Transcript UNDERSTANDING THE LINKS BETWEEN INTIMATE PARTNER …

Addressing “the Link”
to Keep Human & Animal Victims Safer
While Also Improving
(And Not Screwing Up) Your Case
Maya Gupta, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Ahimsa House
Atlanta, GA
A tactic of power and control
Threats to harm or “get rid of” a pet unless…
 Hurting/killing a pet to punish/retaliate
 Forcing victims to watch or participate in the abuse
 Depriving a pet of food and/or medical care
 “Next time it will be you”
 Pet “disappears” as way to send message to victim
 Abuser uses court system to get custody of pets
 Threats against pet if victim flees or discloses abuse

Why pay attention to animal cruelty
when prosecuting DV or working on
behalf of human victims?
Duh
 Most DV charges are misdemeanors

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Victims often refuse to testify/cooperate

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“A dead cat doesn’t recant”
Mandated assessment/treatment may exist for one but
not the other

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Most states now have felony animal cruelty laws
Many judges waiving FVIP
Public sympathy
Why pay attention to animal cruelty in
“DV World”? (continued)

Animal cruelty helps establish history/pattern of DV


Animal cruelty illustrates other forms of DV

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Consider whether statutory definition of DV includes
animal cruelty or damage to personal property
Emotional abuse, economic abuse, etc.
Provides info on risk assessment/severity

Animal cruelty history: key risk factor for DV perpetration
(Walton-Moss, Manganello, Frye, & Campbell, 2005)

Animal cruelty connected to increased severity of domestic
violence & more controlling behaviors by the abuser
(Simmons & Lehmann, 2007)
How animal cruelty affects victim safety
Fear of pet being harmed or killed upon leaving
 Pets may not be welcome in…
 Domestic Violence and Homeless Shelters
(12% of DV shelters accept pets)
 Family/friends’ houses
 Public housing and rental properties
 Animals may also be important to victims for
reasons of economics, employment, or disability
 Logistics (transport, large # of animals, horses, etc)
 Victims delay leaving or return to the abuser

How animal cruelty shapes DV cases

Victims’ reluctance to cooperate may be due to
concern for the safety of animals

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Or for the well-being of children who are concerned for the
safety of animals
Abusers also use pets as chess pieces in court


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To leverage her to drop a protective order
To leverage her to return to the relationship
To take something away from her
Why pay attention to DV when
prosecuting animal cruelty or working
on behalf of animal victims?
Duh
 Gives you an interpersonal crime
 You may be the only hope for bringing the offender
to justice
 Evaluation/treatment requirements may exist for DV
but not for animal cruelty
 You may be the only hope for getting the human
victims access to safety/services
 These cases require special handling to preserve
victim safety, confidentiality, cooperation, and
interagency relationships

How DV dynamics shape animal cruelty
cases

Victims may deny/minimize abuse or refuse to testify


Fear for the pet’s safety may be the reason
Victims may or may not have a strong bond with the
animal

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The animal may belong to a child
The animal may belong to the abuser: “reconciliation gifts”
The animal may have been used to abuse the victim
The victim may have been forced to participate in the
abuse
 The victim may not have been permitted to provide
adequate food, shelter, or veterinary care for the
animal
 She may fear being charged too

How DV dynamics shape animal cruelty
cases (continued)
The victim may not have made what seem to you to
be sensible choices about her safety & the safety of
the animal
 The victim may be working with other agencies that
are encouraging her not to cooperate with the case or
that do not see the importance of the animal or the
animal cruelty

How many of you have heard
something like:
“Why doesn’t she just leave?”
 “What people want to do to each other, that’s their
business. But how could she let him do that to her
pet? She ought to be charged with a crime too.”
 “I’m not animal control. Dogs aren’t my department.”
 “I’m not social services. Battered women aren’t my
department.”
 “Sure, couples fight about who gets the dog, just like
they fight about who gets the pots and pans.”
 “You care more about animals than people.”
 “Are you trying to give animals the same rights as
people?”

