NCJ Number
94498
Date Published
1983
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This review of legal remedies available to battered women explains how to obtain both civil and criminal relief in the criminal justice system.
Abstract
Civil relief includes protection orders, peace bonds, divorce or spearation, child custody and visitation rights, alimony and child support, and money damages for personal injury. Protection order laws generally offer broader, more flexible, and more immediate relief than can be obtained by filing a criminal charge. However, every State has laws prohibiting physical assault which may be enforced against abusers where there has been physical violence or a threat of physical violence. While criminal action against an abuser may be started when the police make an arrest or when the victim files a private criminal complaint in a prosecutor's office or in criminal or family court, the filing of a criminal charge does not necessarily mean there will be a trial. If the evidence is insufficient or if the victim is unwilling to press for prosecution, prosecutors can send warning letters to the abuser or meet with him. Criminal charges may also be disposed of through pretrial diversion, deferred prosecution, or plea bargaining. A trial can result in imprisonment, a fine, or probation. Finally, combining nonlegal assistance, such as medical and mental health care, with the remedies provided by the courts may give a victim of abuse the strength to change or terminate a violent relationship.