Transcript Working with Challenging Clients: Domestic Violence Victims

Working with Challenging
Clients:
Domestic Violence Victims
Public Interest Law Program/
Legal Aid Association of California
Summer Training Series
June 11, 2007
Emberly C. Cross, J.D., M.S.W.
415/864-1790, [email protected]
Cooperative Restraining Order
Clinic (CROC)
Founded in 1984
 Assists domestic violence victims in
obtaining Domestic Violence Prevention
Act (“DVPA”) restraining orders under the
Family Code (includes child custody and
support orders)
 Assists 800-1000 women per year
 Unique “cooperative” model

CROC, cont’d
2 staff attorneys
 1 part-time legal assistant
 Heavily reliant on volunteers who interview new
clients at our weekly “clinics” and then draft
declarations in support of clients’ restraining
order requests


Call/email me if you’re interested in volunteering
with us!! 
We are all working
with DV survivors.
Working with DV Survivors
What is “domestic violence”?
 What is “battering”?


Ellen Pence and Shamita Das Dasgupta, Praxis
International Inc., “Re-examining ‘battering’: Are
All Acts of Violence Against Intimate Partners the
Same?”, June 20, 2006,
http://www.praxisinternational.org/library_frame.html
(last accessed June 10, 2007)
Power and Control Wheel

Physical and sexual assaults, or threats to commit them,
are the most apparent forms of domestic violence and
are usually the actions that allow others to become
aware of the problem.

However, regular use of other abusive behaviors by the
batterer, when reinforced by one or more acts of physical
violence, make up a larger system of abuse. Although
physical assaults may occur only once or occasionally,
they instill threat of future violent attacks and allow the
abuser to take control of the woman’s life and
circumstances.

Developed by: Domestic Abuse Intervention Project,
202 East Superior Street, Duluth, MN 55802
218.722.4134
Batterers’ Rules for Victims
1. You cannot leave this relationship unless
I am through with you.
2. You may not tell anyone about my
violence or coercive controls.
3. I am entitled to your obedience, service,
affection, loyalty, fidelity and undivided
attention.
4. I get to decide which of the other rules
are critical.

Cite for “Batterers’ Rules for Victims”:
– Barbara J. Hart, Esq., Legal Director,
Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic
Violence, “Rule Making and Enforcement/Rule
Compliance and Resistance,” in Beth Sipe and
Evelyn J. Hall, I Am Not Your Victim: Anatomy
of Domestic Violence, Thousand Oaks: Sage
Publications, Inc. (1996), pp. 258-263.
Barriers to Escape



Fear
 of death/injury
 of poverty
 of deportation
 of losing children…
Love for partner
Concern for children



Resources (including
language access)
Pressure from family,
community, religion to
remain with partner
The systems designed
to protect them
don’t/can’t keep them
safe
Conceptual Model of Social Context:
Nested Ecology
Social, Cultural, Economic
Institutional Response
Social Network
Family
Individual
INDIVIDUAL – DYNAMIC
FACTORS
INDIVIDUAL – STATIC
FACTORS
•Physical status
•Developmental history
•Coping skills
•Significant life
events
•Behavioral competencies
•Significant losses
•Cognitive abilities
•Knowledge
•Substance use / abuse
Individual
•History of trauma
•History of life
stressors
•Psychopathology
•Personality disorder
•Trauma or other MH
symptoms
•Childhood
abuse/neglect
•Prior adolescent and
adult physical and
sexual assault
CHILDREN
•Children in
common with
abusive
partner/spouse
•Ages of children
•Number of
children
•Special needs
of children
EXTENDED FAMILY
•Parents
ABUSIVE
SPOUSE/INTIMATE
PARTNER
•In-laws
•Extended family
Family
Individual
•Level of violence
and abuse from
spouse/partner
•Characteristics of
abusive
spouse/partner
•Emotional
attachment to
abusive
spouse/partner
•Separation /
estrangement
from abusive
spouse/partner
•Chaplain/Religious
•Work groups
Social Network
Family
Individual
•Friends / Peers
•Social groups
•Neighborhoods
•Community groups
•Tribes
•Domestic violence programs
•Social service programs
•Command
•Health care system
Institutional Response
Social Network
Family
Individual
•Mental health care system
•Law enforcement, prosecutor,
court, probation, legal advocacy /
defense
•Immigration authorities
•Educational system
•Employer
•Religious institutions
•Community elders
Social, Cultural, Economic
Institutional Response
Social Network
Family
Individual
•Race / Ethnicity
•Age
•Gender
•Social class
•Economic selfsufficiency
•Employment
•Nationality
•Geographic location
•Language
•Immigration status
•Acculturation
Social, Cultural, Economic
Institutional Response
Social Network
Family
Individual
DV victims turn to legal system for
many different reasons

