Intimate partner violence: gender issues and the adjudication of homicide and other cases

Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice, Ahead of Print. Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of gender in intimate partner violence (IPV) and, based upon the author ’s experience as an expert witness, 25 years of clinical experience working with IPV perpetrators and victims, and a review of the relevant scholarly literature, provide judges, attorneys, mental health professionals and expert court witness suggestions for the adjudication of cases involving IPV in homicide and other cases. Design/methodology/approach The author reviewed the extant general domestic violence research literature, depending largely on results from findings from the Partner Abuse State of Knowledge Project, a series of 17 literature review published in five issues of the peer -reviewed journal, Partner Ause. Other relevant research articles were found via a search of the PschInfo database, using the keywords “intimate partner homicides,” “domestic violence homicides,” “intimate partner homicides and gender” and “domestic violence homicides and gender.” Findings The judicial response to IPV perpetration has been limited by common misconceptions, among them the confusion between most forms of IPV, which are primarily bi-directional and less consequential and battering, which involves more serious assaults and is typically motivated out of a desire t o dominate and control one’s partner. Another misconception is that women are much more likely t...
Source: Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice - Category: Criminology Source Type: research