So now that we’re all depressed…
…what do we do?
A mighty good start:
ASK about pets “or other animals”
On
crisis line
At shelter intake
When going into a home (law enforcement, child services)
In investigations
When providing legal assistance, especially TPOs
When doing risk assessment
When doing assessment/intervention with victims OR offenders
ALWAYS
And then we can all help by:
Including animals in safety planning
 Transporting animals to safety
 Ensuring animals have shelter & vet care
 Documenting animal cruelty (Do it. Do it well.)
 Looking for patterns: methods, severity, function
 Including animals in protective orders/bond
conditions
 Establishing proof of ownership of animals
 Planning for pet-friendly transitional housing
 Incorporating into assessment/treatment for both
victims and offenders

And at the agency level we can:
Make
sure prosecutors who prosecute DV talk to
prosecutors who prosecute animal cruelty

Even if they’re in different offices!
And then go a step further:

Make sure your prosecutors talk to your VictimWitness Programs talk to your animal cruelty/control
officers talk to your victim advocates talk to your
legal aid programs talk to your veterinarians talk to
your mental health/counseling programs talk to your
humane societies talk to your probation officers
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Within the boundaries of permissive reporting,
confidentiality, and safety
Nothing prevents at least fostering interagency
relationships
Include animal professionals in your DV Task Forces &
Fatality Review Teams
Include animal cruelty in your SVU
Some considerations re: pet sheltering
programs
On-site vs. off-site models
 Considerations for all:

 Type and number of animals
 Veterinary care
 Transportation
 Confidentiality
 Ownership issues
 Liability
 Unreclaimed animals
 Interagency partnerships, staffing, funding
One approach: Ahimsa House
•Founded in 2004 by a survivor
•Not a DV shelter; not a humane society
•An independent 501(c)(3) organization
dedicated to addressing the links between
DV and animal cruelty statewide in Georgia,
and helping the human and animal victims of
DV across Georgia reach safety
•Member agency of GA Coalition Against
Domestic Violence
•Certified by Criminal Justice Coordinating
Council as victim services provider
About Ahimsa House
•Originally ran our own shelter
for the animals; transitioned to
decentralized model in 2007
(foster homes, boarding
facilities, veterinarians)
•Budget ~$150K: substantial
in-kind donations of
services/supplies; no gov’t
funding
•Luxurious staff of two
•To date: over 26,000 nights of
safe shelter for pets; crisis calls
tripled since 2009
•Safe havens listserv/directory
•National Link Coalition
How we do it
Any animal
 Up to 60 days
 Work closely with DV shelter, client, foster home,
legal advocate/atty, veterinarian, animal control, law
enforcement, any other social service agencies
 Veterinary care (routine, emergency, and forensic)
 24-hour crisis line: safety planning, legal advocacy,
referrals, etc.
 Statewide professional training and community
outreach
 We are constantly at the table

The Numbers Say…
48% of our clients delayed seeking safety due to
concern for pets’ welfare (similar to Ahimsa House’s
stats)
 33% of our clients delayed calling police for this
reason; 27% refused to file charges
 32% reported harm to pets occurred in front of kids
 Only 28% had someone ask them about a pet
 90% report that our services not only helped
them get their pets to safety, but also get
themselves to safety

The cure for silos, myths, and dual
(or dueling) constituencies!
95% of the time, when we act to protect the animal,
our actions also protect the human
 And vice versa
 There are ways in which addressing this link gives us
a unique window on each aspect
 Family violence affects all members of the family,
whether they have two legs or four
 By addressing the connection between animal cruelty
and domestic violence, we can develop a better
coordinated community response to violence in all its
forms

For More Information or Info on
Starting a Safe Haven for Animals
Dr. Maya Gupta
[email protected]
Ahimsa House, Inc.
www.ahimsahouse.org
Admin: 404-496-4038
Crisis Line: 404-452-6248
– case in KWD
Using animal to get victim to drop TPO
Using pets in child custody
Victim’s atty disclosing to abuser’s
Dognapping
Laura investigator
Cherokee prosecutor re: accuracy and detail
of police report re: animal cruelty
Stalking