Advocacy and the Battered Women's Movement

Stephanie Avalon, BWJP

Any advocate working within the courts knows the justice system continues to pose significant challenges to battered women attempting to access the system. Those challenges, and the barriers that they create, are the very reasons why we began advocating for women in the first place. Professionals, private attorneys, prosecutors, judges, court clerks and other personnel responded to domestic violence in ways that exacerbated, rather than confronted, women's entrapment...

View Article » Advocacy and the Battered Women's Movement.pdf

Advocacy in a Coordinated Community Response

Overview and Highlights of Three Programs

Rose Thelen, Gender Violence Institute, for BWJP

This article gives an overview of advocacy - namely individual advocacy and systems advocacy - and describes them as an integral part of a community response to domestic violence. It also stresses the importance of each type of advocacy working collectively in enabling battered women to overcome obstacles.

View Article » Advocacy_in_a_Coordinated_Community_Response.pdf

Advocates and Victim/Witness Specialists

Differing Roles to Achieve Common Goals

Stephanie Avalon

This article compares two major groups of victim service providers working in the court system: advocates working for battered women's program and victim/witness specialists employed by prosecutor's offices. It disucsses inevitable conflicts arising from their different roles and offers some strategies for working together.

View Article » Advocacy_and_Victim_Witness_Specialists_Differing_Roles_to_Achieve_Common_Goals.pdf

Amicus Brief for Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project

Robertson v. Watson

Co-authored by: Sandra Tibbetts Murphy, Joan Meier, Deanne Maynard, Brian Matsui, Nicholas Miranda

An amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the right of private litigants to enforce their own civil orders through criminal contempt actions

View Article » DVLEAP Amicus Brief in Robertson.pdf

An Approach to Legal Advocacy for Individual Battered Women

Jill Davies, Greater Hartford Legal Assistance, Inc. Posted with permission.

This chapter was developed for non-lawyer advocates working with individual battered women. Effective legal advocacy requires a thorough understanding of the law, the courts, and domestic violence.

View Article » Approach_to_Legal_Advocacy.pdf

Assisting Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence

Advocate's Guide

BWJP

This guide for advocates and volunteers focuses on the needs of newly-arrived battered immigrant women whose immigration status is unsettled. It explores: how to more effectively respond to battered immigrant women; how immigration status is used as a weapon in domestic violence cases; the options open to immigrant victims, the documents they need, and when a referral to an immigration attorney should be made.

View Article » Immigrant_Victims_Advocates_Guide.pdf

Assisting Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence

Law Enforcement Guide

BWJP

This guide provides a brief overview of the issues law enforcement should consider when working with immigrant communities, and in particular immigrant victims of crime by: exploring various immigration laws and terms that officers need to know; examining the challenges immigrant crime victims face navigating the justice system; identifying how officers can protect and assist immigrant crime victims while managing their enforcement role.

View Article » Immigrant_Victims_LE_Guide.pdf

Assisting Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence

Prosecutor's Guide

BWJP

This guide is intended to give a brief overview of the issues prosecutors should consider when handling cases involving immigrant victims by: exploring relevant immigration laws and terms; examining the challenges immigrant crime victims face navigating the justice system; identifying how prosecutors can most effectively proceed with cases involving immigrant crime victims

View Article » Immigrant_Victims_Prosecutors_Guide.pdf

At A Crossroads

Developing Duluth's Prosecution Response to Battered Women Who Fight Back

Mary Asmus, Chief Prosecutor, City Attorney's Office, Duluth MN

This monograph tells the story of how city prosecutors, battered women's advocates, and other practitioners in Duluth's criminal justice system came together to address the unique issues presented by domestic violence defendants who are also battered women. This monograph also offers a firsthand looks at how institutional change can happen in the criminal justice system.

View Article » At A Crossroads_part1.pdf
View Article » At A Crossroads_part2.pdf
View Article » At A Crossroads_part3.pdf
View Article » At A Crossroads_part4.pdf

Beyond the Mirror

This website focuses on healing for battered women and assistance that can be provided by friends and family.

