCE

Injuries

Treatment

Month

Day

Date of interview

33

34

35

36

37

38 .39

40 41

PIZ' -81-

Extent of injuries 1- not visible 2- bruises 3- lacerations 4- fractures 5- required hospitalization 6- other • 8- not applicable

Peace Bond requested 1- yes 2- no

Narrative:

Case numer

Date of offence -month

-day

Number of charges

Most serious charge

Who laid the charge

3 4 5 6

7 8

9 f""t7

11

12

13

PREVIOUS CHARGES

Number of previous charges

Nature of previous charges

....mommeame■

19

LJ 20

21

T.

-82-

APPENDIX D

CODE SHEET FOR FAMILY COURT FILES

1- assault causing bodily harm 2- common assault 3- threats, fearing 4- breach of recognizance 5- other

1- female 2- police 3- other

If mre than one information laid, what 1- assault causing bodily harm was the charge (s) 2- common assault

3- threats, fearing • 14 4- breach of recognizance 5- other 8- not applicable 15

Were threatening words recorded 1- yes 2- no 8- not applicable 16

Proceedings under Criminal Code 1- Criminal Code or Family Law Reform Act 2- Family Law Reform Act

3- both 17

Proceedings under Divorce Act 1- concurrent proceedings 2- previous proceedings 3- none 18

1- assault causing bodily harn 2- common assault 3- threats, fearing 4- breach of recognizance 5- other 8- not applicaoie

EI 22 23

24

25

26

E:1 27 28

-83-

(2)

Court outcome of previous charges

SUBSEQUENT CHARGES

Number of subsequent charges

Nature of subsequent charges

Court outcome of subsequent charges

1- charge dismdssed 2- charge.withdrawn . 3- found not guilty 4- guilty- absolute discharge 5- guilty- suspended sentence 6- guilty- conditional dischar 7- guilty- probation 8- guilty- fine and/or jail 9- entered into Peace Bond 10- other 88- not appilcaple

1- assault causing bodily harm 2- common assault 3- threats, fearing 4- breach of recognizance 5- other 8- not applicaole

1- charge dismissed 2- charge withdrawn 3- not guilty 4- guilty- absolute discharge 5- guilty- suspended sentence 6- guilty- conditional discharg 7- guilty- probation 8- guilty- fine and/or jail 9- entered into Peace Bond 10- other 88- not applicable

Principal's relationship 1- married 2- common-law 3- separated 4- divorced

Date of first appearance in court -month

-day

Number of days from offence to first court appearance

Presiding judge 1- Genest 2- Voge I sang ( )

' 3- other

29

o 30 31

Do 12 33

34 35

36

CI\ 41

42 43 44

El 45 48

■■•■••■.

47 48

C::3

tmgmagrb

39

fum er of times case in court

:Number of days between offence and final decision

1- case dismissed 2- charge withdrawn 3- found not guilty 4- found guilty- absolute

discharge 5- found guilty- suspended

sentence 6- guilty- probation 7- guilty- fine 8- guilty- jail 9- guilty- fine and jail 10-entered into Peace Bond 11- other

Final court outcome

Final court outcome on other charge(s) (use scale in above question) 88- not applicable

Warrants issued for accused 1- none 2- remanding prisoner 3- commital upon convict:in* 4- other

How did the defendent plea

•••ti ,4•••

(3 )

1- guilty 2- not guilty 3- no plea 4- agreed to Peace Bond 5- failed to enter Peace 8ond

37

Was there a trial 1- yes 2- no 8- not applicable

Outcome of first court appearance 01-2ostponed 2- agreed to enter into Peace

Bond 3- wouldn't enter into Peace

Bond 4- charge withdrawn 5- case dismissed 6- adjourned for counsel 7- plea or charge heard only

•

8- accused remanded into custody 9- defendant found guilty 10- defendant found not guilty 11- other

.

Details of fine and/or jail sentence

Conditions of probation

Conditions of Peace Bond

50 51

11 52 53

54 55

56 57

11 11 58 59

•••••■•111

••■■•■•■

60 61

El 62 63

(1, 64 65

-85-

(4)

1- 0- $99 2- $100 - $200 3- $201 - $1,000 4- over S1,000 5- 0 to 5 days in jail 6- 6 to 10 days in jail 7- 11 to 20 days in jail 8- 21 to 30 days in jail 9- over 30 days in jail 10- less than or equal to $100 and

less than or equal to 5 days in jail

11- $101 to $500 and 5 or less days in jail

12- less than or equal to $1,000 and less than or equal to 20 days in jail

13- over $1000 and more than 20 days in jail

14- other 88- not applicable

1- keep the peace and be of good behaviour

2- see probation officer for.less than 6 months

3- see probation officer for 6 months to one year

4- see probation officer for more than one year

5- abstain from alcohol 6- seek counselling 7- do not go near or attempt any

communication with complainant 8- seek psychiatric help 9- other 88- not applicable

1- keep the peace and be of good behaviour

2- duration of less than or equal to one year

3- duration of more than one year 4- surety of less than or equal to

$500 5- surety of les than or equal to

S1000 6- surety of more than $1000 7- do not go witnin one city block

of complainant 8- seek conselling 88- not applicable

•

Reports available to judge before sentencing Do

68 67 ••••••••■•

-86-

(5)

1- none 2- Family Court Clinic 3- LPH 4- Probation Officer OS- Family Counselling Cantre 6- employer, family doctor, et 7- statement made by comlaina 8- statement made by accusad 9- evidence from defence

lawyer 10- evidence from Crown 11- other

-87—

APPENDIX F

ccrE CEEET.FOR DATA FROM LONDW POLICE

FORCE COMPUTER FILES

Marne of Assailant:

Case Number:

Date of Birth of Assailant: (month) (year)

Primary Occurrence Number:

Date of Primary Occurrence: , 1979

Naze of Complainant:

Complainant's Most Recent Address:

Telephone:

Number of Occurrences With Male Before Primary One:

TYPE - family trouble

- assaulting other

other

Number of Occurrences After Primary One:

TYPE: - family trouble

- assaulting other

- other

(day)

(month) (day) (month) (day)

-88-

APPENDIX 7

SPLINTAP. 1.N7^Pm=tr:ON FRCM C=Rr"

Of the 222 calls to the police, 190 (36%) were

placed by the female and 9% were made by a neighbour.

Sixty-two percent cf the males and females were married at

the time of the assault, 24% were living together and not

married, and the remai ,,i-g 14% were separated or divorced.

Fortynine percent of the males and 24% of the females

were drinking at the time of the incident. :n 23% of the

cases, the male had left before the police arrived; these

men l along with 13 (6%) others. who remained at the scene of the

assault but who were unco-onerative, were never interviewed

blithe police. The average age of the males was 34 years

(standard deviation of 10.3 years) and the females were

32 years old on average (standard deviation is 11 years).

The location of the assault is found in Table

7a and reveals that the assault took place in the couples'

residence in 179 (81%) cases. Table 7b shows that in

166 (75%) cases,there were no witnesses to the assault. .

In 23 (10%) cases,the children witnessed the assault.

Table 7c shows that almost all of the males and females

(91.5%) were white.

Thirty-one males (14% were arrested pursuant

to section 31 of the Criminal Code and were taken to jail

Percent %

10 0

No one • 166 Children 23 Relative(s) 10 Neighbour or friend 20 Other • 3

222 TOTAL

Type of witness Frequency

7 5

10

5

9

1

92 203 8 19

91 202 ,0 9

-89-

TABLES 7a to 7c

Table 7a

LOCATION OF ASSAUr"

Location Frequency mercenz %

Residence of male and female 179 81 . Residence of female only 22 10 Residence of male only 6 3 Public place 10 4 Other 5 2

TOTAL 222 100

Table 7b

WITNESSES TO THE ASSAULT

Table 7c

ETENICImY

Ethnicity and Sex Frequency Percent %

White female Non-white female

White male None-white male

-90-

for a few hours'to prevent a fer breach of the eace.

The Family Consultants (see Jaffe, Thompson & Pacuin,

L978), a family crisis itt=-7e-tior, ==' 4 "a- d with

the London City Police Force, were called in bv the officers

in 47 cases and their assistance was requested by the

families in another 15 cases: this results in the Family

Consultants being involved in 27% of the total cases.

Most of these calls to the police (81%) were

sent 'Code 2 by the radio dispatcher which means that

the officer should proceed directly to the scene while

staying within the speed limit and making no stops. Only

3% of the calls went out 'Code 3' meaning that it is a

life-threatening situation allowing the officer :to travel

up to 20 miles an hour over the speed limit.

A total of 52 assailants were taken to court as

a result of a threatening or assault incident that occurred

in the first half of 1979 (37 women laid private informations

after the contact with the police, nine women laid private

informations without police intervention, and police laid

six charges of assault causing bodily harm). Forty-nine

of these cases 194%) were sent to Family Court and the

remaining three cases (6%) were heard in Criminal Court.

The justice of the peace issued warrants for the arrest

of three assailants.

-9 1 -

According to the case histories which are

by a constable at the police headquarters after

the women lay private informations, the victims and assailants

had been living together an average of 8.9 vears'and 85%

of the women had children. The average length of time

which elapsed between the alleged assault or threat and the

first court appearance was 20 days with the cases returning

to court an average of three time.

Eleven males (21%) who were found guilty of assault

were given a suspended sentence or conditional discharge .and

Table Sa shows that over half of these males were placed

on probation for six months to one year. Table Sb reveals

• that five of these males were ordered not to attempt any

communication with the female, four were instructed to

seek counselling, and two were advised to abstain from

alcohol consumption. Five of the nine males who entered

recognizances to keep the peace were ordered not to communicate

or associate with the females.

