Heavy Hands CHAPTER Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved 2 History of Violence in the Family

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Chapter Objectives Discuss the early social-legal history of family violence. Explain the historical significance of social tolerance for family violence. Describe the primary categories of family violence. Explain what constitutes a domestic relationship. Define the four major types of violence that occur in families.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Family Violence Family violence was not considered a pervasive problem until recently. Human social behavior is studied in sociology, psychology, and anthropology—the social sciences. This chapter examines the family and family violence using a historical perspective. We will also cover the terminology used in the field of family violence.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Social-Legal History Domination of men over women and children has a strong historical foundation. Patriarchy refers to a social system that recognizes the complete dominance of men over women, typically strengthened by law in addition to custom and religion. The Code of Hammurabi had an extensive body of law relating to family matters. Dracon wrote the first laws in Athens, Greece around 621 B.C. and they were later built upon by Solon around 594 B.C.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Greece and Rome In both empires a woman was treated as the property of either her father or husband. A woman could be physically punished by either her father or husband, and could be killed for the smallest of offenses. Women did not participate in government or court proceedings. Divorce could only be sought by the husband.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved British Common Law Patriarchy is dominant in Western civilization. Under common law, women and children were no longer viewed as property, but the results were the same. Upon marriage a man and woman become one but the rights of the woman are then subordinate to those of the male. There is evidence of some legal restrictions on the extent to which a wife might be chastised. A husband could not beat his wife but was limited to admonition and confinement.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved French Law Napolean formalized the civil code in France:  Women were made legal minors for their entire lives and could be beaten, punched, and permanently disfigured.  The Napoleonic Code influenced French, Swiss, Italian, and German law.  Divorce was a rare intervention and only came when beatings reached the level of attempted murder.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Early America The absence of specific legislation on wife- beating implies a reliance on English common law. The Massachusetts Code of 1648 provided that a married woman should be free from physical correction by her husband. The American Revolution weakened earlier gains toward protections for battered women. Bradley v. State (1824) declared that wife- beating was a husband’s right.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved African Americans Slaves had no protections and were subjected to the sexual and economic desires of their owners. After the Civil War, African Americans were granted the right to marry one another.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Native Americans Native American societies were matriarchal. European settlers did not approve of the Native American customs and began to change them by removing women’s rights and forcing children to attend boarding schools where they were beaten and learned that violence was an acceptable form of social control.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Behind Closed Doors By the 1870s, judges no longer allowed the husband to claim the legal right to beat his wife. Although socially repugnant in the U.S., battering continued behind closed doors. Both the “stitch rule” and the “curtain rule” were informally used by police to determine whether or not to make an arrest in a domestic violence case.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Behind Closed Doors Wife-battering and child abuse emerged as social issues in the 1960s. Spousal abuse was normally classified as a misdemeanor and police were not allowed to intervene unless they witnessed the abuse. Police officers were trained to separate the parties for a cooling-off period or officers provided ‘counseling.’ New legislation was needed to help victims but debates centered on what type of intervention would be most appropriate.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Family Violence Today Some forms of violence are criminal and some are not. The Federal system and each state has their own definitions and legislation. To be considered family violence, the act must be forbidden by law and the perpetrator must be related to the victim in some way. Victims are from every walk of life: rich and poor, every race and religion, men and women, lesbian and gay, married or dating, young or old.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Intimate Partners Intimate partner violence refers to violence committed within an adult intimate relationship, regardless of gender, and generally is part of an ongoing complex pattern of violent behavior. Control may be accomplished through economic forms, or sabotaging employment, housing, or educational opportunities. Social isolation is common. Physical or sexual assaults may occur. Unchecked, domestic violence usually increases in frequency and severity.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Child Abuse Child abuse and neglect refers to any act committed against a child by a caretaker that causes death, harm, or risk of harm—physical, sexual, or psychological, as well as failure to provide care. Every state has a department devoted to the protection of children.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Child Abuse Two levels of protection:  Civil: child protective services  Criminal: abusers may receive fines or jail time Child maltreatment occurs at higher rates than intimate partner violence.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Elder Abuse Elder abuse may involve physical, sexual, or emotional/psychological violence and neglect, abandonment, or financial exploitation. Two primary forms are domestic and institutional. Abuse can be either criminal or civil. Abuse may require social service intervention and mandated reporting by officials; the requirements vary greatly from state to state.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved The Extent of Harm Probable cause that a crime has been committed should be the standard for law enforcement to arrest, not the amount of physical harm to the victim. Arrest of the perpetrator should not be viewed as the punishment; it is a legal intervention. The punishment is decided by the courts.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved The Extent of Harm The act must be prohibited by law. For example:  Striking  Kicking  Hitting  Biting  Pointing weapons  Harassing  Sexual abuse  Stalking  Pulling hair

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Family Relationships A domestic or family relationship is typically defined by blood, marriage, relationship, and cohabitation. Specific legal definitions vary slightly from state to state. Same-sex relationships where the persons reside as if they were married are considered to be domestic. The offender is not determined by his or her gender, size, or age, but by the relationship of victim and offender.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Common Terms Neglect is defined as failure or refusal to provide care or services for a person when there is an obligation to do so. Physical abuse is the use of force or threat of force that may result in bodily injury, physical pain, or impairment. Psychological abuse is the intentional infliction of anguish, pain, or distress designed to control the victim. Sexual abuse is nonconsensual sexual contact of any kind.

Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence, Fifth Edition, Denise Gosselin Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Conclusions The criminal justice community has been identified as the most logical source of protection and empowerment. Police officers are encouraged via new laws to enforce the laws regardless of the relationship of the victim and offender. Sometimes mandatory arrest or preferred arrest policies are included. We do not know the full extent of family violence, but we know there is a problem of violence that has invaded the homes of the U.S.