View Website » http://www.beyond-the-mirror.org/

Centro de Justicia Para Mujeres

Women's Justice Center

Latina resources and Spanish language information

View Website » http://www.justicewomen.com/

Confidentiality

An Advocate's Guide

Julie Kunce Field, Deb Goelman, Barbara Hart, Rebekah Lee, Sandra Murphy, Kim Tolhurst, and Roberta Valente

Confidentiality and privilege are key to keeping battered women safe and represent the cornerstones of all successful advocacy and shelter programs. This guide is intended to familiarize advocates with a variety of laws, policies, requirements, and best practices on the topic of confidentiality.

View Article » Confidentiality_Advocates_Guide.pdf

Countering Confusion About the Duluth Model

Michael Paymar and Graham Barnes

In this paper, the authors examine and respond to research and criticism from these three sources and clarify other myths and misinformation about the Duluth Model. Given the difficulty of changing historically entrenched battering behavior, the authors explain why the Duluth Model, in its true form, provides an effective, ethical framework to address battering given scarce resources.

View Article » Countering_Confusion_Duluth_Model.pdf

Crime Victim Compensation

Policy Paper Series

Barbara Hart, Esq., BWJP

This paper examines the context and gives an overview of the Victims of Crime Act; also considers policy implications.

View Article » Crime_Victim_Compensation.pdf

Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs

Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs, Duluth MN, is a nonprofit agency that works towards the elimination of violence in the lives of women and their children. DAIP believes that all forms of institutionalized oppression, including racism, classism, heterosexism, and ageism increase the vulnerability of women to individual acts of violence and to institutionalized acts of violence. The agency's mission is to focus its work on eliminating violence against women and to provide trainings and resources towards that end.

View Website » http://www.theduluthmodel.org/

Domestic Violence Advocates and the Unauthorized Practice of Law

Kristine Lizdas and Sandra Murphy, BWJP

This document is intended for both volunteer and paid staff of nongovernmental domestic violence programs who work directly with victims of domestic violence currently engaged in one or more legal matters related to their battering. This document is intended to highlight the possible issues for advocates and provide suggestions for better advocacy practice; it is not intended as, and should not be construed as, the provision of legal advice in any capacity.

View Article » DV_Advocates_and_the_Unauthorized_Practice_of_Law.pdf

Domestic Violence Programs and Children's Records

Issues of Confidentiality and Release

Sandra Tibbetts Murphy and Jenna Yauch

Preserving confidentiality for battered women and their children is central to ensuring their safety and allowing them to regain and retain control over their lives. The vital services of a shelter or domestic violence program mean nothing if anyone can access their records, putting battered women and their children in danger of being located. This paper endeavors to provide guidance to domestic violence programs regarding children's records and to serve as a starting place for internal policy development on this issue.

View Article » Domestic_Violence_Programs_and_Children's_Records.pdf

Effective Advocacy on Behalf of Battered Women

by Loretta Frederick

"Advocacy on behalf of battered women whether by an attorney or lay advocate, can take many forms and must be undertaken in a manner responsive to the unique nature of the problem of violence...."

View Article » Effective_Advocacy_Battered_Women.pdf

Effective Interventions in Domestic Violence Cases

Context is Everything

Loretta Frederick, BWJP

In order to ensure that criminal justice system interventions are effective in holding offenders accountable and protecting victims from harm, the context in which each act of domestic violence occurs must be understood.

View Article » Effective_Interventions_Context_is_Everything.pdf

El Paso County, Colorado Institutional Safety and Accountability Audit Report

A Project of the El Paso County Greenbook Project

Contributors: Audit Team Members (see Acknowledgements);Audit Coordinator Lisa Tessarowicz; Project Director Amber Ptak, and BWJP Consultant Rhonda Martinson

A multi-disciplinary team in El Paso County, Colorado mapped their domestic violence prosecution system, conducted focus groups of battered women, interviewed numerous practitioners, observed domestic violence court appearances and reviewed prosecution files to determine what information/factors influence prosecutorial decision-making and case disposition in misdemeanor domestic violence cases, as they related to adult/child victim safety and offender accountability. Four themes in victim safety and offender accountability were discovered; These themes and recommendations to address them are set forth in this report.