Only three males (5%) were fined and Table Sc

shows that they each had to pay different amounts. Three

males were imprisoned with sentences lasting six to ten

days and twentv-one to thirty days. Finally, Table 8d

shows that the judge received a nresentence report in nine

(17%)of the cases, with five reports coming from the

probation office.

Less than six months Six months te one Year Over one year

2 o 3

Length of Probation Order Frequency

TOTAL II

Frequency Type of Report

5 2

- 92-

Tables Sa to 8d

Table Se

LB:MTH OF PROBATION ORDERS AND CONDITIONAL DISCBARGES

Table Sb

CONDITIONS OF PROBATION ORDERS FOR SUSPENDED SENTENCES & CONDITIONAL DISCEARGES

Conditions Of Probation Frequency

Male must not make any attempt to 5 communic , te with the complainant

Male should seek counselling 4

Male should abstain from consuming 2 alcohol

TOTAL 11

Table Sc

DETAILS OF FINES AND JAIL SENTENCES

Type and Amount of Penalty Frequency

Fine: Less than $100 1 $100 to $200 1

- $201 to $1000 1

Jail: Six to ten days 1 Eleven to twenty days 1 Twentv-one to thirty days 1

Table Sd

PIEN"'eNC'e REPORTS

Probation officer's retort Report from Male'a employer Report from psychiatric hopit= 1

TOTAL 9

-93-

There were a nuzub.› - o= s'gr'''ca- - d nces

between the females who contacted the police only, and those

who laid charges. The number of females who went to court

and were sezarated from their partners was significantly

greater than the number of separated females who called

the police only (1s,2 (3) = 33.67, E<: .001). The females

who went to court had more witnesses to the violence (z (4)= 14.99,

E (.05) and wer drinking less frequently when the police came

(1;2 (1) = 4.5, m < .05). Furthermore, the females who

went to court had fewer alternatives cutlinedtc them by

2 police (1%. (5) = 11.6, m < .05), and were not likely to

be involved with the Family Consultants as often as the

females who received police intervention only (-;2 (4) = 16.01,

E .005).

• .• • -94- ' APPEND/X

Address MI =weft:reign= e3 Er- CF PCLICE

PCS7 CFFIC5 ECX 3415 LONCCN, CNTÀ4110 N6A 4X9 519/679-5670

October 6, 1980

Dear Madam:

The Police Force, in an effort to more effectively meet the needs of the community, is evaluating the existing police services. Presently, attention is being directed to the police handling of domestic related. issues as well as the follow-up by ?amily Court in cases where charges have been laid.

Police officers in London have been specially trained to deal with domestic crises, which are common occur-rences in today's society. Also, the London Police Force has the innovative Family Consultant Services which provides additional support to police officers and families.

We are seeking your assistance in the evaluation of these aspects of the Police Force and of the information and support you have received regarding proceedings through Family Court. To this end, we ara soliciting your candid opinions and impressions, as well as feedback regarding the value that these services have been to you.

We would like to conduct an interview with you from which we hope to get a better understanding of how eve the services have been to date and how they may be modified or better coordinated. Carole Anne Burns, a research coordinator funded by the Research Branch of the

-95-

-2-

Solicitor General of Canada and working under the supervision of Dr. P. Jaffe in the Department of Psychology at the University of Western Ontario, will be contacting you in the next few days to arrange an interview. In recognition of the • importance of the information you will be providing for us in our program development, we will forward you $10.00 on completion of the interview.. All information will be treated in strictest confidence and no identifying data (names) will be attached to the interview results. The interview is intended to be completely voluntary. Any questions you may have can be directed to Carole Anne Burns at 679-3512. Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Harold E. McBride Acting Chief of Police

HEM/ew

INTERVIEU FORM

Occurrence nunrier

Case number

-96- • • • Appendix H able.

Ci 2.

01011:11- 3 4 5 6 7 8

7-1 C.1 9 10 11 12

Date of interview , 19

IDENTIFYING INFORMATION

1. Marital status 1-married 2-common- 1 aw 3-separated El 4-divorced 13

2. Is famale presently living with 1-yes, same one partner 2-yes 1 different one

• 3-no 14

3. Length of involvement with abusive partner years C:

15 16

4. Hue woman and parer been 1-no involved in subsequent court 2-divorce proceedings

C7.3 proceedings 3-custody rights . 4-ether assault charges 17

WOMAN

6. Highest level of education 01-grade 1 02-grade 2 03-grade 3 e 13-grade 13 14-1 to 3 years of college 15-1 to 4 years of university 16-M.A. I7-Ph. 0. 18-ether

18 19

LID 20

Do 21 22

•'• I

[::3 23 24

25

26

-2-

.0 •

6. Was female employed at time of abusive incident.

7. Female's occupation at time of incident

1- yes 2-no 3-welfare 4-unemployment insurance 5-mothers' allowance 6-other

01-professional/managerial 1 02-professional/managerial 11 03-semi-professional/ small

business 04-skilled 05-semi-skilled 06-unskilled 07-student 08-housewife 88-not applicable 99-missing information

MALE

a. Highest level of education. 01-grade 1 02-grade 2 03-grade 3 n _ M

13-grade 13 14-1 to 3 years of college 15-1 to 4 years of university 16-M.A. 17- Ph. D. 18-other

9. Was male employed at . time of absuive incident. 1-yes

• 2-No 3-welfare • 4-unemployment insurance 5-other

10. Male's occupation at time of incident. 1-professional/managerial 1

2-professional/managerial 11 3-semi-professional/small business 4- ski lled 5-semi-skilled 6-unski 1 led 7?student 8-not applicable 9-missing information

27

-3.-

11. Family's annual income at time of Incident.

12. Any children

13. Number of children

14. Who has legal custody of the children

15. Had the female or her partner been drinking at time of the incident.

16. Goes female think that alcohol was a contributing factor ta the violence

17. S inca the abusive incident, has the female or ma les alcohol consumption increased or decreased.

18. As a result of the abusive Incident, hcw many agencies have the female and male been involved with in the past year. -

1- 0 - $2,999 2- $3,000 - 7,999 3-$8,000 - S11,999 4- $12,000- S16,999 6.- 316,000- S19,999 6- $20,000- $24,999 7- over $25,000

1- ;es 2- no

1-joint 2-female 3-male 4-no legal custody 8-not applicable

I-yes, both 2-yes, male only 3-yes, female only 4-no

1-yes 2-no 8-not applicable

1-increased considerably 2-increased slightly -Male 3-unchanged. 4-decreased slightly . 5-decreased considerably, 8-not applicable - Femaie

29

29

30

31

33

34"

35

r.7; 37

[13CIJ 38 39

1:1001:111 40 41

42 43

---" 45

-99-.

-4-

19. Marne the agencies 01-Al-Anon -st involvement 02- 03-Big Brothers 04-Board of Education 2nd involvemen 05-Family Counselling Centre 06-C.P.R.I. 07-Welfare - 3rd involvemen 08-Consumer Debt 09-Detox. 10-Fe3i • . -4th involvement 11-Family Court Clinic 12-John Howard Society 13-Juvenile Detention 14-LPH 15-Madame Vanier's 16-Men's Mission 17-Merimna • 18-Public Health Unit 19-Mission Services

(family apartments) 20-Ontario Legal Aid 21-Probation and Parole 22-Probation and Aftercare 23-Quinton-Warner 24-Salvation Ar' . 25-St. Leonard's 26-St. Joseph's (Psychiatry) 27-St. Joseph's (social services) 28-Teen Girls" Home 29-University Hospital (Psychiatry) 30-Victdria Hospital (psychiatry) 31-Victoria Hospital (adolescent unit) 32-Rotholme

34-W. 0 .T.C.H. 35-Training school 36-psychologist (private practice)

38-other 88-not applicable

20. At the time of the incident how many people could the female talk to about it.

21. Old female ever reach a point when she decided that

.

she wasn't going to accept the abuse.

22.If yes to #21, what did the female do.

M. For the abusive incident in question, did the female call the police.

IF NO ONE CALLED THE POLICE, PROCEED TO4 47 24. at factor facilitated

female's decision to call the police.

2e . What factors impeded female's decision to call the police.

zs. When the female called the police, what did she

hope that they could do.

46

47

ti?

49

50

Lt 51

- 100-

-8-

1-Yes 2-No 3-don 't remember

1-called the police 2-told a relative or friend 3-foucht back 4-lefi her partner 5-laid a charge 6-other 8-not applicanie.

1-yes 2-no, someone else did 3-no one did

1-supportive community agencie 2-support of friends and

relatives 3-fear for children's safety 4-fear for own safety

' 5-economic dependence or support

6-having a place to go 7-otber 8-not applicable

1-0egative attitude of community agencies

2-lack of support from friends and relatives

3-economic dependence 4-fear of loneliness 5-seriousness of injuries 6-religious/cultural beliefs 7-ether 8-not appricaole

1-just stop the violence 2-threaten her partner 3-remove her partner 4-arrest her partner 5-embarrass him 6-treat his assaultive

behaviour 7-other 8-not app licaoTà

1-increased 2-increased e-unchanged 4-decreased

. 5-decreased

considerably slightly

slightly considerably

1-yes, assaulted 2-yes, threatened 3-yes, threatened and assaulted 4-No

1 55

I-yes 2-no 8-not applicable

1-Yes 2-No

1-yes 2-no 8-not applicable

I-Yes 2-No

56 57

o 58

59

DO 60 61

17.6-P

-101-

-6-

01-none 02-alcoholism 03-lack of confidence/insecurity 04-emotional difficulties 05-job stress 06-financial difficulties 07-jealousy 08-sexual problemm 88-not applicable

27. What were the male's major prooleme that contributed to his abusive incident. E::1

52 53

23. Has this problem increased or decreased since the abusive

incident.

