Retribution or restoration? Anglo–Australian's views towards domestic violence involving Muslim and Anglo–Australian victims and offenders

Abstract

The current study explored how gender, group membership and different emotional reactions to the crime of domestic violence predict attitudes and endorsement of restorative or retributive justice practices. The experiment consisted of a 2 (victim group membership: Muslim- or Anglo–Australian)×2 (offender group membership: Muslim- or Anglo–Australian)×2 (Sex of participant) between-participants factorial design. Anglo–Australian participants (43 men; 50 women) were randomly assigned to one of the four manipulated conditions, and completed an online questionnaire that involved viewing a short video clip of a woman describing her experience as a domestic violence victim. Results revealed strong preferences for restorative justice in dealing with domestic violence, with women supporting this practice more than men. The crime was perceived as most severe and retribution was endorsed most strongly when the victim was Anglo–Australian (i.e. an in-group member). Intra-group violence was also perceived to be a greater breach of shared Australian values than inter-group (i.e. cross-cultural) domestic violence. Emotional reactions further predicted participants' responses, with hatred predicting stronger support of retributive ideals and sympathy for the victim predicting greater endorsement of restoration.     

Perceived responsibility and the least of evils principle

In a 3×3×2 factorial experiment subjects were asked to make a series of judgments about a hypothetical defendant. Varied in theinvestigation were the coercive characteristics of the situation for the defendant, the amount of harm done to the victim, and the legitimate alternatives available to the defendant to meet the demands of coercion. Observers judged the actor harshly for performing an illegal action when a legitimate alternative was available and when the amount of harm to the victim exceeded the level of coercion used against thedefendant. However, the defendant was exonerated from blame and punishment when legitimate alternatives were not available and when coercio level exceeded harm level. The implications of the findings were discussed in relationship to both jury decision making and the attribution of responsibility literature.     

Humiliation,Manipulation, and Control: Evidence of Centrality in Domestic Violence Against an Adult Partner

This paper describes two related studies. Study 1 is a literature review of existing adult partner domestic violence assessment scales. Results of the review revealed that the scales varied on the available amount of empirical evidence for validity and reliability. More importantly, results showed that the content of the scales focused most heavily on the physical abuse aspects of domestic violence. Study 2 is a factor analysis performed on the results of 64 items taken from the Artemis Intake Questionnaire, a clinically relevant tool constructed by treatment providers used in working with the victims of domestic violence. Results indicate that reported humiliation and blame of the victim accounted for the largest amount of variance, followed by controlling the victim, and then physical violence. Results of this factor analysis suggest that greater emphasis must be put on factors other than physical violence in the construction of future domestic violence scales.     

The Impact of Specialized Domestic Violence Units on Case Processing

This study involves an evaluation of an innovative approach to the handling of domestic violence (DV) cases in the city of Cleveland, Ohio that includes (1) a DV Project composed of specially trained police detectives, prosecutors and victim advocates for investigating and prosecuting domestic violence cases involving adult female victims who are married to, cohabitating with, or have a child with the defendant; and (2) a Dedicated Domestic Violence Docket that involves two Municipal Court judges hearing all of the domestic violence cases that are handled by the DV Project. We collected data on six months of domestic violence cases occurring in the latter half of 2008 (N?=?1388), by linking records from the Cleveland Police Department, the Prosecutor’s Office, and the Municipal Court. We found that very few victims in police districts lacking the DV Project follow up with a prosecutor to pursue the case further, indicting that specialized DV units in police departments can have a significant impact on the number of DV cases that move forward through the criminal justice system. DV Project cases were slightly less likely to result in charges issued by prosecutors (OR?=?.499) but more likely to result in dismissals (OR?=?2.545) and referrals to DV treatment programs (χ²?=?3.88).     