View Article » ElPaso_County_Audit_Report.pdf
View Article » ElPaso_DataChart1.pdf
View Article » ElPaso_DataChart2.pdf

Female Officers as Victims of Police-Perpetrated Domestic Violence

Diane Wetendorf

The purpose of this article is to increase advocates' knowledge of how the expectations and values of the female officer's profession and workplace culture influence her behavior and decisions regarding her abusive relationship.

View Article » Female_Officers_Victims_DV.pdf

Intimate and Caregiver Violence Against Women with Disabilities

Patricia E. Erwin

At the intersection of disability and domestic violence is a population of women that has been rendered invisible by a lack of services in the battered women's movement and a lack of recognition of violence in their lives by disability services providers.

View Article » Intimate_Caregiver_Violence_against_Women_with_Disabilities.pdf

Minnesota's Standards for Batterer's Programs

A Policy Review and Report on Implementation in Hennepin County

Sarah Myott

This report was created as a result of work conducted by the Battered Women's Justice Project and Hennepin County Community Corrections in order to begin work to implement MN Statute 518B.02, which sets minimum standards for batterers' programs used for court-mandated offenders. This report examines the legislation, including its background and context; reports on work done to implement this legislation in Hennepin County, and discusses ideas for policy change and implementation.

View Article » MN_Standards_for_Batterers_Programs.pdf

National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence

The National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence designs, provides, and customizes training and consultation; influences policy; promotes collaboration; and enhances diversity with the goal of ending domestic violence.

View Website »  http://www.ncdsv.org/

National Domestic Violence Hotline

Help is available to callers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Hotline advocates are available for victims and anyone calling on their behalf to provide crisis intervention, safety planning, information and referrals to agencies in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Assistance is available in English and Spanish with access to more than 170 languages through interpreter services. If you or someone you know is frightened about something in your relationship, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224.

View Website » http://www.ndvh.org/

National Network on Behalf of Battered Immigrant Women

The three offices (web addresses) listed form the National Network on Behalf of Battered Immigrant Women. Each organization can be contacted individually, or the Network can be found at the www.endabuse.org website.

View Website » http://www.endabuse.org/section/programs/immigrant_women
View Website » http://www.legalmomentum.org/our-work/immigrant-women-program/
View Website » http://www.nationalimmigrationproject.org/

OVW Giles v. California Statement

Cindy Dyer

Office on Violence Against Women official statement on the Giles v. California case. For more information, please see the BWJP amicus.

View Article » OVW_Giles_Statement.pdf

Primary Aggressor Chart

Compiled by Sandra Murphy and MaryKathleen Fenske, 2008

This is a 2008 compilation of all state statutes that use “primary” or “predominant” or “principle” aggressor language. Only the portion of the statute that applies to primary aggressor or mutual or dual arrest is cited in this chart.

View Article » Primary_Aggressor_Chart_Final.pdf

Reducing Language Barriers To Combating Domestic Violence

The Requirements Of Title VI

Carolyn Ham

In addition to the usual obstacles to leaving a violent relationship, battered immigrant women face a host of additional issues such as fears about being deported, loss of legal immigration status and cultural barriers to leaving their spouses. But perhaps the most daunting barrier can be their inability to speak and read English.

View Article » Reducing_Language_Barriers_to_Combating_Domestic_Violence.pdf

Safety and Accountability Audit Report

Freeborn County, Minnesota

Kristine Lizdas and Rhonda Martinson, BWJP

This is the report from the first phase of the Freeborn County Safety and Accountability Audit. It explores Freeborn County's dispatch and law enforcement response to domestic violence calls.

View Article » Safety_Audit_Freeborn_County_MN.pdf

Sample Motion to Quash Grand Jury Subpoena

BWJP

This document serves as a sample motion to be submitted by a domestic violence program that has received a subpoena in a grand jury proceeding, ording it to disclose confidential information.

View Article » Sample_Motion_to_Quash_Subpoena.pdf

Strangulation Matrix

Compiled by the National Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse in 2007 and the Battered Women's Justice Project in 2008

This chart is a compilation of the strangulation laws in the United States. Updated 2008.