2g. Prior to this incident, had partner ever assaulted female threated to assault IF NO, PROCEED TO # 32

54

30, If female had been previously assaulted or threatened, how many times did it occur. .

31. Did.female call the police for any of these previous assaults

32. Has your partner assaulted you since that incident. IF NO, PROCEED TO i 35.

33. If female has been assaulted since, how many times did it occur.

34. Old female call the police for any subsequent assaults

35, In the last 2 years, has female • contacted police for other reasons.

List. reasons

63

1-Yes 2-No 8-not applicable

I-yes 2-no

1-yes 2-no

I-yes 2-not

1-yes - 2-no

1-both the same '2-female 3-partner 4-children 5-no support for either

1-very dissatisfied 2-somewhat dissatisfied 3-indifferent 4-somewhat satisfied 5-very satisfied

1-yes 2-no

64

° t:::] 66

67

68

69

70

C2 71

72

73

-102-

. -7-

:6. At the time of the abusive incident dld the police respond as quickly as the female had wanted them to.

37. Old the police charge the male.

ZE. Old the female want the police to charge the male

29. Old police advise the female ta charge her partner

40. Old police advise the female to see the JP or a lawyer concerning legal action

41. Was the female satisfied with the advice she received frcm the police. 1-yes

2-no

42. Was the partner there when the 1-yes police arrived. 2-no

43. Whom does the female feel received the most support and understanding frcm the police.

44. In general, how satisfied is the female with the police intervention.

45. Would the female call the police if her partner hit her again.

46. What else could the police have done for the female

1 -yes 2-no

1-police called them in 2-police suggestion 3-family initiated 4-other

1-not at all helpful 2-no feelings 37somewhat helpful 4-extremely helpful

1-yes 2-no

1-yes 2-no 8-not applicable

1-yes 2-no

7.

DDt

1 •

E: 8

En] 10

[7.1 11

12

13

1 4

-1037

-8-

Case Number

47. Were you involved with the Family Consultants at the time of the abusive incident IF NO, PROCEED TO e; 54

48. How was the female introduced to the Family Consultants

49. How helpful was the FC intervention .

50. Did they refer female to another agency

Si. Did the female follow through on the referral

52. What else could they have done for the female

53. Has the female contacted the FCs since that incident

Reasons

54. Was the female aware of the Women's Community House at the time of the abusive incident.

55. After the abusive incident did the female contact the Women's Community House IF NO, PROCEED TO # 5.5

1-yes 2-no

1-Yes 2-no

15

16

17

18

19

20

56. How was the female introduced to the Women's Community House at the time of the abusive incident.

57. Did the female stay at the WCH

-104-

-g-

1-police took me therm 2-police told me about it 3-FC took me there 4-FC told me about it 5-friend or relative told me

about it 6-I'd been there before 7-other

1-no, just phoned for advice 2-no, just dropped in to talk 3-yes, for less than one week 4-yes, for 8 to 14 days 5-yes,for 15 days to 5 weeks 6-yes, for more than 5 weeks

58. How many times has the female been .there

59. Hcw helpful was the WCH 1-not at all helpful 2-not feelings 3-somewhat helpful 4-extremely helpful

60. What areas did they help the female most

61. Why did the female go to the WCH

62. Where else would the female have gone if the WCH had not been available

63. Has the female been in contact with the WCH since your involvement in January to June of 1979

1-Yes 2-No

64. What else could the WCH have done for the female

65. After the abusive incident, did the female mak% any inquiries concerning her legal options.

1-yes 2-no

67. Did the female contact the Justice of the Peace following the abusive incident. IF NO, PROCEED TO 169

68. What happened after the female contacm*he JP

22

23

24

25

-105-

-10-

66. If she did make enquiries, who did she ask

1-yes 2-no

1-she just phoned for advice 2-she didn't show up for

her appointrent 3-the JP advised her to lay

• charges 4-she laid a charge 5-she laid a charge but did. not go to the police . station.

6-police laid the charge 7-other

6g. What factors impeded the female's decision to lay a charge 1-none

2-lack of support from FC and police

3-lack of support from JP 4-lack of support from family

and friends 5-fear of retaliation 6-lack of knowledge about the

procedures 7-other

IF THE FEMALE DID NOT LAY A CHARGE, PROCEED TO ic Si IF N_ErIdER Fr:MALE .CR POLICE LAID C ARC; , g :=4,- dm

70. wnat factors facilitated the femalesdecision to lay a charge

71. Who advised the female to lay a charge against her partner

1-support from police 2-support from FCs 3-support from JP 4-support from family and

fri ends 5-fear for her own life 6-fear for lives of children 7-other

1-her own decision 2-police 3-Family Consultants 4-lawyer 5-family or friends 6-other

• • --10i-

-1 1-

25

27

28

29

30

31

32

1-yes 2-no

1-assault causing bodily harm 2-common assault 3-threatening 4-other

72. Old anyone advise the female not to lay a charge

73. Old anyone advised the female to reduce the charge(s)

74. How long after the abusive incident did the • emale see the JP

1-no • 2-police

3-FC 4-JP 5-Lawyer 6-family and friends 7- other

1-n6 2-police 3-FC 4-JP 5-lawyer 6-family and friends 7-other

1-same day 2-one day 3-2-4 days 4-4-7 days 5-over a week 6- over 2 weeks

75. Old the male know that the female was going to lay a charge

76. Which charge did the female lay

77. Old the female feel that she 1-no support at all had the support and understanding 2-minimal support of the JP 3-indefference

4-some support 5-comp1ete support

- 78. Oid the JP clear up any confusions that the female had regarding the 1-yes charge and its implications 2-no

79. What else could the JP Have done for the female

33 80. Did the female withdraw the charge

If yes, why?

Li 34

85. Pcw does the female feel about the length of time it took 1-too short

2-just right 3-too long 4-much too long 8-not applicable

-107-

. -12-

1-yes 2-no 8-not applicable

1-it was part of the plea bargaining

2-I was afraid 3-I did not want to harm my partner

4-he prcmised not to dolt again

5-I didn't want anyone to know

6-it wouldn't have done any good

7-other 8-not applicable

Il 81.T

ee+Was the female treated by the 1-no support at all Crown 2-minimal support

3-indifference 4-some support 5-complete support

82. Does the female think that she spent enough tir e along with the 1-yes . Crownr for both of them to have a 2-no good understanding of the case.

83. What else could the Crown have done for the female

D 35

36

84. How long after the assault was the matter settled in court

"Ea El 37 38

39

40

88. •During this time, was the female worried about her par:ner abusing her.

87. During the time the case was being heard l did the partner abuse or threaten to abuse the female.

weeks.

1- yes 2- no

1-no 2-threatened to abuse me S-did abuse me once 4-abused me more than once 41

91. Does the female feel that it would have been better . for her if sheKed had a lawyer with her

. , ever, 92. Was the remaleAmeoe to 7E131 that what she was doing was wrong

43

45

46

47

-108-

-13-

88. If the female was abused or 1-yes -threatened during this time 2-no dcee:Fie think that it could 8-not applicable have been prevented if the delay had been shorter

89. Was the partner found guilty 1- yes 2-no 8-not applicable

90. If he was found guilty, how does the female feel about the sentence

1-no 2-yes, just for advice 3-yes, just to sit in court with me

4-yes, throughout the process 5-other

1-no 2-yes,.before the trial 3-yes, during the trial 4-yes, after the trial 5-yes, all the time 6-yes, that is why I withdrew

the charge

93. What effect did the court action v• • 1-helped to increase the have on the partner's abusiveness frequencey and/or severity

of abuse 2-no effect 3-reduced the frequency and/or severity of abuse

4-completely terminated the abuse

94. Of all the people that the female was in contact with, who helped the female most

95. Who was the least helpful

1-police 2-Family Consultants 3-Women's Community House 4-JP 5-Crown 6-other

1-police 2-Family Consultants 3-Women's Community House 4-j? 5-Crown 6-other

—109-; -14-

96. Who knew the most about the female's situation

I-police 2-Family Consultants 3-Women's Community House 4-JP 5-Crown 6-other

97. How could the legal process be improved to help other abused women

49

-110—

Appendix

Selected Case Histories

from Researcher's Interviews with Abused Females

—111—

Case 43159

A et. separated from her husband following an attack in 1980. She did not go ta stay with family or friends because she felt that their lives would be in danger; instead, she went to the Women's Community House and after the male started phoning there and threatening the staff, she decided to lay an assault charge. The Justice of the Peace issued a warrant for the male's arrest. At the first court appearance, the male told the judge that he had - had a nervous breakdown and, therefore, he beat his wife. The male was sent to the London Psychiatric Hospital for a 30-day assessment and during this time, the male's family removed all the furniture and belongings from the couple's apartment. The male was found guilty of common assault and placed on probation for one year (he saw his probation officer three times).

Case #3164

B. has been waiting three years for her divorce case to be heard in court. She is terrified for her life and is currently seeing a psychiatrist and taking medication. The two children are not allowed to play outside on weekends for fear of the male kidnapping them. The male is constantly harassing the female by driving by the house, breaking into the house, and attending social functions that she attends. The female had been assaulted approximately 250 times before her separation and has been threatened with a shotgun,:and -choked since. She is totally frustrated with the criminal justice system and feels that she is capable of taking the matter into her own hands by killing her husband.