Rape trials and jurors' decisions

Recently, many writers have argued that equal protection for victims of rape is not presently offered in the courts since the outcomes of rape trials are frequently influenced by certain victim, defendant, and rape case characteristics. By systematically manipulating the factors of defendant and victim race, victim physical attractiveness, victim sexual experience, strength of evidence presented, and type of rape committed in a legal rape case, the present study sought to examine the effects of these factors on jurors' verdicts. Data collected from a sample of 896 citizens serving as mock jurors for the rape case indicated that these extraevidential factors had significant effects. Furthermore, it was found that the factors did not act independently as a number of significant interactions were identified. These interactions suggested that the impact of extraevidential factors on jurors' decisions is far more complex than what some writers and law reformers have thought. Implications of the findings are discussed in terms of discriminatory treatment of plaintiffs and defendants in rape cases and the role of juror selection in introducing fairness in rape trials.     

Racial prejudice in the canadian legal system

The effects of defendant and victim race and the impact of judicial instructions on defendant verdict were examined using a simulated videotaped rape trial. Subjects were 243 Canadian university students randomly assigned to one of eight conditions. Subjects were asked to assume the role of juror and to view a videotape of a simulated rape trial. The results indicated that the defendant's overall attractiveness or “positive appeal” was the best predictor of defendant guilt, above and beyond defendant race. Neither victim characteristics nor the presence of judicial instructions was found to have predictive utility. Results are contrasted with findings from simulation studies in the United States.     

The importance of forensic evidence for decisions on criminal guilt

Recent studies have found that the general public perceives forensic evidence to be relatively inaccurate and to involve high levels of human judgement. This study examines how important the general public finds forensic evidence by comparing decisions on guilt and punishment in criminal cases that involve forensic versus eyewitness testimony evidence and examining whether a CSI effect exists. Specifically, this experimental survey study utilized a 2 (crime type: murder or rape) × 4 (evidence type: DNA, fingerprint, victim eyewitness testimony, or bystander eyewitness testimony) ? 1 (no victim testimony for murder scenario) design, yielding seven vignettes scenarios to which participants were randomly assigned. Results indicate that forensic evidence was associated with more guilty verdicts and higher confidence in a guilty verdict. Forensic evidence did not change the expected sentence length and did not generally affect the ideal sentence length. However, for rape, respondents believed that the defendant should receive a longer sentence when forensic evidence was presented but forensic evidence did not alter likely sentence that respondents expected the defendant to receive. The results of this study did not support a CSI effect. Overall, this study suggests that forensic evidence – particularly DNA – has a stronger influence during the verdict stage than the sentencing stage.     

A Domestic Violence Course For Medical Students: A Study on Its Effectiveness

International health institutions emphasize the necessity of including the topic of domestic violence which is accepted as a health problem worldwide, into the training of physicians. The fact that physicians should diagnose domestic violence victims who over the years were either neglected or overlooked is also mentioned. The present study aims to measure the effectiveness of the interactive domestic violence course given to Dokuz Eylul University Faculty of Medicine (DEUFM) Year V students, with tests implemented before and after the course. The same students were given the same test during Year VI (internship). The students’ average knowledge scores were found respectively as follows: pretest 78.66?±?10.54, second test 94.13?±?3.95 and third test 89.65?±?7.48. There was a statistically significant difference between tests’ average scores. It was observed that, after the course, 4 out of 19 students (21.1%) changed their answers from “no” to “yes” for the question “Have you ever been a victim of physical domestic violence?” A statistically significant difference was found between pre-course answers and the after course answers given to this question. This study showed that the course on domestic violence increased students’ knowledge level and awareness on this issue. Considering that average knowledge level will decrease over time and aiming to improve future physicians’ approach to domestic violence cases, addition of other interactive educational methods to Year V’s course program and proposal of an advanced training session to Year VI’s curriculum are being planned.     

Responses of Police Officers to Cases of Officer Domestic Violence: Effects of Demographic and Professional Factors

Although the perpetration of domestic violence by police officers has received more attention lately, little research has examined the topic. This study investigated common responses of police officers (n = 1108) to officer-perpetrated domestic violence case scenarios and the relationships between officer characteristics and such responses. Common responses included encouraging the victim to file a formal report, assisting in finding help for domestic abuse, and referring the offending officer to an employee assistance program (EAP) or counselor. Arrest was a likely response when officers were asked to imagine they witnessed a victim’s injuries and heard statements about an assault in a case scenario. Supervisors had the most victim-supportive responses, suggesting they may be very good trainers of front-line officers.     