View Article » State_Strangulation_Matrix.pdf

Structural Racism, the Criminal Justice System, and Violence Against Women

Literature Review

Gavin Kearney

Literature on domestic violence, the criminal justice system, and race/ethnicity all discuss a number of problems with using the criminal justice system to address domestic violence. This article seeks to address some of these interrelated/interdependent problems.

View Article » Structural_Racism_in_the_Criminal_Justice_System.pdf

The Dangers of Presumptive Joint Physical Custody

Gabrielle Davis, Kristine Lizdas, Sandra Tibbetts Murphy, Jenna Yauch

This article details the problems that arise for victims of domestic violence and their children from legal presumptions for joint physical custody, and strongly advocates against such legal presumptions.

View Article » Dangers_of_Presumptive_Joint_Physical_Custody.pdf

The Domestic Violence Project of Silicon Valley, California

A website with valuable information and resources.

View Website » http://www.growing.com/nonviolent/index.htm

The National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma, and Mental Health

The National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma and Mental Health is a national technical assistance project designed to cultivate a deeper understanding about the mental health and advocacy needs of survivors of domestic violence and their children and the impact of trauma on individual healing and social change; their website contains numerous resources for professionals and survivors.

View Website » http://www.nationalcenterdvtraumamh.org/home.php

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence provides a list of state domestic violence coalitions and other resources for victims and advocates.

View Website »  http://www.ncadv.org/

USDOJ: Tribal Justice and Safety

USDOJ

From the website: "For the first time, all of the Department of Justice’s components and leaders are working together to provide the most efficient and timely information to tribal communities..."

View Website » http://www.tribaljusticeandsafety.gov

VictimLaw

A comprehensive on-line database of state, federal, and tribal victims' rights law and protections; the website offers free, user-friendly access to information that until now has been difficult to find.

View Website » http://www.victimlaw.info/victimlaw/

Violence Against Native Women

A Guide for Practitioner Action

Office on Violence Against Women; National Center on Full Faith and Credit

This paper includes discussion of the theories of Native scholars regarding the sharp rise of the level of violence against Native women, as well as history and demographic information relevant to an overall understanding of the contemporary lives of Native women. This paper also reviews actions taken by the U.S. government and many tribal nations to respond to violence against Native women who have survived domestic or sexual violence.

View Article » Violence_Against_Native_Women.pdf

Violence Against Women: A Curriculum for Empowerment

Facilitator's Manual

Susan Schechter, Sharon Szymanski, Michele Cahill

A manual for facilitators of battered women's groups. The curriculum and workshops were the attempt of the authors to "institutionalize consciousness raising within shelters" and it "offers tools to staff who may never have participated in or led groups." Co-authored by Battered Women's Movement leader, the late Susan Schechter.

View Article » Violence_Against_Women_A_Curriculum_for_Empowerment.pdf

When the Batterer is a Law Enforcement Officer

A Guide for Advocates

By Diane Wetendorf

This is a comprehensive resource for any advocate working with a survivor of a batterer who is in law enforcement, including information on particular safety considerations and advocacy strategies.

View Article » Batterer_LE_Advocate_Guide2009.pdf

Why Should Advocates for Battered Women Want Batterers To Be Provided with Adequate Legal Representation When They Are Arrested for Assaulting Their Partners?

Loretta Frederick, BWJP

The existence of a competent defense bar in any community does not undermine the effort to use the law to stop domestic violence. A fair and well-functioning criminal legal system may create general deterrence even where the conviction rate is less than 100%.

View Article » Adequate_Legal_Representation_for_Batterers.pdf

WomensLaw.org

Free access to legal information, including information on restraining orders, custody, divorce, immigration, and tribal law. Also, links to sheriffs' offices, and court forms and instructions on preparing for hearings, etc. All information is state-specific.

View Website » http://www.womenslaw.org/

Working Effectively with the Police

A Guide for Battered Women's Advocates

Jane Sadusky for BWJP

Battered women's advocates and police departments in several jurisdictions have been successful in developing a more effective police response to domestic assault cases. This article highlights information advocates need in order to work collaboratively and effectively with police officers and other law enforcement personnel. The author discusses the changes police officers have made regarding when and how they arrest, investigate, write reports, and how they work with and support prosecutors and victim advocates.

View Article » Working_Effectively_with_Police.pdf