Case #4004

C. has been divorced from the abusive male for three years. During the five-year marriage and two-year separation, the female was assaulted 40 times and the police were called on many of these occasions. The female separated when their son was old enough (three years old) to tell her that her husband was having sex with him. The child would scream when left along with the male and would spend hours in the corner with a blanket over his head.

Following their separation, the male constantly harassed the female by phoning her, breaking into the house, and parking outside her house. He has attempted to take the children but the female has physically prevented him from doing so. The female feels that she had a nervous breakdown during this time but has since recovered her strength. She is currently enrolled in college courses. The male's second wife now phones the female to get help for the abuse she is receiving from the male.

- 112-

Case 43161

1. has been assaulted 13 times by:+husband and uring the inter-view, she was extremely self-conscious about hiding :ne scars on her head tnat she received in an attack. Following an assault in 1979, she left her husband and moved into her own apartment. The male found out where she was living and harassed her and kept breaking in. Finally the female let him stay. In 1980, the male threw their three-year-old son against a wall, knocking him unconscious. He phoned the police and an ambulance, and was not charged. Following another incident of assault on the female, the police laid a charge of assault cauSing bodily harm but she refused to testify against her partner and the case was dismissed.

Although there has been no violence in the past year, the female feels that this 'quiet period" is temporary and that theblow-up" will te very severe: she is always afraid.

Case 43131

aoth Mr. and Mrs. J. participated in the interview with the male translating the questions into an European language far the female. The couple have been married for 20 years. The female has been assaulted seven times and the last incident involved the male beating the female with a belt. He was arrested by police to prevent a further breach of the peace and was placed in jail overnight. The Family Consultants told her about the 'di:glen's Community House but she refused to go. Another European family convinced her to lay assault causing bodily harm and threatening charges against her husband. The male was given a suspended sentence and was ordered not to attempt any communication with the female for a period of one year.

The male reported that the night in jail and the restriction from seeing his wife scared the male and made him feel that what he did was wrung.

Case 43106

K. has been severely beaten by her partner three times. They have been separated for two years but he continues to break into the female's apartment. The female is concerned about the emotional well-being of their 13 year-old daughter who lies awake at night waiting for more violence.

The male is now out west and the female does not think he will return because he would have to face three impaired driving charges. The female still loves her husband and will take him back if he quits drinking.

-113-

Case #3188

D. Is in her sixties and she is still being abused by her husband. The last major attack occurred in 1980 when the male broke her arm (among other injuries) and threatened her with a knife. While she was in the hospital, a social worker convinced her to make some decisions about her future. She threatened to leave the male and went to visit her family on the east coast for a month. Following her trip she returned to the male and things have settled down. D. tries to stay out of her husband's way when he is drinking and places few demands on him.

Case #1013

E. has been separated from the abusive male for two years. Following an incident in 1979 during which she was severely beaten and the male threatened suicide with a knife in front of the children, she feld to Mission Services Family Apartments, with the two young children. E. initiated custody proceedings during this time and her husband grabbed the children from the school, even though the female was granted interim custody. The female did not know where they were for three weeks. In an attempt . to get her children back, E. went to the male's house where she was threatened and repeatedly raped.

The judge ordered BOTH the male and female to see a psychiatrist in order to determine which one was a fit parent. While they were waiting for the court's decision, the male continually phoned the children, threatening suicide if they didn't go with him. After reading the psychiatrists' reports, the judge alledgedly felt that the male was unstable and that E. was a totally competent mother; however, he gave the children to the father because if the male did not get them, the female and the children would be under constant threat of violence.

E. believes that the male has been committing incest with their 11-year-old dauchter for a period of time and is continuing to do so. Both children are terrified of their father. The male's new girlfriend called the police from the female's home because she had been beaten up when she caught the male having sex with her 15-year-old sister.

The female is extremely upset about being apart from her children and is concerned about their emotional well-being.

-114- •

Case #3287

H.R. has been divorced from her partner for two years. Ouring her six-year marriage she was beaten up once a week*Approximately 300 times. Prior to the divorce, H.R. left Mr. R. but returned because she didn't have enough money to sustain herself and his three babies. Following an attack in 1976, Mr. R. was taken to the London Psychiatric Hospital by police and Family Consultants. When he was released 15 days later he'eame much more violent because he would not take his-medication. Mr. R. is also an alcoholic.

One time when a neighbour visited H.R.(she was not allowed visitors) Mr. R. attacked his wife with a knife. The neighbour phoned the police and Mr. R. was told to spend the night at his brother's house. The police stayed in the vicinity of H.R. until 5 a.m. As soon as they left, Mr. R. came home and did not go to work for three days, holding H.R. captive inside the house. Mr. R. had made numerous threats to the lives of the twin boys and continually molested their 8-year-old daughter.

H.R. laid common assault and threatening charges against Mr. R. in 1976, but withdrew them following threats. She applied for another recognizance to keep the peace in 1979 and Mr. R. was ordered to enter the recognizance, but no conditions were added.

When H.R. filed for divorce, Mr. R. wanted to sell the house and keep the children. The judge told Mr. R. that he would have to see a psychologist's report before he would even consider giving custody to Mr. R.; consequently, Mr. R. gave up the children.

During the two weeks prior to the interview, Mr. R. had been phoning a friend of H.R., pleading with her to ask H.R. to come back to him.

Case #3210

Mrs. L. has received emergency medical treatment for a variety of injuries she received from her husband, including smashed teeth and attempted strangulation. She had left her husband for a period of four months but subsequently returned to him.

One night in 1979„ Mr. L. and Mrs. L's brother came home drunk and started smashing all of the furniture and hitting Mrs. L. She called the police who took her away in the paddywagon and left the children with her drunken husband. Mrs. L. was taken to her mother's home and twenty minutes later, Mr. L. drove by the house a number of times, shoutjng obscenities at his wife. He went home and attempted suicide by slitting his wrists. Mrs. L. was called back to the home to get her -children.

Mrs. L. is currently seeing a psychiatrist and social worker on a week and she does not know ho w she Survived through the violent period of her relationship. She reports that Mr. L. is much better now and is attending Alcoholics Anonymous.

—113-

Case #5004

S. has been separated from the abusive male for two months. Two years ago the female tried to separate from her husband and went to Legal Aid for assistance. She was denied the financial help because she had applied for help 11 years ago, although she never used the service. S. laid an assault charge in 1979 because the police said that they would not take her seriously unless she did. After five months of court postponements, she succumbed to pressure from the male and his family, and withdrew the charge.

When the male found out that the female was pregnant with their second child, he left to live with his girlfriend. Five months later he phoned S. from jail and asked her to bring bail money; he had held a gun to his girlfriend's head. No charges were laid. Later that night, his girlfriend killed herself and the male and female were on the run for the next month because he was afraid that his name was mentioned in the suicide note and that his girlfriend's husband would be angry when he found it.

The male will not admit that he had any problems but has convinced the female to see numerous counsellors. She has been threatened with a knife, assaulted six times, and had the tires on her car slashed. She is extremely afraid of the male and continues to see him (at his request) for fear of what he can do to her.

Case #3201

T. has been separated from the male for one year. The male finally agreed to leave when the female attempted to choke him following a severe assault on her. When the male started assaulting her soon after they were married, the female went to see a psychiatrist because she was feeling suicidal. The male refused to see a marriage counsellor even after the police suggested it. The female had been thrown down the stairs when she was eight months pregnant. Even when they were separated, the male knocked her down some stairs while she was holding her son. The female believes that the son was traumatized by the violence, even though he was very young at the time (he is now four years old).

Case #1006

Ms. R. has been separated from her husband for 11/2 years and had been assaulted approximately 600 times by him. It was usually a neighbour or her daughter that phoned the police. Whenever the police arrived, Mr. R. would sober up and would not allow the officers to came

into the house. She believes that Mr. R's sexual problema (impotency) plus alcoholism, contributed to his violence.

Ms. R's boyfriend started a threatening case against Mr. R. and he was ordered to enter a recognizance to keep the peace. The recognizance expires ar. the end of tnis month and Ms. R. is concerned :hat the threats will start all over again.

—116—

Case 44003

Q. is presently living with her partner whom both she and her husband's psychiatrist describe as a 'psychopath'. In 1979, the male was destroying a lot of furniture and kicked a lame over on his wife, resulting in a large gash to her head. She charged her partner on this occasion and also for an incident one month earlier when he tried to push her out of a moving vehicle. The male was found guilty of attempting to push her out of the vehicle and was given a conditional discharge. For the other incident, he was found not guilty on the defence that he couldn't have known for sure that the lamp would strike his wife.

Following the assault mentioned above, Q. and her three children moved into a motel for two weeks. Later they rented a condominium. Three months after that the male talked Q. into attending joint therapy sessions with his psychiatrist. Two months later the male moved into her apartment.

When Q. was assaulted again in 1980, she sent a letter concerning the assault to hèr family doctor and her lawyer, just in case any-thing ever happened to her. Q. believes that the male is still very dangerous and refuses to be alore with him for long periods of time. Two of the three children have left him in order to be away from the male. He continues to drink heavily, has no friends, and experiences a cycle of violence and calm. Q. controls his behaviour, to a certain extent, by threatening to lay another assault charge. They have never spoken about the court case in 1979.

Case #3193

R. has been separated for two years from a male who abused her approximately 150 times. Following the incident in 1979, she stayed in a motel for two days, and then with her brother for two weeks. The male continues to harass and threaten her. Recently, the male threw a wrench through the front window. The male is unemployed, has a serious drinking problem, and does not have any friends. The female does not believe that she will ever be rid of this male. The only thing that he is afraid of is getting locked up in jail.

