NCJ Number
88793
Date Published
1983
Length
267 pages
Annotation
Crime in the home, serious behavior that would be considered criminal if directed toward a stranger, should be returned to the criminal, legal, arena. Therapeutic approaches to spouse and child abuse do not work and only divert attention away from the abuser.
Abstract
The refusal to criminalize crimes in the home and the decision to 'medicalize' them as 'family dysfunction' (resulting in gluing the victim to the predator) causes a legal and personal nightmare for women who are victim-wives or the mothers of victim-children. The text explodes the myth that the benign language of the new 'therapeutic' understanding of abuse is a progressive substitute for citizen protections. It is not true that the ideology of 'preserving the family' actually serves the interests of most Americans, and in fact, this approach actually destroys the trust and commitment inherent in the institution of the family. In upholding the privacy of the family above the right of every individual to be protected under the law, proponents are allowing criminal acts to occur, with the victims having little if any recourse under the law. Case studies documenting abuse cases are included, along with notes and an index. (Author abstract modified)