Domestic Violence and its Effects on Children. Debate Paper By Shital Darji

Issue: Should victims of domestic violence be punished if they are knowingly putting their children in harms’ way, physically and psychologically?

Victims of domestic violence should be held responsible for knowingly placing their children in the way of physical and psychological harm for the following reasons: psychological and physical abuse can lead to Developmental Trauma Disorder; the adverse effects associated with chronic and multi-type abuse lead to behavioral issues among children and adolescents; failure to protect laws reprimand child abuse and "permitting child abuse" equally-both parties are equally liable.

In relation to Developmental Trauma Disorder, "childhood trauma, including abuse and neglect, is probably the single most important public health challenge in the United States, a challenge that has the potential to be largely resolved by appropriate prevention and intervention" (Van der Kolk, 2017). According to research, traumatic childhood experiences have an overwhelming impact on various areas of functioning and are increasingly common. Childhood adversity can have a substantial impact on health and overall well-being in the future. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) survey asked, "participants about their childhood experiences, including abuse (sexual, physical, and emotional), neglect, and family and household challenges (separated/divorced parents, mental illness in members of the household, alcohol and drug abuse, incarcerated family members, and intimate partner violence)" ("Childhood Adversity is Linked," 2018). The ACE survey revealed that childhood adversity has an overwhelming relation to "depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, sexual promiscuity, domestic violence, cigarette smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity. The more adverse childhood experiences that were reported the more likely a person was to develop heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and liver disease" ("Childhood Adversity is Linked," 2018). It was found that "not all children exposed to similar experiences of abuse and neglect are affected in the same way. For some children and young people, the effects of child abuse and neglect may be chronic and debilitating; others may experience less adverse outcomes" (Hunter, 2014). Clear links have been found concerning child abuse and learning difficulties. Maltreatment in the early stages of life can gravely affect the developmental faculties of infants, particularly in areas of speech and language. Additionally, when children are exposed to family violence it can lead to inescapable traumatic stress which, in turn, can lead to Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In addition to PTSD, the perpetual exposure to familial violence could result in an exhibition of issues in multiple realms of functioning and could meet criteria for multiple disorders.

Specifically focusing on the adverse behavioral effects associated with chronic and multi-type maltreatment, Hunter (2014) reports, that child abuse and maltreatment is supplementary to behavior problems in childhood and adolescence. The earlier children are maltreated the more inclined they are to acquire behavior problems in adolescence. Researchers frequently link abuse with internalizing behaviors (being withdrawn, sad, isolated and depressed) and externalizing behaviors (being aggressive or hyperactive) throughout childhood. Short-term behavioral effects on preschool-aged children who witness intimate partner violence includes regression to a previous stage of development such as bed-wetting, thumb-sucking, increased crying, and whining. Moreover, children may develop difficulty falling or staying asleep; show signs of terror, including stuttering or hiding; and signs of severe separation anxiety. School-aged children may feel guilt and engage in self-blame for the maltreatment. Intimate partner violence and abuse can damage a child’s self-esteem, willingness to participate in activities in school, and their inclination to get good grades. They may have fewer friends and are more likely to get into trouble. Teens exposed to intimate partner violence may increasingly engage in risky behaviors including; using drugs, drinking alcohol, having unprotected sex, fighting, and bullying, poor self-esteem which could lead to trouble with making friends. Aggressive behaviors are more common with teenaged boys, and withdrawal and depression are more common among teenaged girls (“Domestic Violence and Children,” 2017).

Many individuals might argue that children have great resiliency and that if they themselves were not physically abused, then the witnessing of intimate partner violence won’t impact them as severely, but this is not the case. Every child responds and experiences abuse and trauma differently, even children in the same abusive home can show vastly different behavioral and developmental effects. Consequently, if a child doesn’t get help sooner rather than later, their chances of becoming mentally and physically healthy adults are low. So, even though the victim of domestic violence is a victim, they are additionally a bystander to the maltreatment of their children.