Case #1011

Mrs. H. has been separated from her husband for nine months and expects that her divorce proceedings will be completed within the next few months. Ouring the marriage she was assaulted approximately twelve times. In 1979, Mr. H. spent about one week cleaning his gun and threatening'to kill Mrs. H. with it. One night he did hold her at gunpoint for several minutes. Mr. H. then left in the car with two guns, open liquor and the two small children. Mrs. H. called the police and her husband was arrested and placed in jail for 40 minutes. As soon as Mr. H. got out he started making threatening telephone calls to Mrs. H.

The interim custody of the children has been awarded to Mr. H. because Mrs. H. had a nervous breakdown in.1980 and attempted suicide at the time. She has seen a psychiatrist since and he told her that it was her husband who needed help.

r —117—

Case #3122

Mrs. W. has been assaulted approximately 100 times by her partner. One month before this interview, she was taken to the hospital and needed fourteen stitches to close a split in'her head. 'Mr. W. has spit on her and urinated on her numerous times.

In 1979, Mrs. W. went to court to make her husband enter a recog-nizance to keep the peace. She was told by a court official that she should not sleep with Mr. W. while the case was being heard. Mrs, W. withdrew from the proceedings when her husband moved out for three weeks.

In the past year, Mrs. W. obtained a job transfer and put her house up for sale. Although the house was in her name, she could not sell it because her husband would not sign the agreement. Mr. W. has had numerous affairs with young girls and, consequently, Mrs. W. feels very insecure about her own appearance. Mrs. W. has received four job promotions in nine months; however, instead of receiving praise from her partner, Mrs. W. is beaten up for being more successful than Mr. W. She has seen three psychiatrists and sees her workplace as her only haven. She will not call the police anymore because she is totally frustrated with the response she has received in the past from all agents of the system.

Case #3230

A.J. separated from her husband in 1979 following a severe assault and her divorce should be approved by May of 1921. On the night of the attack in 1979, A.J. fled from her house at 2 A.M., followed by her husband. She got to a girlfriend's house safely. Mr. J. phoned A.J. the next morning and threatened to kill himself and the two small children unless she returned immediatelY. She called the police who took her to get the children and she left the male.

Three days following the assault, A.J. laid charges of assault causing bodily haro and threatening. While A.J. was waiting to go to court, Mr. J. hired:a private detective to find his wife. .Mr. J. and his brother harassed the female outside her refuge until she called the police. A.J. had a nervous breakdown during this time and took an over dose of drugs. The children were taken from her and placed with the male's parents for three months (later she was given legal custody of the children).

A.J. does not know how she survived the ordeal but attributes her success to the support she received from community and criminal justice agencies, and her friends. Her six-year-old son is experiencing psychological difficulties as a result of the turmoil.

-113—

Case 44067

Mr. and Mrs. 0. are from the Maritimes and have been divorced for four years. The.male had an extensive criminal record including con-victions for indecent exposure, breach of probation, and use of a dangerous weapon which involved an incident ehere he threatened the female with a knife. He was granted custody of the children despite the rad: that the cnildren detested staying with him. The female became so concerned for her children that she took them during her access period and moved to Ontario where she got an apartment and a job as a machinist. Eight months later she was arrested by police in London on the charge of kidnapping and was flown back to the Maritimes. The kidnapping charges were dismissed and she was granted custody of the two children.

In 1979, the male followed her to London, where he broke into her apartment, tore the phone out of the wall and threatened to push her out the window. She subsequently charged the male with threatening and, during this time, she stayed with her brother for fear of the male. The case was dismissed. Since 1979, the male has committed a series of criminal offences in the Maritimes and is currently residing in a psychiatric institution.

Case #3229

Three years ago, P. obtained a court order giving her exclusive possession of the matrimonial home and custody of her daughter. The male has refused to leave. As a result of the physical and emotional abuse she received from her partner, P. had a nervous breakdown and took an overdose of drugs, resulting in an admission to the psychiatric unit at University Hospital for six weeks.

P. was assaulted and threatened by her partner in 1979 and sub-sequently phoned the police. She laid threatening charges but tried to withdraw them when she reeried that her husband's lawyer was going to use her history of psychiatric treatment against her, which he did.

P. is dissatisfied with the response she received from the criminal justice system. After her nervous breakdown, she had to quit her job of 15 years as a computer programmer but now feels the need to work again.

Case #3253

Mrs. X. is a university graduate from Europe and has known her husband since she was 10 years old. Her brother took her to the hespital because she had bruises on her entire body. She thinks that the hospital called the police and after waiting over an hour for them she cancelled the call. The next day, the police came to her house with a Family Consultant.

Mr. X. has a drinking problem and when he gets in one of his "angry moods", Mrs. X. either leaves the house or just agrees with everything he says. The male did not even know that Mrs. X. had called the police in 1979, until the night before this interview.

— 119—

Case #3156

B.B. has been separated from her husband for four months. They had separated once before in 1978 for a .period of one year. B.B. was assaulted five times during their marriage with each assault getting worse. In 1979, Mr. B. became very violent and literally beat up his wife. She left the house not knowing where she was going and the male followed her. He pursued her to a restaurant and then into the emergency department of a general hospital. While she was being examined by the doctors, her husband was asked to see a psychiatrist. The police laid the charge of assault causing bodily harm against Mr. B. and Mrs. B. was taken to the Women's Community House by a Family Consultant. She stayed there for one night and then went to her parents' home. When this case came to trial, Mrs. B. refused to testify and the charges were subsequently dropped.

Case #4060 .

The female has been beaten over 200 times during her 8 year marriage, and has called the police on many of these occasions. The male has never been able to talk about the beatings. The female decided to do something about the situation when her two sons were missing from school one day and were found crying in the library. The 17 year-old son used to try to defend his mother and would get beaten up as well. When the female left the male, he would come to

. her apartment very early in the morning and after making enough.noise to wake the neighbours up, the female would let him in and would subsequently be beaten up. The female was receiving help from a psychiatrist and convinced the male to see a family counsellor only once. Presently, the abuse is less frequent because the female avoids any issues that are controversial.

Case #3219

R.L. was remarried last year after spending nineteen years with her husband who broke every bone in her body, fractured her skull, knocked out her teeth, and stabbed her with a knife. Five years ago, her first husband broke both of her legs and she had to spend ten weeks in bed. As a result of her injuries, R.L. had a nervous breakdown and was hospitalized for three months. She ordered the male to leave and he responded by attempting to overdose on her pills.

R.L.'s second husband had a drinking problem(like her first husband) until R.L. threatened to kick him out following an assault. Both R.L. and her husband have successfully quit drinking. R.L. has received at least SO shock treatments and is currently receiving help and medication from a psychiatrist.

-120-

Case 41018

G. started divorce proceedings following an assault in 1979 and she obtained her divorce in Oc:oper of 1980. The male fought far custody of their baby daughter in the hope of getting his wife back. While they were waiting for the outcome of the custody hearings, the male tried to kidnap his daughter. The male is now in Nova Scotia and is not forwarding any support payments to the female. G. had been assaulted numerous times by the male. One attack occurred when she was seven months pregnant and as a result of the attack, the baby was born prematurely, two days later, and had marks on her from the assault on her mother.

While the court was deciding the custody of the child, the male's lawyer instructed G. to let the father see the child every day, a demand which was very traumatic for the female. G. experienced six months of acute anxiety after she charged her partner with assault.

The male took off to Nova Scotia to live with his mother when he received his Summons ta appear in court on assault charges. A bench warrant was issued and three months later he was arrested when he was stopped for speeding.

Case 43100

M. is noW divorced from the abusive male. Following a very severe attack from her husband, the female called the police who laid an' assault causing bodily harm charge. The male continued to threaten the female during the court case and for manY months after the trial. He would phone the female, describe what the children wore'to school that day, and tell her where to find them in green garbage bags. The female had many friends to turn to at this time and the male's threatening behaviour was terminated only when a R.C.M.P. officer, who was also a friend of the female, warned the male.

Case 41020

M. was divorced in 1972 from a male who was experienced in the martial arts and who beat her numerous times. When their 11-year-old son beat her up(he was also experienced in the martial arts) the female threw him out of the house. The son has undergone extensive counselling: one of his most vivid memories is seeing his mother standing up against a wall with his father holding a loaded shotgun to her head.

In 1977, N. was cohabiting with a man who abused her at le at once a week. Practically every bone in her body has been broken. The male left and returned to Europe in 1980 when the female refused to finance him any more. The female believes that the police were the only agents she could involve in this situation since a follow-up of any kind would have only made the male more violent.

The female experienced profound fear during these relationshios and felt suicidal at some points.

— 121 —

Case #3257

U. is married to a man who is extremely violent and described as mentally ill. In the incident in 1979, the female was choked to unconsciousness. She strongly maintains that the male was 'sick' before, but is all better now. During his 'sick period', he assaulted her numerous times, was hospitalized in the London Psychiatric Hospital once and the Victoria Hosoial Psychiatry unit twice. During this period, which lasted approximatelY two years, the couple would go without eating for many days and often the male would go to the Men's Mission for dinner and bring some donuts home for the female's dinner. The female was working at a very menial job and felt extremely disheartened when she came home to find the male talking to himself for hours. He now has a factory job and appears to be going through a calm phase.