“Give me some space”: exploring youth to parent aggression and violence

A small scale qualitative project, undertaken by an interdisciplinary domestic violence research group involving academic researchers and research assistants, with colleagues from Independent Domestic Abuse Services (IDAS), investigated youth aggression and violence against parents. Following the literature review, data was generated through several research conversations with young people (n = 2), through semi-structured interviews with mothers (n = 3) and practitioners (n = 5), and through a practitioner focus group (n = 8). Thematic analysis and triangulation of the data from parents, practitioners and young people, elicited interconnected and complex overarching themes. Young people could be both victim and perpetrator. The witnessing or experiencing of domestic aggression and violence raised the concept of ‘bystander children’. The impact of young people experiencing familial violence was underestimated by parents. For practitioners, the effects of working with domestic violence was shown to be significant - both positively and negatively.     

Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence in Thailand

There is no recent national data on the prevalence of intimate partner violence in Thailand. This study proposed to examine the prevalence of intimate partner violence in 4 regions of Thailand by using a standardized questionnaire from the WHO multi country study on women’s health and domestic violence. Two thousand four hundred and sixty-two married or cohabiting women aged 20–59 years were interviewed about their experiences of psychologically, physically, sexually violent, and/or controlling behaviors by their male partners. The study found that 15% of respondents had experienced psychological, physical, and/or sexual violence in their life time which suggests that 1 in 6 of Thai women have faced intimate partner violence. Of the 15% of women who reported intimate partner violence within the past 12 months, psychological violence was the most common (60–68%), followed by sexual violence (62–63%) and physical violence (52–65%). In addition, the percentage of women who faced various forms of controlling behaviors varied from 4.6% to 29.3%. Men who were more controlling were more likely to abuse their female partners. The results reveal that partner violence against women is a significant public health issue in Thai society that must be addressed.     

Stalking in the Context of Domestic Violence

Abstract

This article examines the effect of criminal justice intervention in domestic violence on stalking in that relationship. Almost two hundred female victims of misdemeanor domestic violence in three jurisdictions were interviewed three times after their cases had closed. Qualitative interviews were conducted with a subsample of 21 victims who had experience with stalking. Specific court outcomes in domestic violence cases and whether or not the victim cooperated with the prosecution do not impact whether or not a domestic violence victim experiences subsequent stalking. Women who experienced stalking in addition to domestic violence were more likely to use the system in the future than women who just experienced domestic violence. The qualitative interviews revealed additional findings regarding victims' opinions of the criminal justice response to stalking in the context of domestic violence.     

Predictability of Physical and Psychological Violence by Early Adverse Childhood Experiences

Early Adverse Childhood experiences (ACEs) in families of origin can take the form of witnessing it and/or being its victim, both of which can lead to the occurrence of domestic violence. Given such close linkage, the purpose of the present study was to determine the predictive abilities of ACEs regarding specific types of physical and psychological violence. To do so, 50 couples from those referred to five different family courts in Tehran to seek divorce due to domestic violence, were randomly selected and administered an author’s-made questionnaire assessing different types of physical and psychological violence and the participant’s history of abuse by their parents. Our findings showed that witnessing domestic violence in childhood can predict different types of physical and psychological violence, but mostly could account for “hitting” of the physical type and “cursing” of the psychological type. Similarly, being the victim of domestic violence mostly accounted for predict “strangling” of the physical type and “cursing” of the psychological type. Such results are discussed in the context of the existing literature and underscore ACEs importance in terms of their predictive ability of various types of physical and psychological violence.     

