Keeping Battered Women Safe

© 2011

Joan Zorza, Esq. joan@zorza.net

(with thanks to Judge Michael Brigner)

Springfield, ILApril 5, 2011

Batterer Court Manipulation

Batterers use the courts to further their agendas to demoralize and drive their partners: into poverty into homelessness onto welfare into losing custody

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What We Should Know About Batterers – Litigation Abuse

Protracted divorce litigation Repeated continuances, delays Unsupportable custody demands Burdensome discovery, esp. depositions Trading children for money Repeated motions for custody/ evaluations Repeated motions to increase visitation Repeated motions to reduce support Repeated motions for visitation contempt

How Do Batterers Win? Allies:

Lawyers Guns

Money $$$$ Mental Health Professionals Judges Custody Laws Judicial System

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Batterers Set Up Victims to Look Bad, Have No Credibility, esp. with Courts

Sabotage her parenting, housekeeping Deprive her of sleep, food, medicine, warmth Deny their misdeeds &/or project them on her Keep her in a perpetual state of anger/ fear Slander her behind her back Terrorize her so she acts paranoid, esp. re kids Financially and emotionally exhaust her Drive her into crime or abhorrent behaviors Drive her to drink, use drugs, attempt suicide Lock her out naked or barely clothed

All these drive away any support mechanisms

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Why is custody litigation so

successful for abusers?

Child Custody Expert:

“The most important thing to remember about many

abusive fathers seeking child custody is that this is a NO- NO-LOSE GAME for him, because

He doesn’t really want the kids anyway!”

7M

Manipulating with Money Hiring lawyers Hiring experts Repeated delays Repeated hearings, trials, appeals Fruitless mediation process Collaborative law Buying the children’s affection Withholding support [Funding judicial campaigns]

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Custody cases are their magic weapon for disarming all of a mother’s legal protections

Batterers’ Kryptonite

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Despite domestic violence/custody laws in every state, Mothers who are victims of domestic abuse are less likely than other mothers to get custody.

But Women Are More Credible Women seldom make false allegations. Women gain no tactical advantage from alleging

abuse, whether of themselves or their children. Incest allegations are rare in divorce and custody

cases, seldom more than 3% of cases. “Canadian statistics show that fathers are 16

times as likely as mothers to make maliciously fabricated allegations of child sexual abuse.”

Joan Zorza, Child Custody Practices in the Family Courts in Cases Involving Domestic Violence, p. 1-23.

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It’s NOT Getting Better 20 years ago, judges

give custody to battering fathers as often as to non-violent fathers. Liss & Stahly, 1993

Now abusers get it more often, & non-abusive dads are still more likely to get supervised visitation. 11(8) Violence Against

Women (2005)

Custody Courts Favor Alleged Abusers

National Institute of Justice-funded study:

Only 35% of mothers who alleged abuse got primary custody

Reported in:

Failure to Protect: The Crisis in America’s Family Courts

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Custody Courts Favor Alleged Abusers

“Attorneys have learned to caution their clients not to reveal abuse allegations in custody cases.”

Reported in:

Failure to Protect: The Crisis in America’s Family Courts

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Custody Courts Favor Alleged Abusers

Reported in:

Failure to Protect: The Crisis in America’s Family Courts

“ALLEGED” ABUSE?

In 450 high-risk custody evaluations investigated over five years by one forensic risk company, almost 90% of the children were abused

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New Evidence that Custody Courts Are Broken

75 Children Dead on the Courts’ Watch June 2009 – April 2010 Center for Judicial Excellence, San Rafael, CA

Reported in:Failure to Protect: The Crisis in America’s Family Courts

By Cara Tabachnick Thursday, May 6, 2010 The Crime Report http://thecrimereport.org/2010/05/06/failure-to-protect-the-crisis-in-

america%E2%80%99s-family-courts/16

Q: Why does she stay?A: It’s the judges’ fault

1. Fathers who abuse mothers also abuse the kids (30 – 80%)

2. Courts give unsupervised visitation

1. Protective mothers STAY

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Litigation Abuse & Judicial Indifference Undermine Safety

A threat of contested custody litigation is the most common reason women: Stay or return to their abuser Give up property Give up support Agree to joint custody –

Even when its not safe to do so A threat to abduct the children is the

second most common reasonM

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34% of abusive

fathers threaten during visitation to kidnap their children; 25% threaten to hurt their children.