Case =1068

V. had been separated from her husband for one year when he phoned and threateOed to use a shotgun to blow off her head and their eleven year-old son's head. She phoned the police, and then phoned the male's psychiatrist(the male had been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic). The female went to see the Justice of the Peace the next day, and a warrant was issued under Section 9 of the Mental Health Act. As a result, the male was hospitalized at the Victoria Hospital Psychiatric Unit for seven days.

Since 1979, the male has been in Victoria Hospital three times and the London Psychiatric Hospital once. He is now living out west. As a result of the abuse she received, the female took an 'overdose of drugs during the marriage. Her son also had difficulty coping with the male's abusiveness and received help from a child psychologist.

Case =3223

Mr. W. had left home one month prior to the interview and has not contacted the female since. She is trying to serve him with a petition for divorce.

When Mrs. W. called the police in 1979, the male had assaulted the female and proceeded to damage most of the furniture. When he stumbled (he was very drunk) the female fled with her daughter to a pay telephone. Mr. W. was never interviewed by police and Mrs. W. stayed at her mother's house for the night. Previous injuries to the female include a gash on her face made with a knife and a broken bone under her eye from a punch.

The male is a severe alcoholic and has recently lost his job. The female's family doctor recommended that she see a psychiatrist (she has seen two) and the male asserts that she is crazy and that he has no problems. As the female has become more assertive (i.e. working part-time, obtaining a driver's licence) the male has become more vicious and drinks more neavily. The female feels that if she had not gone out to work, she wouldn't have survived.

-122-

Case #3125

M.7. has been separated from her hustand for 21-z years and hates to reach a divorce settlement this fall. Currently, she does volunteer work at AL4non and credits this organization for pulling her througn the abuse. Mr. 7. has been diagnosed as both an alcoholic and a

• psychopath. A short time before they separated, M.T. decided that she was not

going to take the abuse any more, which was usually sexual and emotional. When Mr. T. realized his wife was not going to be hit, he started abusing the children - that is when she left with the three kids.

Although, Mrs. T. was the sole owner of the house, her lawyer told her that she to leave to be free frum her husband. She did leave but later decided that she wanted the house, so she moved back in (with the children) and moved Mr. T. out.. Mr. T. returned to the house and proceeded to assault M.T. She called the police and believes that if some friends hadn't been there, she would have been killed.

The children have been very upset by their father's aggression and have seen a child psychologist. M. 7, initially agreed that Mr. T. could have access to the children; now they refuse to see him so she is taking the access matter to court. M.T. feels that Mr. 7. only wants to see the children so that he has an opportunity to harass her.

-123-

APPEUDIX

SUPPLEM=TARY INFORMATION FROM :NTERVEWS WITH ABUSED

FEMALES

Less than half (41%) of the inzervieweà females

were living with the male who assaulted them in 1979. The

average educational level of the females and males was

Grades 11 and 10, respectively. Sixty-six percent of the

females and SO% of males have been working in the last

two Years. Table 9 shows the occupational classfications

and the most common occupation of both the males and the

females involved skilled labour. The average income was

$12,000 to $15,999 and fifty-three of the females (90%)

had an average of two children. In 26 cases . (47%), custody

of the children had to be assigned by the court and the

females were awardedcustody 92% of the time.

The females were asked if the male had any

problems which contributed to his violent nature: twenty-

six percent believed that alcohol was the only factor;

forty-five percent cited emotional or psychological difficulties

as the problem; psychiatric disorders were seen as contributors

in 7% of the cases; and uncontrollable tempers and financial

stress were each mentioned as facilitors cf violence by

10% of the females. The recovery rate for these problems

is aLmost as poor as it is for the males' drinking behaviour

patterns such that 66% of the prcblems have gotten worse

47 Tata I 100 39 100

Males mrequency r‘ercentage Or

Working Ma l es()

Females Frequency Percentage of(%1

Working Femalee Job Classification»

Professional/Managerial I

Professional/Managerial I/

Semi-Professional

Skilled .

Senti-Ski lied

Unskilled

Housewife

2

11

7

16

5

4

4.2

23.4

14.9

34.0

10.6

8.5

erle

4

7

12

6

9

2

•

10.2

17.9

30.8

15.4

23.1

5.1

—124—

Table 9

Occupational Classifications of

Working Males and Females

4C1assifications were made accor.ding to Eollingshead, 1933

-125-

remained the same s .;n^e 1 979.

Most of the females (77%) had contacted other

social and community agencies, besides the criminal

justice system, to cet help with the violence they were

experiencing. Thirteen women (21%) contacted one agency,

fourteen (23%) contacted two agencies, and another 13 (21%)

were in touch with three or more agencies. Table 10

lists the types of community agents or agencies that the

females contacted. Two-thirds of the women received some

fo rm of psychiatric treatment or psychological assessment/

intervention in the community, while an additional 28%

received some other type of counselling.

Ninety-seven percent of the females indicated

that they reached some breaking point when they decided

that they were not going to take the abuse any more.

Twenty-two percent of the females called the police at this

point, thirty-one percent left their partners, nine percent

did nothing, and seven percent attempted suicide.

In order to determine the appropriateness of

certain services which abused women receive, marticularly

criminal justice, the interviewed females were asked their

opinions about the interventions they received and to make

recommendations as to what could be done for other abused

women. Twenty-seven respondents (43%) felt that the os

did not respond quickly enough and 30 females (61% wanted

,••••••••

Percentage of Total Females Interviewed*

(%) N=62

Type of Agency Contacted Number of Females Contacting Agency

Psychiatry unit of a general hospital or psychiatrist in private practice

Family doctor

Family or marriage'counsellor

Family & Children's Services

Psychologist

Financial assistance agency

Other services foechildren (e.g., psychiatric facility, juvenile detention, etc.)

Emergency Housing

Provincial Psychiatric Hospital

Priest

Other

24

19

17

12

11

10

8

5

4

3

4

38.7

30.6

27.4

19.4

17.7

16.1

12.9

8.1

6.4

4.8

6.4

—125—

Table I

Number of Interviewed Fraies Who Contacted Various Community 4encies

*The percentage total is greater than 100% since subjects could respond to more than one choice.

-127-

the officer to lay a charge: the officers laid assault

charges in three cases. Twenty-one (34%) of the alleged

assailants had left before the police arrived. The females

felt that the officers were more supportive of the males

in 25 (40%) cases and most supportive of the victim in

10 (16%) instances. Table 11 shows what these females

wanted the police officers to do when they arrived at the

scene of the assault. Nearly one-third of the women wanted

the male arrestedand 29% of the women wanted the officer

to remove the male from the premises. Eight victims just

wanted someone to stop the violence.

The females' responses as to what the police should

have done for them or should be doing for other females

in the saine situation are show in Table 12. The females'

most frequent recommendation was that the investigating

officer separate the couple for at least a few hours in the

following ways: forty-eight percent of the females suggested

that the male should be removed from the house or placed

in jail overnight; failing that, the officer should ensure

that the female gets out of the house safely or advise her

about emergency shelter for abused women.

:f the female decides that she wants to lay an

assault or threatening charge against her partner, she

must attend an interview with the justice of the peace in

Fam'ly Court. Table 13 shows the females' responses to what

-122-

Table 11

Abused Females' Expectations of Police Before They Arrived

At The Scene of the Assault By Frequency and Percent

N = 62

Females' Expectations Before Frequency Percent Police Arrived CO

Remove male'from premises 20 32

Arrest male 18 29

Just stop the violence 8 13

Keep male off premises 3 3

Threaten the male 2 3

Remove children from the home 2 3

Did not think police could help 2 3

Allow female to collect her belongings 1 1.6

Other 3 5

■••••••••

TABLE 12

Abused Females' Responses to

What Police Officer Should Have Done for

Then and What Should be Done in the Future by Frequency

and Percent N=62

Female's Suggestion Frequency* Percent(%)'.

(a) Did all they could 16 25.8

(b) Remove male from premises 23 37.0

(o) Office: should be more understanding 19 30.6

(d) Should not treat female like 12 19.3 criminal or fool

(e) Officer should not view these incidents as mere "domestic squabbles" 9 14.5

(f) Give male some information regarding 8 12.9 counselling

(g) Place male in jail overnight 7 11.3

(h) Advise famale about emergency 6 9.7 shelters

(i) Conduct seine type of follow-up 6 9.7 with family

(j) Make sure female (and children) 5 8.1 get out of the house safely

(k) Officer should at least talk to 6 9.7 the male

(1) Should not assure female provoked 6 9.7 attack .

(m) Family Consultants should have 5 8.1 been called

(n) Officer should not incite male 3 4.8 to hit him (male only angrier when police leave)

(o) Advise male that wife abuse is wrong 3 4.8

(p) Officer should threaten the male 2 3.2

(q) Advise female about laving her own assault charges

Fr=cuencv total exceeds 62 and the mercentage total exoeeds 100% since su'Ojects could respond to more than one category.

—130--

Table 13

Suggestions From Twenty-six kused Females Who Laid Charges

.1,s To What the Justice of the Peace Should Have Done cr Should Do

In the Future By Frequency and Percent M=26 .

Female's Response Frequency * Percent* (%)

(a) Old all they could 13 SO

(b) Should treat the female like 10 28.5 a person with rights

(c) Try to assess the situation 2 7.7 more aCcurataly

(d) Assist the female in obtaining 1 3.8 legal aid

(e) Should not take the male's side 1 3.8

(f) Female should only have to go to 2 7.7 JP's office once

(g) Case histories should be taken 1 3.8 by JP instead of police

* Frequency and percentage totals exceeds 25 and 100% respectively, since respondents were allowed to make more than one recommendation.