Failure to protect laws penalize individuals committing child abuse and individuals “permitting child abuse” equally, so both parties would be liable. State legislatures and courts have displayed a willingness to utilize their statutes to convict people for failure to protect when another's explicit maltreatment of a child results in death or severe bodily harm. These laws have been an area of interest amid legal researchers, advocates against domestic violence and child abuse, and scholars in the fields of psychology and social work who focus on societal foundations and their application (Stanziani & Cox, 2017). “All but two states have criminal child abuse laws in place, of these states thirteen require an act of actual infliction of harm to a child- through torture, beating, burning, etc. The rest of these states include acts of omission amid the behaviors they prohibit. Of the states with ‘omission’ statutes, eight expressly identify the crime as the violation of a duty of care or protection” (Johnson, 1987).One of the issues that might surface when an affirmative responsibility to protect a child is created, is the anxiety of retaliation by the abuser. To ease this risk, two of these states have vividly included an affirmative defense in their statutes. In order for the defense to exercise this argument, the defendant must have, within reason, believed that if they interfered there would be further injury to the child or the defendant. Case law, in spite of this, shows that courts are disinclined to accept this defense, because protecting a child from abuse/maltreatment of any kind certainly does not require risking additional injury.

When considering all of the physical and psychological harm that ensues from children witnessing and being victims of abuse, criminal liability for parents who fail to protect their children in familial/domestic violence situations only makes sense. Since it is a parent's legal duty to protect their children from any knowledge of abuse, and failure to prevent it supports intent to assist in the crime at hand. The ramifications the child in a domestic violence/ Intimate Partner Violence situation faces are countless, and if a parent is a bystander in their child’s psychological or physical abuse they should be punished accordingly.

Issue:Should victims of domestic violence be punished if they are knowingly putting their children in harms’ way, physically and psychologically?

Victims of domestic violence should not be held responsible for the physical and/ or psychological harm their children might experience from the abuser for the following reasons: victims in abusive relationships have distorted thoughts and damaged self-worth, failure to protect laws are stacked against victims of domestic violence with children, and domestic violence victims face a culture of blame and questioning of choices.

To begin, domestic violence victims usually have distorted thoughts and damaged self-worth from experiencing psychological and physical abuse. Being controlled and hurt by someone you once trusted and loved is tremendously traumatizing. This “leads to confusion, doubts and even self-blame. Perpetrators harass and accuse victims, which wears them down and causes despair and guilt” (Whiting, 2016). Additionally, as the result of demeaning and harmful treatment, many victims feel beaten down and valueless. With this, comes fear which is the threat of bodily and emotional harm. Fear is powerful, and abusers use it to control and keep victims trapped. Additionally, abusers use a familiar tactic of isolation to keep their victim from their family and friends. Even financial constraints can keep a victim from leaving their abuser. The gamble of leaving an abuser becomes even more dangerous when children are involved, especially considering the impact of isolation and financial control by the abuser.

In addition, victims of domestic violence with children should not be punished because failure to protect laws are stacked against them. “In many cases, mothers who fail to protect their children from abuse get even longer prison sentences than the men who abused both the mother and the child” (Banner, 2015). In a case from 2006, a man by the name of Robert Braxton, Jr. plead guilty to the maltreatment of his girlfriend, Tondalo Hall’s three-month-old daughter. Braxton broke the infant’s ribs and femur, after pleading guilty, was sentenced to two years in prison. Tondalo Hall was charged with failure to protect her daughter and was sentenced to 30 years in prison (Banner, 2015). The dilemma and perplexity about when a child should be removed is a disturbing issue, because the victim of the violence fears being the target of an investigation and in turn losing custody of their children (Bartos, 2015). In Tondalo Hall’s case failure to protect laws were stacked against her, even with surmounting evidence of her own abuse by Braxton, her sentence was 15 times greater than his.

Finally, for victims of domestic violence there is an entire culture of blame and questioning of choices that becomes a barrier when victims are deciding to come forward about the abuse they have experienced. Victim blaming makes survivors afraid to leave their abuser, and afraid of being shamed and judged for staying in an abusive relationship, because there is reluctance to believe women’s experiences with domestic violence. Changes in cultural norms need to take place to eradicate the normalized view of violence in relationships, if children are present it instills the thought that that is the proper way to act (O’Donnell, Lewter, & Lozano, 2018). A good case in point is the case reported by Dastagir (2018). In 1992, Glenn left her abusive husband after 13 years of marriage, after only a few months, he tracked her down and shot her three times- once in the arm and twice in the head. He had spent four months as a fugitive before he committed suicide (Dastagir, 2018). When Glenn unearthed the courage to leave her abusive husband and thought that she was finally safe from his fury, he managed to find her and kill her. He did the very thing she was always afraid he would do and if a child was involved, the situation would become even more sensitive and dangerous.