DV accounts for most of the 350,000 children abducted annually by parents in U.S.

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Each year, in the United States, more than 350,000 children are abducted by parents

54% of these abductions are short‑term manipulation around custody orders Finkelhor, Hotaling & Sedlak

Judges Mishandle Protection Order Cases Refusal to grant protection orders Grant relief only for a short duration Denial of entitled relief Refuse to vacate batterer from home No review or enforcement No batterer intervention orders Anger management orders Denial of custody Failure to protect children from dangerous

access

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Judges Mishandle Protection Order Cases No findings of fact Vacate order, esp after he completes batterer

program No or inadequate economic relief (child or spousal

support, attorney fees, restitution/damages; & no enforcement of relief for her)

Unlawful gun orders Judges (and some statutes) say no precedential

weight to protective orders granted on consent May violate VAW full faith & credit mandate

(18 U.S. C. §§ 2266-2267)

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Judges Can:• Take Away Every Tool Men Use to Abuse &

Control Battered Women & Children:– Treat Abuse Seriously – Protective Bond– Protection Orders – Support Orders– Deny Continuances – Order Full Restitution– Deny Him Visitation – Visitation by Photograph– Supervised Visitation – Relocation Permission– Monitored Batterer Intervention– Speedy, Strict Enforcement – Jail for Violations

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OR Judges Can:

• Help the Abuser by Reinforcing Every Tool

• Source: James Ptacek, “Battered Women in the Courtroom” Northeastern University Press, Boston, 1999

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Batterer Allies: Lawyers Too few Too expensive/ Underfunded Too untrained Too unwilling to challenge? object Unwilling to represent her in custody case Unwilling or unable to appeal judges Too many criminal defense attorneys and

not enough prosecutors

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Batterer Allies: Mental Health Professionals GALs Custody Evaluators Parent Coordinators Expert Witnesses Child Protection Some therapists Etc. Social work developed to regulate women,

immigrants & the poor.

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Mental Health Professionals Cottage industry of mental health practitioners operating

out of the family courts Often keep cases until the children turn 18 Extraordinary costs to battered mothers Increasing recognition that most psychological tools used

ostensibly to determine which parent will better parent were never designed for this purpose

Virtually none of the instruments used have been normed on battered women, or even divorcing couples

Very few mental health professionals have any real expertise in domestic violence, thus widespread misdiagnoses and assessments

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Mental Health Professionals [MHPs] Know Little about DV

Most MHPs still know little about DV or incest or realize its danger or harm

Think it is a family dynamic/ conflict Assume it is mutual Blame the victim Think separation or divorce ends it

Few know how to treat it, so suggest inappropriate, ineffective, dangerous and costly ways.

Dudley, McCloskey & Kuston (2008).

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Mental Health Professionals [MHPs] Know Little about DV

Psychiatry/ psychology have: no test for determining who is a DV

perpetrator or victim No test for determining who is a

child sexual abuse perp. or victim Little ability to predict future

abusive behaviorMHPs have not kept costs down;

therapeutic jurisprudence costs $$. Batterers like impoverishing their women.

Parental Alienation Syndrome A defense to abuse charges that blames

mothers for children’s antipathy to fathers’ violence

Unproven/ Never peer reviewed Gender-biased Unaccepted by American Psychological

Association/ & Am. Psychiatric Association Inadmissible under court evidentiary rules EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL PLOY AGAINST

MOTHERS

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Batterer Allies: Custody Laws

Shared Parenting /Joint Custody Friendly Parent Provisions Relocation Rules Mediation Collaborative Law

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How Criminal System sets up Moms to Fail in Custody Cases:

Criminal System undermines her custody case: DV not an ongoing crime, only one incident Law may be inadequate on self-defense Police fail to respond, or fail to arrest Police make dual arrest, or arrest only her Dual charges wash out; or she pleads guilty to go home Prosecutor refuses to bring charges against him Diversion of criminal charges against him Plea bargaining of case/case continued without finding Case dismissed after he completes batterer program No factual or guilty findings ever remain Consensual protective orders - no precedential value

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How Civil System sets up Moms to Fail in Custody Cases:

Cases sent to mediation despite DV Mediator/ GAL /custody evaluator ignore DV or

think it’s too old. They push joint custody Woman denied credibility (not believed) Mom accused of Parental Alienation Syndrome Studies introduced on value of fathering Contempt filed against mom for protecting kids Dad’s endless litigation exhausts her financially Child protection allegations against mom She’s denied relocation – threshold too high She flees to protect kids & loses custody

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Countering Batterer Manipulation in the Courts

1. NEVER Agree to Collaborative Law if there is Domestic Violence

(Almost certainly guarantees she’ll be bankrupt)

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What can women custody litigants do to meet this system? Keep evidence of all abuse

Even from previous cases Competent legal counsel Keep their eyes on the prize (custody) Preserve the record – or you can’t appeal Oppose mental health evaluations Depose all custody/mental health experts

Ask what is the custody law; what’s in the child’s best interest; what do they know about DV & how they learned it?

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What can women custody litigants do to meet this system?

Speak of “our child(ren)” (not mine) Speak of child(ren)’s needs, not yours Speak more in sorrow than in anger Respect the court; Never lose your cool Demand safety Demand reasons why judge thinks

children will be safe with his order Demand economic justice Appeal adverse decisions

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What can women custody litigants do to meet this system?

Remember mothers are judged by a much higher standard than are fathers• The “reasonable Madonna standard”

That means that what a man can get away with will be seen as much worse if a mother does it

Always assume your abuser will be aware of what you are doing

If it is going to hurt your custody case, don’t do it

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What can women custody litigants do to meet this system?

Attach to motions and briefs material backing up your claims, showing:

• That PAS is junk science.• That men are less credible than women.• A copy of your state’s custody law

showing that the judge must consider evidence of DV when deciding custody.

• That most mental health providers know little about DV.

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FOR REAL CHILD PROTECTION:

Restore non-offending mothers to economic self-sufficiency Child support Spousal support Support enforcement Property division Attorney fees Government/private help

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The Courts’ #1 Priority?Restore the Non-Offending Mother to Self-Sufficiency

Unless the judge assigns her and the children personal round-the-clock police protection, SHE must protect the children – now & in the future

The court should admit it can’t do this

And admit “The System” can’t do this

ONLY the mother is in a position to protect children from a violent father

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Are Lawyers The Most Important Link?

A recent study found:Legal representation for battered

women is the ONLY community service that actually reduces

the incidence of domestic violence

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Legal Services Reduce Violence!

“Because legal services help women with practical matters such as protective orders, custody and child support, they appear to actually present women with real, long-term alternatives to their relationships.”

Farmer & Tiefenthaler, 2002 study based upon US Department of Justice report, published in Contemporary Economic Policy

Every State Legislature Knows that DV Harms Exposed Children

Every state’s laws makes DV at least a factor in child custody determinations between parents

24 states & DC have a presumption that batterers should not get custody.

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Richard Gardner Created FPC & PAS - to Win Criminal Cases

Gardner testified for defendants in incest cases, needed a winning theory.

He created FPC and later PAS – a way to blame Moms.

Even he admitted they aren’t based on any studies; based it on his own cases.

He self-published all his books. His work was never peer-reviewed. His work was never accepted as valid.

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Richard Gardner Taught: Paraphilias enhance procreation: CSA,

sadism, necrophilia, sex with animals/ enemas/ urine/ feces.

Incest is an honorable choice. Women enjoy being beaten for the price of

receiving sperm. Jews are to blame for laws against CSA. Children should be told that incest is normal. Told Congress that US should abolish child

protection & reporting of child abuse; Instead spend $$$ on men falsely accused of CSA

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Richard Gardner

He switched as expert witness from criminal to divorce cases when he found he was less challenged, he could earn more.

He advocated cutting off any contact with custodial parent if PA.