-131-

the justice of the peace should have done for them. Fifty

percent felt that they were not treated fairly by the

justice of the peace and were not supported by this agent.

The other fifty percent felt that the justice of the peace

did all (s)he could.

After a charge has been laid, the female is

subpeonaed to court for the first court appearance when she

meets thé Crown attorney. The female must return to court

an aVerage of three times. Five (19%) of the 26 interviewed

women who went to court had asked the Crown to withdraw

the charge: two of these women wanted to protect their

partners, one withdrawal was part of a plea-bargaining

arrangement, and another male had promised the victim that

he would reform.

What the26 females felt that the Crown should have .

done for them is found in Table 14. Nearly 40% of the women

expressed a need for the Crown to talk to them before going

into the courtroom and a further 12% felt that the investigation

should have been more complete. A lack of support from the

Crown was endorsed by 56% of the females laying charges.

The Women's Community House in London, Ontario

is an emergency shelter for abused women where they can live

with their children for a maximum of six weeks. Only

twenty-two of the females (35%) were aware that the shelter

existed and ten C16%) subsequently contacted the house - two

-132-

Table 14

Responses From Abused Females Who Laid Charges

As To What The Crown Attorney Should Have Oone '

Or Should Do In the Future by Frequency and Percent

N=26

Female's Response Frequency Percent (%)

' (a) Oid all they could 9 34.6

(b) Talk to the female before court 10 38.5

(c) Provide encouragement/moral 5 19.2 • support to the victim .

(d) Should be more prepared 3 11.5 (conduct a better investigation)

(e) Ask judge for more conditions of • 3 11-.5 -- probation or recognizance

* Frequency and percentage totals exceed 25 and 100% respectively, since respondents were allowed to make more than one recommendation.

-133-

females just phone for advice, three went to the house to

talk to someone, and the remaining five staved at the

house for a period ranging from a few days to six weeks.

Ninety percent of the females were satisfied with the

intervention they received from the Women's Community

House and four of these females (40 ) have contacted the

shelter since their initial contact.

The sixty-two females were asked to make general

recommendations to the various community and criminal

justice agencies suggesting ways in which they could assist

other females who are abused by their male partners.

These responses are depicted in Table 15. The most

frequent recommendation was theneed for counselling for

the males (50), the females (39%) and the children (11%).

One-quarter of the women felt that there should be more

shelters for abused women. In addition, the existence of

these shelters and the rights of females in eeneral should

be publicized more widely (32%). Forty-eight percent of

the respondents recommended assisting the females both

financially and legally in obtaining separations and

divorces. Finally, nine females (15%)suggested that all

agents should be more understanding and 16% of the females

recommended that the police somehow prevent the male from

continuing his harassment and abuse.

—134—

Table 13

General Recommendations from Victims of Family.Violence By Frequency and Percent

N=62

Females' ecommendation Frequency Percent Pn

(a) Psychiatric treatment/counselling 31 EC.0 for males

(h) Provide counselling for females 24 38.7

(c) Provide more shelters for abused women 15 24.2

(d) Easier access to divorce, custody 16 25.8 support, etc.

(e) Increase public awareness of women's 20 32.2 rights thr;ough the media, educational system, etc. (also advertise available resources

(f) All agents must listen to the female, not 9 14.5 assume she is at fault, and understand her feelings of helplessness and terror

• (g) Attempt to prevent the male from 7 11.3 threatening and harassing the female, espectally when they are separated

(h) Ease financial burden on women who want 9 14.5 to separate'

(I) Involve family crisis intervention 6 9.7 workers in all female assault cases

(j) Shorten the court process for these cases 5 8.1

(k) Need more females as agents in the 4 6.4 criminal justice system

(1) Provide counselling for the children 7 11.3

(m) Police should increase surveillance 3 4.8 on houses where abuse is known

(n) Give the male a strong message that wife 6 9.7 abuse is wrong

(0) Need more preventative measures 6 9.7

(p) Easier access to Legal Aid 5 8.1

(q) Provide legal representation for abused 2 3.2 women

APPENDIX —135—

THE NEEDS OF BATTERED WOMEN

A female who has been physically assaulted Presents a complex array of

needs, ail of which should be identified and addressed in order to intervene

in both the immediate and long-term effects of violence. Piecemeal services

only prove to be frustrating for the victim and reflect a narrow.focus on

the problem. One of the most important needs of the abused woman is immediate

protection from assaultive or threatening behaviour. Police officers are usually

called in to perform this service but their assistance most often involves

talking to the victim and assailant, ensuring that no violence occurs in their

presence, and then leaving the scene. This type of action leaves the female

who called the police feeling even more isolated and helpless because she

often is expecting that the police will ensure her safety for a lancer period

of time.

If an abused woman has been injured, she will require some form of medical

treatment, ranging from a general examination to a period of hospitalization.

Unfortunately, many women who are assaulted by their partners will not attend

such services due to embarassment about the incident, feelings of hopelessness,

or threats from her assailant.

Another area of need for the abused woman is emotional counselling and

support which can ideally be provided by most community professionals. The trauma

of the most recent incident of abuse and the intimidation of future attacks,

often serves ta immobolize the female in fear or produce strong denial of the

violent episode and its implications. Since the violence destroys many of the

female's most esteemed values such as love and martial harmony, she may feel

that her situation is hopeless. The hopelessness may be fos:ered by feelings

—136—

THE NEEDS OF SATTERED WOMEN (don't)

that the violence was provoked and deserved by the victim. For some women,

the tehaviour may be defined as too deviant ta talk about, or within the noms

pf marital interactions and, therefore, not worthy of outside intervention.

Talking to an understanding professional allows an abused woman to acceot wnat

has happened to her, release the pent-up hurt and anger, and woK towards new

solutions to the problem.

The victim of family violence is unlike most other crime victims in the

sense that in order to remove herself frcm her assailant, she must also leave

her home, her belongings and sometimes her children. Consequently, the abused

female often has to look to the community to provide the basic needs of shelter

and food. Usually, the shelter provided is temporary ranging from a period of

one day to over a month, so that, inevitably, the abused woman has to make a

choice between returning to her home and, therefore, her assailant, or finding

a place of her own. Since many victims are economically dependent on the

assailant, this period can be extremely difficult. Many females are forced to

' return to the violent situation, due to lack of assistance in setting up their

own homes. Therefore, housing must be considered as an essential service to

the fleeing family members.

If an abused woman has decided to leave her partner, she needs to be able

to support herself (and sometimes her children). In many cases public assistance

is required as an interim step - to economic independence. Then, it is often

necessary for the female to upgrade her education or receive skill -acquisition

training and job counselling, so that she may compete in the job market. These

types of programs are presently available and more abused women require information

about access to them.

-137—

THE NEEDS OF BATTERED WOMEN (can't)

Although assaulting another person is a criminal act, few aoused women call

the police and even fewer pursue criminal charges. Those females who do turn to

the courts for protection often need legal advice regarding their options and

the probaole consequences of any action. Except for cases involving the mos:

serious injuries, the victim must lay her own charges, attend court, and testify

against her partner who is usually threatening her with retaliation: Other

abuse females who may require legal assistance are those who wish to separate

from or divorce their assailants. Since this action involves a civil proceeding,

the female is required to retain a lawyer, often through legal aid services.

It is apparent, then, that an effective response to the victim of family

violence involves much more than bandaging the wounds, if the desired goal is

the termination and prevention of further violence; however, the needs of abUsed

women are not entirely unique since many other citizens also require police

protection, housing, etc. Therefore, one would expect that these women could .

be easily assisted by existing agencies and services. Unfortunately, «there

are a number of factors which impede the delivery of adequate services to abused

females. Traditional responses from the criminal justice, mental health, medical,_

and social service systems, as well as the victims perception of this response,

reflect a number of inadecipacies which resurm from inappropr'iaze attitudes,

philosophies, policies e and practices.

APPENDIX L

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROV:NG TRADITIONAL RESPONSES

(a) The Medical System

AL:tough' abused women receive adequate :r---atment of pys icai

injuries, ttey are seldom identified as victims o.f farnily viclence

1:temedica1 prbfessionals4Researchers recommend that doctors listen more

carefully to these victims, approach the problem sympathetically, and offer

apprtpriate advice (Pahl, 1979). Furthermore, doctors must be informed of the

variety of resources in the community which can offer specialized services to

the victims and, consequently, must make more referrals to these sources (Pahl,

1979; Ramrattan et al. 1 1980). It is also important that medical practitioners

keep careful records of cases of abused women which can be used for the purpose

of court testimony (Fromson, 1978; Pahl, 1979). Finally, medical practitioners

must realize the importance of identifying cases where domestic violence is

involved, thus minimizing the possibility of treating secondary or superficial

symptoms only.

(b) The Mental Health System

Recommendations for improving the response of mental health professionals

to abused women are similar to those suggested for the medical system, such as

listening more closely to the victim, providing support, directly asking about

the abuse at intake, and acknowledging abuse as more than a superficial problem

(King, 1981; Ramrattan et al., 1980). Another important step in improving the

effectiveness of the mental health system's response to abused women entails the

practitioner c1arifying his awn values and attitudes about wife abuse as well as

increasing his awareness of the prevalence, causes and consequences of this

type of violence (King, 1981).

-139-

It has been suggested that traditional psycnia:ric interpretation of this

phenomenon be abandoned (Dobashe, 1979; Fleming, 1979) and, instead, a combination

of behavioural, insight-oriented, feminist therapy should be used in counselling

the abused female (Walker, 1978). In addition, if the female wishes to stay with

the batterer, therapy should focus on strengthening her independence and equality

with the relationship (Chapman, 1979).