159例家庭暴力损伤的法医学鉴定分析

目的　探讨家庭暴力损伤的特点及其有关的法医学鉴定问题。方法　对 1 998年 4月～ 1 999年 1 2月间来诊的 1 59例家庭暴力损伤鉴定案件进行回顾研究。结果　家庭暴力的受害者绝大多数为妇女(占 93 1 % ) ,主要发生在配偶间 ( 85 5% ) ,其次为虐老 ( 7 5% )和虐儿 ( 5% )。家庭暴力一般发生在家中 ,以晚上为发生高峰。致伤方式以拳脚为主 ,其次为随手可得的钝器或锐器。损伤多为软组织损伤 ;有4 0 %的受害人投诉前未去医院就诊 ;损伤程度多为轻微伤 ,达轻伤标准占 1 0 %。结论　家庭暴力损伤具有隐藏性和复杂性 ,准确及时地进行法医学鉴定可为受害人主张权利提供有力的证据和帮助 ,对揭露家庭犯罪有着重要意义     

PROSECUTORIAL DISCRETION IN FILING CHARGES IN DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES*

Based on data collected from prosecutors' files on domestic violence cases, the research reported here attempts to isolate variables associated with a decision to issue criminal charges in a case. The analysis reveals that variables reflective of the defendant's current or past choices were most strongly associated with the charging decision. Specifically, the defendant's appearing at the charging conference and his use of drugs or alcohol at the time of the violence were the factors most strongly associated with the decision to issue a criminal charge. Other related factors were also reflective of choices made by the defendant: degree of injury inflicted, the instrument used, the fact of prior offenses, and prior abuse of the particular victim.     

A Critical Examination of the “White Victim Effect” and Death Penalty Decision-Making from a Propensity Score Matching Approach: The North Carolina Experience

Purpose

Death penalty research has rather consistently demonstrated a statistically significant relationship between defendant race and victim race in general, and for the Black defendant/White victim race dyad specifically. The bulk of this evidence has been derived from correlational studies and from cases over relatively condensed time frames.

Methods

The current study uses data from North Carolina (n = 1,113) over several decades (1977–2009) to evaluate the link between defendant/victim racial dyad and jury death penalty decision-making.

Results

Results suggest that there is an apparent “White victim effect” that can be observed in death penalty decision-making in traditional logistic regression models. Yet, once cases are matched via propensity score matching on approximately 50 case characteristics/confounders including the type of aggravators and mitigators accepted by the jury in addition to the number of aggravators and mitigators accepted, the relationship is rendered insignificant. Furthermore, these results hold for a defendant of any race killing a White victim and for the “most disadvantaged” situation for Black defendants (e.g., cases with White victims).

Conclusions

The “White victim effect” on capital punishment decision-making is better considered as a “case effect” rather than a “race effect.”     

Convicting and incarcerating felony offenders of intimate assault and the odds of new assault charges

The effectiveness of harsher sanctions for domestic violence offenders is an important topic given legislative trends in “getting tough” with these offenders. This article takes a rare look at felony domestic violence, specifically felony assaults on female intimates, with an analysis of whether conviction, jail, and imprisonment are related to the odds of subsequent charges among 353 male defendants from twenty-four Ohio trial courts of general jurisdiction. Each defendant was followed up for two years after his original case was closed and his sentence (if any) was served. Conviction and jail sentences were both related to significantly lower likelihoods of recharging for intimate assault, but prison sentences were not related to these odds. These findings are discussed in relation to the potential importance of reducing short-term opportunities for violence in order to prevent future harm.     

Service providers' reactions to intimate partner violence as a function of victim sexual orientation and type of abuse

In this online vignette study, a national sample of domestic violence shelter service providers (N = 282) completed a 10-item questionnaire about a woman experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Scenarios varied in terms of couple sexual orientation (heterosexual or lesbian) and type of abuse (physical or nonphysical). Results indicate that although participants did not overtly discriminate against a woman in a lesbian relationship, they were less likely to perceive her as a victim, and their acceptance of a lesbian as a client was more dependent on their comfort with her than was the case for a woman in a heterosexual relationship. Type of abuse, as expected, had a main effect on many questions, with physical abuse taken more seriously than nonphysical abuse. Scores on the Attitudes Toward Lesbians subscale (Herek) were unrelated to responses. Implications for service providers are discussed.