He wrote a sanitized book & sent to every family court in the US, & offered to, and did, train judges & MHPs for free on PAS & FPC.

Many MHPs trained by him and his disciples assume PAS & FPC are valid. Others assume it’s what judges want to hear.

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PA Theory is Gender Biased

Only her behaviors count as alienating Not paying child support isn’t alienating Not legitimating her when could isn’t alienating Not visiting isn’t unfriendly or alienating Alleging PA isn’t unfriendly or alienating

Only custodial parent is punished; no penalty if he returns children late

PAS/PA & “friendly parent” concept encourage men to fight for custody and make false allegations of PA

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PA Chills Women from Filing Abuse; Prevents Investigations

PA chills victims from raising DV claims PA prevents moms and children from

raising incest claims PA permits him to litigate (or relitigate old)

abuse allegations as PA. Even old settled cases, which violate her rights

and res judicata, issue preclusion

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PA Obstructs Serious Assessment of Risks to Children

Family Courts assume mental health practitioners are experts, so accept their theories without subjecting them to normal evidentiary requirements for scientific evidence.

Most lawyers fail to object and challenge PAS/PA theory.

So, CSA allegations are assumed to be false, and proof that mom is alienating the children from dad.

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Child Protection Exacerbates Many child welfare agencies also assume

child sexual abuse claims made during custody disputes are an alienation strategy, rather than a valid concern.

Child welfare agencies seldom investigate cases in family court.

Many family courts assume that if child welfare agency didn’t “substantiate” an allegation it didn’t believe the allegation.

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Advocate for Judges To:

Evaluate abuse claims first – before alienation or custody issues

Craft Orders requiring serious investigation of abuse by an abuse expert

Ensure that the scientific validity of alienation or other syndrome theories is thoroughly vetted in a Frye/Daubert hearing before admitting such testimony

Never rely solely on observations of parents with children

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Advocate for Judges To: Critically assess evaluators’ opinions. Ensure that their interpretation of the

evidence is grounded in scientific knowledge, e.g., understandings of children’s disclosures, offender dynamics, the link between DV & child sexual abuse, the counter-intuitive aspects of the psychology of children and abusers, and the fact that the widespread skepticism toward CSA claims in custody court is inconsistent with scientific knowledge. (See, NCJFCJ’s Custody Evaluation Guide, p. 24)

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Dangers of Mediation Assumes parties are able to know and

articulate what they want, have roughly equal knowledge about the situation, will bargain in good faith, and have equal bargaining power.

Blames both for past bad behaviors; & assumes they will stop in the future.

Assumes mediation is cheaper, faster, gets better results, better compliance -- none of these are true in DV cases.

(Ratchet wheel effect when mediation breaks down.)

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Mediation assumes dwelling on past is counterproductive, they need to move on, so will teach new skills to do so.

• It’s not safe for victim to communicate with abuser before he stops all abuse, and she feels safe and has healed. (And she may be too upset to plan/ strategize. If afraid, she may say “no” or become silent.)

• She can’t heal till she recognizes the abuse and gets over her anger.

• Her anger levels are probably highest around the time case comes to court.

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To Oppose: Is mediation mandatory?

• Argue if any statutes allow opt out.

• Will parties be screened for domestic violence? Separately, & not just before.

• What security arrangements are there so that she can feel safe?

• Will shuttle mediation be used? • Will mediator refuse to negotiate

on DV protection terms?• Is the mediator knowledgeable

about DV? Sympathetic to DV victims?

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• Can she opt out of mediation without any penalty?

• At any time? Or bring an advocate or lawyer with her?

• If he threatens her will the mediator tell the court?

• If mediations fails, will the mediator make a recommendation?

• Will court hear why mediation failed?• Will this violate any promise of

confidentiality in the mediation?

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SIXTH AMENDMENT Object to Mediation:

• Mediation involves revealing her desires and case strategy.

• The 6th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees us the right to be represented by counsel.

• Prohibiting her attorney to be present denies her this right.

• Judges usually back down in the particular case upon hearing a 6th Amendment objection, not wanting to lose on appeal the ability to refer cases to mediation; or anger other judges, who like mediation.