Therapeutic intervention with abusive males is rarely attempted because

the male is usually unwilling to receive counselling and techniques for controlling

violent behaviour are not yet fully developed, îlthough some programs for abtusiv

males have 1peen established in the United States, evaluations of -these

programs have not beenccompleted.

(c) The Social Service System

The most effective way that social workers and counsellors can improve

their response to abused women is by attempting to identify abuse cases and

directly asking the vicmén if violence is involved in their relationships

(King, 1981; Nichols, 1976; Ramrattan et al., 1980; Rounsaville, 1979; Star, 1980).

Social workers should also resensitize themselves to the existence and impact of

violence with the development of in-service training (Star, 1980). Clients have

to be informed about other relevant resources in the community and referrals must

be made to these sources of assistance (Ramrattan et al., 1980). Another im-

portant aspect of the social worker's intervention involves exploring with the

7Jomen her alternatives to living with the abusive male as well as the impact

of violence on children.

••■•■•••■■

smommwerk.

sm.

Aooroximate Number of qeferrals

■■■•••■••■7

rice of Acencv

AiePENDIX ar5roter Jo Attpun r.alrN (lursylnemr?r

—140— 1. Please indicate your profession:

physician osycniatrist osychologist 7uolic nealtF7717-se

oceI worxer teunsellor clerly remoer other

Z. In the oast year, acurlxleate;! «tcw -anv of your ol.amcs re.00rtea a seeclfic incident or a n/stcry jf :ntarocousai /Toiemca?

4urnaer :,rcentace of :elte4it'l

(a) Female vic:*.ms (b) Female assailants (c) Mate victims (d) Male assailanos

3. Row often is flnily violence the primary concern or eresenting oroblem of these females or nales?

never a few times . often always not anolicibie

4. %Diet ...Yee of intervention CO you find eost effective in responding tot

(1) Owed females?

(ilY abusive ales?

5(a) *e you ever refer aoused women te ether agenc es or ercfessicns?

yes nO net applicable

(b) If you have race referrals. clease inoicate the type of agency and OPrOaimate numoer of referrals in the east year:

b. *Have your or your agency exoerienced any pi-et:liens in dealing with abused females or abusive sales?

7. Co you see the need for more.specialized community resources for responding tO:

(i) abused females? yes no___

(11) aousive males? yea-- na-

Meese specify

S. Co you feel that there is a need for imeroved =ordination t.etween the criminal justice system and other community agencies and orofessionals?

yes_

:laments and Suggestions

Thant you for comoletinn tais survey. ir ../ou m4ve Inv acitional cements, 'lease feel free te .a se the reverse side of the :age.

(10

DRKFT

APPENDIX N -141-

Memo to: ALL RANKS

From: :nspector, Court Services Branch

Subject: Assault Commi-m'nts

1. Commencing immediately, charges are to be laid by our Force in all cases where there are reasonable and probable grounds revealed in the investigation. The practice of directing the victim to lay private informations is to cease.

2. Charges of common assault and assault cauSing bodily ha rm are to be laid in,the Family Division Cf the Provincial Court only when the assault occurs between members living together in the same dwelling unit as a family.

3. All other assault charges are to be laid in the Criminal Division of the Provincial Court.

4. Wounding charges are to.be laid in the Provincial Court (Criminal Division) when injury is caused - by the use of an instrument.

B. The occurrence report and the charge sheets must indicate the relationship between the victim and the assailant.

J. J. Robinson Inspector Court Services Branch

-142-

APPENDIX 0

Memo to: ALL RANKS

F-om: :nspector, Court Services 3ranch

Subject: Assault investigations

Further to mv memo of 81 03 08 directing investigations into assault complaints and aggressive situations by Police Officers in laying charges rather than placing the onus on the victim. Commencing at 0001 hrs 31 06 17 Officers investigating assaults or threatening complaints are to fill out and leave with the victim, a Victim Information Card, copy attached.

The present practice of actively investigating assault complaints and laying charges where appropriate is effective;'however, some confusion arises where the victim does not recall the next day what the Officer's instructions or intentions were. The Victim information Cards are designed to alleviate this and are available to the Officers at the Headquarters Sergeant location.

The Investigating Officer should strike out the word "assaulted" 'or "threatened" to indicate which was complained of and must check the appropriate boxes to indicate the action taken or recommended. It is expected that in most instances of threatening, that the victim will proceed to lay his or her own charge.

The information that.is contained on the reverse side of the Information Card, wherein it is suggested to the victim that, should they require further assistance, they can call our Family Consultants, is not to deter Police Officers from utilizing their expertise at the time of the investigation.

Research results have shown a tendency for violence to be less severe after Family Consultants have intervened, particularly where there are children involved. Therefore, where an Officer deems necessary and appropriate, it is good practice to have one of the Family Consultants intervene in cases of violence as it may have a preventative effect.

'four co-operaticn in this program will be appreciated and bereficial the Force and the ccmmunity as a,whole.

// J. . e' Robinson -

Inspectcr Court Services Branch

81 06 15

-143-

VICTIM INFORM 1.TTON

Occurrence e

You have complained of being assaulted/th:reatened by:

POLICE ACTION

I will/will not lay a charge ED I recommend no further action c: I recommend that you lay a CD private information in the Provincial Court(Family Division)/ . (Criminal Division). To do so, telephone - . Family Division - 679-7090

Criminal Division - 679-7068 to obtain an appointment. You will be required to go to the Court House at 80 Dundas Street and relate the facts to a Justice of the Peace. When a charge is laid you will be required to appear in Court and give evidence. The Crown Attorney will appear as your lawyer for the purpose of presenting evidence in Criminal charges.

Officer Payroll #

(sèe reverse)

1 '

- 1 44-

If you need further assistance in resolving your difficulties you may call:

Family Consultants - 438-3291 or

Women's Community ouse - 439-4543

The staef there will be in a position to respond to your needs or refer you to someone who can.

ALSO

The Family Law Peform :Act provides for a Court Order to be made for custody, access, support and to restrain your spouse from molesting, harrassing or annoyinc you. A lawyer will be of assistance in this process. If you cannot afford a lawyer, then contact:

Legal Aid, 121 Oueens Ave. - 433-8179 and they will assist you.

NOTE

Conditions of an Order issued by the Court under the Family Law Reform Act cannot be enforced by the Police.

TAKE THIS CARD WITH YOU WHEN VISITING THE JUSTICE OF THE P!ACE OR A LAWYER.

-14 5-

APPENDTX P

Criminal charges more likely .;,-;; I:;ejiz.=_ .?7.244, .764.1.1 1,11

Police acting againe 'wife-beaters By Steen Gentled .7f The Free Press

London men who beat their wiifes are more likely to face cnmlnal charges fol. lowing a recent decieion by city police to lay charges in domestic squabbles . In-stead of leaving it up to the victim, as was often the case before.

The directive places family violsoce in the same league as other assaulta.

But there's more. During the past month, police have been giving assault victims cards which list the officer's name, payroll number and the occur-rence number and an indication of whether the police are laying a charge ' against the assailant or advising Lhe.vic•. tins ta do it herself.

The cards also bear telephone num-here for family court. cr.:mil:us' court , the police family consultants, legal aid and Women's Community House where ibe woman can turn for additional help.

"With the police Laying the charge, it's a clear statement by society th.at family

violence won't be te.ideatibete said Dr. Peter Jatte, chairmen of tbe London .co-orsitnating corneal:zee oa family vi- . olence.

Ln February; Jatte co-authored a re-port which was critical of police hart-riling of wife-beatings. The report dealt with asaaults agatnat weal« in the GLest six months of. 1271.

It said that , of the 243 battering cases studied, police laid charges of assault n causing bodily harm in twe per cent of them — but the charge was warranted in 56 per cent of the cases.

The police record has improved since ISM. Last year, there were:ZS *. mate complabrau ot assault causing be> silly barre. up from 34.1a1M. Of Lisa& cases, police were able to lay'charges in

incidenta, compared with lie in Ina. Insp. John Robinson, à Committee

member, said 114 limit the ittformatioe cards will help hack up the Latest dine-tive on Laying more charges, because the officers must alga the car*, •

"in signin.g it, he reelly kart° stop and Lisink" about whether there are the ma-accabla and proieed& groseeel to warrant

• • . . I"...

a police charge, regardless oi the Lee •may be a fatally quarrel.

A teaditioaal complaint of otIcers La that, alter police go to the time and =- pease al laying a charge, the vtetm changes her rated. But Robinson said now she won't be allowed that °pone.

"The crovra (attorney) is taking a ha..m line. The charge is there and. If every-thiag happy at home-new, well that's good. But that's a matter to be takel Into

consideration at the time of the deped-Don," be said.

"Even If the victen does withdraw the charge, that's not necessarily failure, " Jatte said. Studies show that etirrgag the man involved in these attacks See a deterrent effect.

"It raises his awareness of the laap-propriateriess of hia beitevior and the pe. tential consequences."

Jaffe said the certit should strair-test out the contusion mat existed before. "There &Ways uncle to be a conflict be-tween wtutt àdr victim mimics she's been told and • what a police officer intended ke tell ber In regards to her rights and al-ternatives."

• •

8,7e) sz,370" i/ce

SOLGEN CANADA L 13/B. BL o

I III II Mil Iii 0000008405

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700

1984

1.18RARY MINISTRY OF THE SOLICITOR

SEP 25 19134

813 1.10THÈQUE MINISTÈRE DU SOLLICITEUR GÉNÉRAL

Jaffe, Peter An integrated response to wife assault : a community

model