Death by Domestic Violence: Preventing the Murders and Murder-Suicides

205 Pages·2009·3.188 MB·English

by  Katherine van Wormer, Albert R. Roberts

Death by Domestic Violence
RecentTitlesinSocialandPsychologicalIssues:
ChallengesandSolutions
AlbertR.Roberts,SeriesEditor
FindingMeaninginLife,atMidlifeandBeyond:Wisdomand
SpiritfromLogotherapy
DavidGuttmann
TheNewHumanitarians:Inspiration,Innovations,andBlueprints
forVisionaries
ChrisE.Stout
Death by Domestic
Violence
Preventing the Murders and
Murder-Suicides
Katherine van Wormer and
Albert R. Roberts
SocialandPsychologicalIssues:ChallengesandSolutions
AlbertR.Roberts,SeriesEditor
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
vanWormer,KatherineS.
Deathbydomesticviolence:preventingthemurdersandmurder-suicides/
KatherinevanWormerandAlbertR.Roberts.
p.cm.—(Socialandpsychologicalissues:challengesandsolutions,
ISSN1941–7985)
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978–0–313–35489–2(alk.paper)
1. Familyviolence—Prevention.2. Homicide. I.Roberts,AlbertR.II.Title.
HV6626.V362009
364.4’0457—dc22 2008033665
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationDataisavailable.
Copyright©2009byKatherinevanWormerandAlbertR.Roberts
Allrightsreserved.Noportionofthisbookmaybe
reproduced,byanyprocessortechnique,withoutthe
expresswrittenconsentofthepublisher.
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:2008033665
ISBN:978–0–313–35489–2
ISSN:1941–7985
Firstpublishedin2009
PraegerPublishers,88PostRoadWest,Westport,CT06881
AnimprintofGreenwoodPublishingGroup,Inc.
www.praeger.com
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Thepaperusedinthisbookcomplieswiththe
PermanentPaperStandardissuedbytheNational
InformationStandardsOrganization(Z39.48–1984).
10987654321
InlovingmemoryofAlbertR.Roberts,myco-author,whodiedofpancreatic cancer
evenasthefinalpagesofthisbookwerebeingwritten.Alenrichedthefieldsofsocial
workandcriminaljusticewithhis voluminouswritingsandtheprofessionallivesof
somanythroughhiswarm,personalsupport.IfyouknewAl,youknewthatthetele-
phonewashismedium:IfyougotoneofthosecallsfromAlRoberts,youwould need
todropeverythingelsetotakeitallin—somanyplansandprojects—andyoumight
beonthephone,happilyengrossed,all afternoon.Ourlastconversationwasabout
thisbookondomestichomicide,aboutthemagnitudeofthetopicandhowthiswas
nottobetheusualtextbookbutsomethingwithawideranddifferentappeal.The
conversation was uncharacteristically brief.Butwho couldhave known that this
project,aboutwhichAlwassoexcited,wouldhavebeenhislast?
—KatherinevanWormer
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Contents
Preface ix
1:WomenandFamiliesatRisk:AnOverview 1
PartI:ThePsychologyofLife-ThreateningAbuse 21
2:RiskFactorsforDomesticHomicide 23
3:TheDynamicsofMurder-SuicideinDomesticSituations 42
4:TheRoleofAlcoholandOtherDrugsinDomesticHomicide 54
KatherinevanWormer,AlissaMallow,andKellyWard
5:IssuesofPowerandControlintheDeathofaLovedOne 66
KellyWardandCarolynA.Bradley
6:PortraitsofLifeintheAftermathofDomesticHomicide 85
MarilynPetersonArmour
PartII:TheSociologyofDomesticHomicide 99
7:DomesticHomicideWorldwide 101
KatherinevanWormerandWoochanS.Shim
8:ResponseoftheU.S.CriminalJusticeSystem 116
9:PersonalNarrativesofWomeninPrisonforPartnerHomicide 136
viii Contents
PartIII:Prevention 149
10:SafetyPlansforthePreventionofIntimateHomicide 151
11:WorkwithDangerousBatteringMen 164
Index 187
AbouttheAuthorsandContributors 191
Preface
Intheearly1980s,thankstograssroots’organizingbythewomen’smovement,
domesticviolenceservicesandwomen’ssheltersbegantobeestablishedacross
theUnitedStates.Asaresult,thepartnerhomiciderateshavebeenreducedcon-
siderably.Womennowhaveanescaperoutefromthebattering,andtheyarefar
lesslikelytochoosemurderasawayout.Today,intheUnitedStates,over1,000
womenandover300menarekilledannuallybysuchviolence.Thesefiguresused
tobeabout1,000deathsforeachgender.Soyes,thedomesticviolencehotlines
andwomen’ssheltersaresavingthelivesofmenpredominantly.Thisisoneof
manyparadoxesrelatedtothecrimeofdomestichomicide.Othersincludethe
following:
• Becauseofthelawspassedtoprotectthelivesofwomen,manymorewomen
thanbeforearebeingchargedwithassaultandbattery.
• Policiespassedundertheurgingoffeministwomen’sadvocateswhobelievein
women’sagencyhavetakenawaywomen’schoice.
• Whilegovernmentstatisticsbasedonpolicedataconsistentlyshowthatmen
arearrestedformoreseriousactsofviolencethanwomen,mediareportspro-
claimtheopposite.
• Manybatteredwomenwhohavekilledinself-defenseareservinglongprison
terms.
• The moment a chronically battered and threatened woman takes action to
escapeisthemomentofthegreatestdangerforher.
• Inmurder-suicidecases,committedalmostexclusivelybymen,thepredomi-
nantmotiveisoftensuicide.
• Havingagunforprotectioninahouseholdgreatlyincreasestheriskofhom-
icidetomembersofthathousehold.