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FIRST AMENDMENT Mediation Objection

• To claim it is against her religion, she must say what she believes, show that mediation is against those principles, & show she sincerely holds those beliefs.

• She need not prove that any others of her faith are against mediation.

• Neither Christianity nor Judaism are based on forgiveness, an assumption of mediation. God forgives.

• Forgiveness is from Shakespeare's King Lear, not the Bible (Old or New Testaments)!

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Preparing Her for Mediation-Process Qs

• Will mediator tell them what the law is?

• Any consequences if no agreement?• Will mediator make any

recommendation to judge? Talk to judge? Talk to judge ex parte? Without a record? Negotiable??

• Shuttle mediation or both parties present?

• What is to be decided?• In what order? Negotiable??

• Is mediator allowed to mislead? / lie/ or misrepresent what she (or he) said to the other one? Is this negotiable??

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Preparing Her for Mediation-Bottom Line

• What does she need? What does she want?

• What do the children need? Want? • What is her (& children’s) bottom

line????• She should not reveal her bottom

line, but she should stick to it. (Any exceptions?)

• Is she willing to walk out???? • Explain why something isn’t

workable (e.g., I’d be blamed by CPS).

• Can she bring a lawyer/ advocate/ friend?

• MEDIATOR desperately wants AGREEMENT• That’s her strength/ mediator’s

weakness.

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Dangers of Joint Custody for BW

• Joint custody (JC) = shared parenting

• Legal (control) vs. physical (residential) custody

• Assumes children will be happier & better adjusted, fathers will be more involved & pay child support better, parents will cooperate more. (But most are not true, esp. when DV.)

• Joint custody costs both parents more $$, but child support is usually lower.

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Dangers of Joint Custody for BW

Assumes both parents are good parents, can cooperate with each other, will benefit children, and won’t use the children or use visitation to abuse. Assumes that reasonable parents will be reasonable. But batterers are never reasonable; joint custody gives them license to abuse, which most of them do.Doesn’t work - when opposed or abuse.

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Couples Counseling Endangers

• The AMA’s family violence protocol advises against it in abusive relationships The APA’s position paper says it’s controversial, may increase violence in abusive relationships.

• Few therapists see DV as a major problem, so do not hold abusers accountable for their behavior. (Abusers perceive empathy as supporting their position.)

• Emphasis gets put on the victim changing, increasing his power & tools to use against her.

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Avoid Mutual Protection Orders

• They usually violate the victim’s due process rights. (No advance notice.)

• They give the wrong message: that both parties are equally to blame. This confuses everyone (including children), and helps the abuser minimize his abuse and further blame his victim.

• They slow healing for each in family.

• Victim more endangered than no order.

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• Police do not know how to enforce them, so arrest both, or neither.

• They discourage using the system.

• This encourages violence to escalate unchecked, increasing homicide risk.

• This reinforces that abuse is mutual.

• Mutual orders hurt the children: (a) foster care; (b) abuser is more likely to get custody; and (c) Mom may lose the DV custody advantage that legislature wanted her to have.

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Relocating: A Catch 22

• Battered women are punished with loss of custody for moving with kids without father’s or court’s permission (esp. when he has visitation/ shared parenting), but also for failing to protect the children.• He may get kids even when abuse is

bad.• Courts are most hostile when it

appears to be a plan to cut off his access to children.

• State laws may prohibit move w/o father’s or court’s permission.

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Relocation: Federal Authority

• Privileges and Immunities IV Clause of U.S. Constitution – allows travel to other states (- but custody is complex).

• Authority supporting moves for DV/ CA:

• Foreign: affirmative defense: 18 U.S.C. § 1204(c)(2) & Hague Convention grave risk exception.

• Within states: PKPA/ UCCJEA permit state to cede jurisdiction for safety.

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Relocating: For Court Permission

• She needs a well-thought out plan (good home, schools, job, health care, emotional support, religion, protection)

• Good DV services in new community.• Good police protection in new

community. Supreme Court said in CASTLE ROCK V. GONZALES, 545 U.S. 748 (2005), that police have no responsibility to enforce orders of protection. If protection/ enforcement of orders of protection are poor in her current community, & better in new one, argue that Castle Rock provides another reason she should be permitted to move.

