Dealing with domestic violence

Dealing with domestic violence
To understand domestic violence and how such instances should be handled it is important to comprehend the history of domestic violence. Domestic violence was previously not regarded as a crime. It was until the twentieth century that domestic violence was defined as an offense that justified it to be intervened by the justice system. Instances of spouse beating were not categorized as incidences of domestic violence. The battery of women by their husbands was regarded to be normal, and it was deemed to be part of marriage. Hence women who were abused in marriages were expected to tolerate the abusive relationship and take as normal. This meant that there was no way of seeking justice for victims of domestic violence. It was not until the 1970s that domestic violence was considered to be a crime hence a violation of the law. The advocacy by women on behalf of victims of domestic violence was the initial driver of the justice system to the plight of victims (“Introduction – Domestic Violence,” n.d.). Domestic violence cases were no longer being dealt with in private; instead, they became of public concern. This meant that perpetrators could no longer avoid responsibility for inflicting pain and injuries to their partners.
Classifying domestic abuse as an instance of law-breaking was a breakthrough for the victims since it helped reduce the physical and emotional impacts associated with such abuse. Despite the recognition of domestic abuse as a crime, at first most cases of domestic violence were ignored by the law enforcement agencies but that has changed, and more cases are now receiving the necessary attention to make sure that the victims get justice.

Understanding what domestic violence is will help in the fight against such acts. Any abusive behavior, whether physical, sexual or verbal is termed as domestic violence. Previously, the United States’ definition this incidence was gender prejudiced since it only incorporated instances of abusing women sexually or physically.
Understanding the people mostly affected by domestic violence is also important since it is the first step in getting a means to deal with domestic violence cases. Most cases of domestic violence normally involve women as the victims and the men as the perpetrators of the crime. Research has shown that eighty-five percent of the offenses classified under the domestic violence category they were offenses between intimate partners that are husbands or boyfriends and the victim was a woman while the perpetrator was the man. In the other cases the involved parents, in-laws, and siblings. Women also perpetrate violence on their male partners. In fact, men are also victims of violence. Both genders van be subjected to domestic violence since it is not gender prejudiced. Hence there is need not to limit it to women. This term can also be replaced with woman battery so that it can be used to refer to most of the cases in domestic violence.
Law enforcement officials and especially the police are usually the first people that victims of domestic violence get in contact with after instances of abuse. Law and regulations have been put in place by law enforcement agencies to state how incidences of abuse will be handled. Further, law enforcement agencies respond quickly to emergency calls hence making it possible to attend to an instance of domestic abuse. Perpetrators of domestic violence can be incarcerated hence halting the continuation of abuse Though at first arrest was the least used intervention over the years this has changed. Arrest made due to domestic violence complaints have increased. Reforms in the law requiring arrest of the primary aggressor have contributed to the growth in the number of arrests. The arrest of women has also increased due to a requirement of arresting both parties in cases of cross-complaints. This has led to further victimization of women who were only trying to defend themselves. Though there have been changes in law requiring the police to make arrests they still avoid using arrests. Arrests are not frequently applied since it is a lengthy procedure to acquire arrest warrants for the offenders. Further, some spouses do not wish to have their cases solved by law enforcers hence making it difficult to arrest perpetrators.
Witnesses of domestic violence are not ready to testify against family members since the acts happen in homes where the eyewitnesses are the family members. The approach the police use once they arrive at the scene of domestic violence is very crucial since it will decide whether such a case will be successfully prosecuted. It is important for the law enforcement officials to pursue all cases of domestic violence as they would pursue any other case. To be able to facilitate evidence correction the police should interview and record statements of all the parties involved (“Safe Horizon | Domestic Violence,” n.d.). They should also look whether there are previous complaints on the perpetrator. The best approach to handle cases of domestic violence is by prosecuting the offenders. The best way to reduce incidences of domestic violence is punishing offenders through the law enforcement agencies. Sentencing offenders will ensure that victims get justice and the perpetrators of acts of domestic violence get punished. Punishing offenders will make them cautious in the future, therefore, reducing the instances of domestic violence. Additionally, victims will trust the law enforcement agencies to handle their cases.
The law enforcement agency is the best to handles cases of domestic violence, but its efficiency is hampered due to the shortcomings associated with the system. They include the fact that the system is reactive and most victims do not report when they are victimized. The lack of evidence has majorly contributed to the collapse of most cases. The evidence is an important part of ensuring victims gets justice (Kenney, 2012). Medical reports provide the best evidence for domestic violence cases. The reports should be detailed, and they should be able to provide enough information that warrants the necessity to launch criminal cases. The medical reports are especially useful during the trial since they provide evidence of injuries suffered by the victim.
Victims of domestic violence should be guaranteed justice as a way of promoting equity in the society. The best approach to handling domestic violence is incarcerating perpetrators of domestic violence since they cannot mistreat their partners while in custody. Failure to lock offenders of domestic violence will pave the way for serious crimes such as murder, injuries, and arson that cause emotional, physical and financial damage to the victims. The law enforcement agencies should use authority within their jurisdiction to fight against domestic violence and help in the reduction of such cases.

References
Introduction – Domestic Violence. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.domesticviolence.org/
Kenney, K. L. (2012). Domestic violence. Edina, MN: ABDO Pub.
Safe Horizon | Domestic Violence. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.safehorizon.org/get-help/domestic-violence/