So, do mothers who are victims of domestic violence or Intimate Partner Violence have an obligation to protect their children? Unequivocally. If a parent sits idly by and tolerates the abuse of their children should they be legally reprimanded? Absolutely. But if that parent is, similarly, the victim of abuse, then how much blame can be placed on someone who is already enduring an immense amount of pressure to navigate a dangerous life-threatening situation?

Issue:Should victims of domestic violence be punished if they are knowingly putting their children in harms’ way, physically and psychologically?

My Opinion

I understand that parents are responsible for the well-being of their children and that the failure to protect laws are in place to protect children from having to stay in homes with unfit parents. However, in looking at the arguments for and against the punishment of domestic violence victims who knowingly allow their children to be harmed psychologically and physically, I feel that victims should not be punished for the actions of their abuser.

Each individual should be held accountable for their own behaviors. A victim of domestic violence has no control over the actions of the abuser, in many cases the abuse victim is completely powerless because of the fear instilled by the abuser. Thus, when failure to protect laws go after victims for not “protecting their children” they do not consider that the victim is doing what they feel is the safest option. Additionally, the level of psychological manipulation that occurs in these circumstances is exorbitant. Abusers are masterminds at inculcating fear, isolating the victim, and imprisoning the victim mentally, physically and financially, so that leaving never feels like an option.

In summation, I think that the violent offender should be given the punishment, not the victimized parent. A person who is experiencing PTSD from abuse should not be punished for their child experiencing PTSD at the hands of the same abuser. State legislation and courts should focus on making sure that the child and the victim of domestic violence receive the proper help from psychologists who can treat them, so they can be healthy both physically and psychologically.

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References

Banner, A. (2015, February 03). 'Failure to Protect' Laws Punish Victims of Domestic Violence. Retrieved January 20, 2019, from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/adam-banner/do-failure-to-protect-law_b_6237346.html

Bartos, L. (2017, September 14). Failure to Protect: Should victims of domestic violence face child abuse charges? Retrieved January 21, 2019, from http://www.calhealthreport.org/2015/10/27/failure-to-protect-should-victims-of-domestic-violence-face-child-abuse-charges/#

Childhood Adversity Is Linked with Risky Health Behaviors and Negative Life Outcomes. (2018, June 21). Retrieved January 20, 2019, from https://www.psychologicalscience.org/publications/observer/obsonline/childhood-adversity-is-linked-with-risky-health-behaviors-and-negative-life-outcomes.html

Dastagir, A. E. (2018, April 24). The #MeToo survivors we forgot. Retrieved January 21, 2019, from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/04/19/could-domestic-violence-get-its-own-metoo-moment/338024002/

Domestic violence and children. (2018, September 13). Retrieved from https://www.womenshealth.gov/relationships-and-safety/domestic-violence/effects-domestic-violence-children

Hunter, C. (2014, January 27). Effects of child abuse and neglect for children and adolescents. Retrieved January 20, 2019, from https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/publications/effects-child-abuse-and-neglect-children-and-adolescents

Johnson, A. T. (1987). Criminal liability for parents who fail to protect, 5 Law & Ineq. 359 (1987). Retrieved January 21, 2019, from http://scholarship.law.umn.edu/lawineq/vol5/iss2/4

O'Donnell, J., Lewter, S., & Lozano, K. (2018, May 04). Domestic violence 'code of silence' contributes to prevalence across races, classes. Retrieved January 21, 2019, from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/02/20/domestic-violence-code-silence-contributes-prevalence-across-races-classes/337671002/

Stanziani, M., & Cox, J. (2017, October 19). The failure of all mothers or the mother of all failures? Juror perceptions of failure to protect laws. Retrieved January 20, 2019, from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0886260517736273?journalCode=jiva#articleCitationDownloadContainer

Van der Kolk, B. A. (2017, August 15). Developmental trauma disorder: Toward a rational diagnosis for children with complex trauma histories. Retrieved January 20, 2019, from https://www.healio.com/psychiatry/journals/psycann/2005-5-35-5/{3119e8d0-bf35-4e6d-b8f6-aa9f3c6720b0}/developmental-trauma-disorder-toward-a-rational-diagnosis-for-children-with-complex-trauma-histories#divReadThis

Whiting, J. (2016, July 21). Eight reasons women stay in abusive relationships. Retrieved January 21, 2019, from https://ifstudies.org/blog/eight-reasons-women-stay-in-abusive-relationships