Criminal System
 Involuntarily (neighbor called 911)
 Just want current incident of violence to stop
(no interest in batterer being arrested)
 Want batterer arrested
DV victims turn to legal system for
different reasons, cont’d…

Civil System
 Want restraining order to keep batterer away
 Want to protect children from batterer
 Required to file for restraining order
 CPS
 Housing
 Employer
When working with DV survivor,
bear in mind…

She may never have told this story to
anyone before you.
– Imagine telling the person in the office next
to you all the details of something deeply
personal and maybe even embarrassing about
yourself that you have never told another
person.
Bear in mind…, cont’d

She may have told this story to a lot of people
before you (e.g., crisis line worker, shelter intake
worker, Housing Authority staff, law
enforcement, investigator, prosecutor, judge).
– Imagine having to repeat all the details of something
deeply personal and maybe even embarrassing about
yourself to stranger after stranger, some of whom
respond in a supportive manner and some of whom
have been indifferent or have even blamed you for
what happened to you. Now imagine having to tell
one more person the whole story all over again from
the very beginning.
Bear in mind…, cont’d

DV survivors may present with a range of
emotions
– Anger, guilt, hope, despair
Working with a DV Victim

Screen clients for DV

Have resources and referrals available
– Get to know these referrals personally

Let her know you’re concerned about her
safety, that she has options, and that she’s
the one who gets to choose what options
to exercise
Safety tips

Ask if it’s okay to leave messages
– Use just your first name

Ask if she can retrieve her own mail

When you call, always determine first if it’s
safe to talk

Block Caller ID (always, always, always)
Do’s and Don’t’s:

When the client does not know what she
wants to do:
– Do not tell her what to do; do not take the
place of her batterer.
– Educate her about options and resources
available to her.
– Be clear about your role and your limitations.
Do’s and Don’t’s, cont’d…

Never agree to a mutual restraining order

Resist “joint custody” arrangements
– Abusive fathers are more likely to seek sole custody,
and are successful about 70% of the time

Remember financial support for DV victims
– Child support
– Spousal support
 DV is a factor
– Restitution
Lack of “follow-through”

She may not follow through with you.
– Do not take it personally.

If your client suddenly stops calling you or
stops returning your calls, attempt to
ascertain her safety, but respect her
boundaries.
– Make a plan with her about this ahead of
time.
Lack of “follow-through,” cont’d…

Many things may impede her followthrough.
– She may choose to reconcile with the batterer.
– She may have achieved her goals without
completing what you regard as the entire
process.
– Other issues in her life may have had to be
prioritized above this one.
Maintain Boundaries

Clients generally do not need your cell
phone or home phone numbers

Remember that DV survivors are strong
and resourceful women
Working with DV survivors
can be challenging; it can
also be incredibly rewarding
and inspiring
Links

American Bar Association Commission on
Domestic Violence
– www.abanet.org/domviol/home.html

Praxis International
– www.praxisinternational.org

Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse
– www.mincava.umn.edu

Power and Control Wheels:
– http://www.ncdsv.org/publications_wheel.html
For more information, please contact
Emberly C. Cross, J.D., M.S.W. at the
Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic in San
Francisco, at 415/864-1790 or
[email protected]