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Relocating: For Court Permission

• If true: Prior court orders haven’t protected her (or kids), abuse has been severe/ frequent, & affected her/kids badly.

• If he hasn’t been supporting her: better financial opportunities in new community: job training, school, job, family, marriage.• She won’t be an economic drain on

state.

• Offer realistic, safe visitation for him.• Move will be an improvement for her/

kids.

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Relocating: For Court Permission

•Nothing else has worked.

•?File with divorce/custody case?

WARNING: Relocation cases are among the hardest for mothers to win. Her safety/concerns are not seen as all that important. (See, e.g., Massachusetts’s Gender Bias Study, 1989.)

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What Keeps DV Victims Safe?Do children have fears? Does she? Any guns? How to respond to fears? Can neighbors help protect her? Will supervised visitation be safe? Who could do it regularly/safely/ responsibly/ affordably? Where? Who pays cost?Can pick ups and drop offs of children be safely arranged? How/Who/Where? Is driving a problem (substance abuse)?

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DOMESTIC ABUSE SCREENING:

The worse the abuse, the greater the danger to her and the children.Her suicidal ideation does not increase her risk from him, but she needs help.Animal abuse increases her danger, but not the chance he will kill her. Whirlwind relationship; sex required after a beating; sabotaging birth control. David Adams, Why Do They Kill? Men Who Murder Their Intimate Partners, 2007.

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Danger/Lethality Screening:The worst danger is if he:Thinks she has child by someone else Has access to handguns, Is obsessed with or stalks her, Has threatened or tried to kill or Seriously hurt her, her loved one, or anotherUses illegal drugs (homicide) or alcohol, Has raped her/ others,Badly demeaned her.

Jackie Campbell,

www.dangerassessment.org 74

© Zorza Associates, 2008, www.zorza.net

Do Batterer Programs Work? DV isn’t anger based, so anger

management & empathy based programs only encourage him.

Short programs work much worse than those lasting at least 12 weeks.

Otherwise, no program type works better. The best programs only reduce the

physical abuse 5%; & may increase emotional abuse. (Increase in rural areas)

Completers do better than non-completers. No reason to think completers are cured/

should have custody or unsupervised visits.

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Batterer’s 12 Steps to Ending Abuse1. Fully disclose history of physical &

psychological abuse against his partner & children without minimizing.

2. Recognize it was unacceptable.3. Recognize it was chosen behavior.4. Must show empathy for effects on

partner & children (not enough to say “I hurt her” or made her afraid).

5. Must identify his pattern of controlling behaviors and entitled attitudes, & how he involved the children.

(From & Silverman, Bancroft, The Batterer as Parent (2002))

April, 2011 76What Judges Should Know About DV

Batterer’s 12 Steps to Ending Abuse

6. Develop respectful behaviors & attitudes.7. Reevaluate his distorted image of partner.8. Make amends both in the short & long

term.9. Accept the consequences of his actions for

him.10. Must commit to not repeating abuse.11. Must accept change as life-long process.12. Must be willing to be accountable.Apologizing is just the first step.Anger management doesn’t work for abusers.

April, 2011 77What Judges Should Know About DV

Anything More Promising? Issue clear, protective Order of

Protection (ideally with custody, no or at most supervised visitation; firearm restriction; vacate order for abuser; child support)

Quick enforcement of any violation of OP terms or failure to comply with treatment (BIP and any substance abuse program)

By judge/or probation backed by judge With non-trivial escalating penalties

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Litigation Costs - DV Victims: Batterers deplete victims of money/energy. Average cost of a contested custody case

for a BW in U.S. is $85,000, largely because abusers keep relitigating everything/forcing case back to court – to impoverish her.

Few BW can afford cost of a lawyer; over 80% of divorce/ custody litigants have no lawyer in U.S. Many later lose lawyers.

Mental health professionals have not kept costs down; therapeutic jurisprudence is $.

