Interactions between law enforcement and women of color at high-risk of lethal intimate partner violence: An application of interpersonal justice theory

Abstract Introduction Violence against women is a public health problem with severe consequences. Most women in situations of domestic violence are emotionally involved and/or economically dependent of their intimate partners contributing to the perpetuation and acceptance of violence. Objectives 1) To characterize the women who join the Reference and Support Center for Women (Ceamo) in Campinas, Southeast Brazil. 2) To measure the quality of life in women victims of intimate partner violence 3) To determine the risk of feminicide. Methods The Ceamo is a public specialized service from the mayor of Campinas, it provides psychological, social and legal guidance to women in situations of gender violence. Inclusion criteria: Women attending Ceamo services, speaking Portuguese, age ≥18 years old and having experienced intimate partner violence. Measure instruments: Danger assessment Scale and WHOQOL-BREF. Results During the 11 months of the study, 78 new users were recruited. Average age 38.3 years old, mostly married/stable union, most of them with children (88%). 64% of women do not work and 36% live with the abusive partner. Prevalent types of violence suffered during by the victims in the last year were psychological n = 76, physical n = 62, moral n = 54 and sexual n = 23. The domain most affected in the assessment of quality of life was the environment (average 42% /100%) and psychological domain (42%/100%). 49% of women were classified with increased risk, 22% with severe risk and 1% with extreme risk of femicide. The questions with the most positive answers were those related to believing that the partner can kill her (77%), jealous of the partner (76%) and controlling behavior (73%), being followed/spied by the partner (67%) and threat death (65%). Conclusions The service in general receive very vulnerable women with low perception of their own quality of life, precarious material conditions and high risk of femicide. Key messages The women in domestic violence situation attended by the Ceamo service are at high risk of femicide. Service users have very low perception of their quality of life and poor social conditions.

Download Full-text

Parenting in matched pairs of women of color experiencing intimate partner violence living with and without HIV

Journal of Traumatic Stress ◽

10.1002/jts.22737 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Idia B. Thurston ◽

Kathryn H. Howell ◽

Caroline C. Kaufman ◽

Jessica E. Mandell ◽

Kristina M. Decker

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Women Of Color ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Matched Pairs

Download Full-text

Politics, Safety, and Officer-Involved Intimate Partner Violence

The Politicization of Safety ◽

10.18574/nyu/9781479805648.003.0010 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 227-245

Author(s):

Leigh Goodmark

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Law Enforcement ◽

Police Officers ◽

Partner Violence ◽

The United States ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Three Dimensions ◽

Political Decision ◽

Political Decisions

The United States relies heavily on law enforcement to protect people subjected to intimate partner violence. The decision to prioritize law enforcement intervention may seem natural, but it is, in fact a political decision, with consequences along three dimensions. First, prioritizing the law enforcement response has precluded the development of other policies to address intimate partner violence. Second, channeling money into law enforcement helped to facilitate the growth of a hypermasculine, militarized environment where violence against women flourishes. Third, the decision to rely on law enforcement ignores research establishing that police officers are more likely than other groups to commit intimate partner violence. These political decisions have profound consequences for all people subjected to abuse, particularly the partners of police officers.

Download Full-text

A Fraught Pairing

The Politicization of Safety ◽

10.18574/nyu/9781479805648.003.0009 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 202-224 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Natalie Nanasi

Keyword(s):

Domestic Violence ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Law Enforcement ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

The State ◽

U Visa

This chapter examines the tensions inherent in the U visa, a form of immigration relief that provides survivors of intimate partner violence a path to lawful status. Receipt of the U visa is contingent upon compulsory and continuing cooperation with law enforcement, which does not reflect the reality of the lives of many survivors of domestic violence, especially immigrant victims, who are uniquely unable, fearful or disinclined to engage with the state. As such, the vulnerabilities the U visa was intended to address are exacerbated and benefits to police and prosecutors are achieved at the expense of the victims Congress sought to protect.

Download Full-text

The Efficacy of an Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Program with High-Risk Adolescent Girls: A Preliminary Test

Prevention Science ◽

10.1007/s11121-011-0240-7 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 384-394 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rohling ◽

Lisa A. Turner

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

High Risk ◽

Violence Prevention ◽

Adolescent Girls ◽

Prevention Program ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Preliminary Test ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Violence Prevention Program

Download Full-text

The Contextual Influences of Police and Social Service Providers on Formal Help-Seeking After Incidents of Intimate Partner Violence

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/0886260520915551 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 088626052091555

Author(s):

Megan Bears Augustyn ◽

Katherine Calle Willyard

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Law Enforcement ◽

Social Service ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Help Seeking ◽

Emotional Health ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Individual Level ◽

Law Enforcement Personnel ◽

Race Ethnicity

Police notification and social service acquisition are two forms of formal help-seeking linked to improved outcomes among survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), including better socio-emotional health, improved physical health, and, importantly, increased safety. The majority of research devoted to the study of formal help-seeking among survivors of IPV focuses on incident- and individual-level factors and their relationship with formal resource utilization. Much less is known about community-level factors. Using a nationally representative sample of incidents of IPV from the National Crime Victimization Survey (2006–2016), this work explores how law enforcement and social service resources in a community are related to police notification and survivor acquisition of a victim service after an incident of IPV, net of incident- and individual-level factors. Logistic regression models indicate that the number of law enforcement personnel per 1,000 residents in a county is positively associated with police notification after an incident of IPV, and it exerts an indirect effect on survivor service acquisition through police notification. Additional analyses reveal that the race/ethnicity of the survivor of IPV is a key demographic in the explanation of this relationship, as incidents of IPV involving White and Hispanic survivors of IPV are more likely to come to the attention of police as the number of law enforcement personnel increases. The reverse is true for incidents involving Black survivors of IPV. No differences across survivor sex emerged. Potential reasons to account for varying effects across race/ethnicity are discussed as well as the importance of additional funding for police and social service agencies to serve survivors of IPV and meet the dual goals of offender accountability and survivor safety and well-being.

Download Full-text

Intimate partner violence is linked to less HIV testing uptake among high-risk, HIV-negative women in Atlanta

AIDS Care ◽

10.1080/09540121.2016.1271936 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 29 (8) ◽

pp. 953-956 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Ogechukwu Etudo ◽

Nicholas Metheny ◽

Rob Stephenson ◽

Ameeta S. Kalokhe

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

High Risk ◽

Hiv Testing ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Testing Uptake ◽

Hiv Negative

Download Full-text

Reimagining VAWA: Why Criminalization Is a Failed Policy and What a Non-Carceral VAWA Could Look Like

Violence Against Women ◽

10.1177/1077801220949686 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 27 (1) ◽

pp. 84-101

Author(s):

Leigh Goodmark

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Domestic Violence ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Women Of Color ◽

Partner Violence ◽

The United States ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Primary Response ◽

Violence Against Women Act

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is the signature federal legislative accomplishment of the anti-violence movement and has ensured that criminalization is the primary response to intimate partner violence in the United States. But at the time of its passage, some anti-violence activists, particularly women of color, warned that criminalization would be problematic for a number of reasons, a caution that has borne fruit in the 25 years since VAWA’s passage. This article critiques the effectiveness of criminalization as anti-domestic violence policy and imagines what a non-carceral VAWA could look like.

Download Full-text