State Laws
What is Domestic Violence?
Also known as domestic abuse and spousal abuse, domestic violence has a broad definition. It can be any type of abusive behavior by a single partner in a relationship or both partners in an intimate relationship. Examples of possible relationships with domestic violence can include marriage, dating, family, friends or anybody who lives with another person. The many forms of domestic violence can include anything done to inflict physical harm, such as punching, slapping, kicking, or using other objects to inflict injury on another person. It can also be sexual abuse as well, or emotional abuse, such as name calling, controlling or using intimidation. An abuser may inflict domestic violence on another individual because of alcohol consumption and it may also be caused by a mental illness.
How Common is Domestic Violence?
It is hard to say how often domestic violence actually occurs, but according to research estimations, only about a third of domestic violence incidents are reported in the United States and the United Kingdom. The Center for Disease Control strongly affirms that domestic violence is a growing consider that affects more than 30 million Americans, or in other words, roughly 10 percent of the population.
Is Domestic Violence Against the Law?
Depending on the kind of domestic violence taking place in a relationship and the severity of it, domestic violence may be legally enforceable by state laws. Another factor that may constitute domestic violence as a crime in state law is the duration of such abuse.
How is Domestic Violence Handled by State Law?
Forty-six states in the United States have domestic violence written into their state laws. The majority of these state laws are usually found in domestic relation state law, but they may also be organized into family service laws. State law generally provide a safe haven for people who have been abused to contact protective services.
According to thirty-five of the state laws, including the Virgin Islands, they specify what constitutes domestic violence. This includes sexual assault, assault or battery, causing physical harm, playing fear within the victim, stalking, harassment, kidnapping and unlawful restraint. Nine other states have domestic violence definitions within their civil state laws.
Although it is a growing concern, many states do not define domestic violence within their child abuse state law. West Virginia and Montana are two of the few states that define an act of child abuse or neglect as domestic violence.
Thirty-four states list domestic violence within their criminal state law codes. Violent acts that threaten the safety and health of individuals are grounds for criminal arrest within these domestic violence state laws. However, all states have listed in their law statutes that only people in a close personal relationship are protected by the domestic violence state laws. This includes spouses, former spouses, people in cohabitation, or those who are or have been in an intimate relationship together. Only thirty-eight of these states list children as those protected under these laws.