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Cost of DV to Society: DV takes 1/3 of all police response time. Probation in Mass. found 1st time DV perps

have on average 13 entries on their probation records, many for violent crimes against strangers, some against other victims.

Few victims have any probation records. (So much for the idea that batterers are good people stressed out by divorce.)

MA found that DV better predicts serious crime than any other measure/ behavior.

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Cost of DV to Society: MA has a 2½ year penalty for any DV

misdemeanor crime; half must be served. Employers spend huge amounts on DV in

absenteeism, higher medical insurance, training new hires/ those relocated, security.

Colorado found police are far more willing to intervene for a first DV offense – only penalty is an OP. They often ignore later offenses knowing the penalty depends on the judge.

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We Need to Remember: DV escalates upon separation/ divorce. Few victims lie; most know DV does not

help them, & usually hurts them in custody fights.

Batterers are very manipulative & punitive; they retaliate; often punish victim for revealing confidences. When batterers lack access to their partners, they may focus abuse on the children; undermine the mother’s authority.

DV hurts children, though some are resilient. Supporting victim-child relationship mediates DV, is best way to make children resilient.

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We Need to Remember:

No psych tests can prove DV or CSA. Batterer treatment is not very effective. Victim & children need more safety. Divorce is far less harmful to kids than

claimed; much less than living with DV. Most children who do badly post-divorce

were doing badly years before the divorce; difficult children often precipitate divorce.

There is no change to tax or welfare from divorce.

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We Need to Remember:

After a divorce: Men do better financially Women do much worse. Years later women average as well off,

b/c 70% of them remarry. But much greater income disparity. In 2007, before divorce families averaged $48,000; poorest 5% earned <$18,000, richest 5% earned >$83,000. After divorce poorest 5%women got <$4,000; richest 5% got >$171,000.

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References Cited: David Adams, Why Do They Kill? Men Who Murder Their

Intimate Partners (2007). American Psychological Association, Violence and the

Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family, 1996

Lundy Bancroft & Jay G. Silverman, The Batterer as Parent: Addressing the Impact of Domestic Violence on Family Dynamics (2002).

Lee H. Bowker, Michelle Arbitell, 7 J. Richard McFerron, On the Relationship Between Wife Beating and Child Abuse, in Feminist Perspectives on Wife Abuse (Kersti Yllo & Michele Bograd, 1988).

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References Cited: Jackie Campbell, www.dangerassessment.org Dudley, McCloskey & Kuston, Therapist Perceptions of IPV:

A Replication of Harway and Hansen’s Study after More than a Decade, J. Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 17(1), 80-102 (2008).

Deborah Epstein, Effective Intervention in Domestic Violence Cases: Rethinking the Roles of Prosecutors, Judges, and the Court System, 11 Yale Journal of Law and Feminism 3 (1999); Publicizing Private Violence: Restructuring the Justice System's Approach to Intimate Abuse, 1 Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law 127 (Summer 1999)

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References Cited: Peter G. Jaffe, Nancy K.D. Lemon, Jack Sandler, & David A.

Wolff, Working Together to End Domestic Violence (1996). Marsha B. Liss & Geraldine Butts Stahly, Domestic

Violence and Child Custody, in Battering and Family Therapy: A Feminist Perspective (Marsali Hansen & Michele Harway, Eds., 1993).

11(8) Violence Against Women, Special Issue on Child Custody and Domestic Violence (August, 2005).

Joan Zorza, Child Custody Practices in the Family Courts in Cases Involving Domestic Violence, in Domestic violence Abuse, and Child Custody: Legal Strategies and Policy Issues (Mo Therese Hannah & Barry Goldstein, Eds., 2010)

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References Cited: James Ptacek, Battered Women in the Courtroom (1999). The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court

Judges puts out many excellent resources that are available for free on their website: www.ncjfcj.org E.g., Navigating Custody and Visitation Evaluations in Cases with Domestic Violence: A Judge’s Guide, www.ncjfcj/images/stories/dept/fvd/pdf/navigating_custody.pdf

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Keeping Battered Women Safe

Joan Zorza, Esq. © 2011 joan@zorza.net

Concluded