Posts tagged "domestic violence"

As we often discuss, domestic violence doesn't discriminate against gender, race or economic class. In other words, anyone can become a victim of domestic violence. Additionally, domestic abuse doesn't have to be physical, it can be mental, emotional, financial or sexual.

In many cases, domestic violence occurs behind closed doors. This means it is usually up to the victim to reach out for help and report the treatment. It can be extremely difficult for victims of domestic violence to take this step, especially if they don't have the support or resources to make them feel safe.

No matter where you live, it is likely that domestic abuse makes a consistent appearance in the news headlines. That's because domestic violence is an unfortunate reality for many people in New Jersey and elsewhere. Domestic violence can affect anyone -- no matter their socioeconomic class, age, race or sex.

The fact of the matter is that while women are the most common victims of domestic abuse, men can also be victimized. Essentially, domestic abuse is a pattern of injury from one person to another. The injury caused by domestic abuse doesn't have to by physical. In fact, it can be verbal, financial, emotional, sexual, social or psychological.

Dating abuse and other forms of domestic violence among teens are a major problem in United States high schools, and a new study contends that schools are not doing enough to prepare teachers and staff for handling those incidents.

The study surveyed high school counselors and asked for their perspective on how dating abuse is being addressed in their schools. The majority of the counselors said that the school they work at offers no training or guidelines for handling domestic abuse in high school relationships.

Earlier this month, a New Jersey Assembly committee approved a package of bills aimed at providing increased protections and security to victims of domestic violence. The bills were approved by the Assembly Women and Children Committee and will next go before the full Assembly

One of the bills, A2899, directs the Division on Women to sponsor community safety and accountability audits throughout the state in effort to rate the effectiveness of state, county and local response to domestic violence. The audits will focus on the prosecution of domestic abusers as well as the services offered to victims.

According to a national survey, police are responding to more calls for domestic violence as a result of the poor economy. The Police Executive Research Forum discovered that 56 percent of the 700 police departments surveyed reported that the poor economy is resulting in more instances of domestic conflict. The research is part of examination into how law enforcement is being affected by the recession.

Police in the city of Camden, New Jersey, responded to 9,100 calls relating to domestic violence in 2011, which was up from 7,500 calls the year before. The city has an unemployment rate of 19 percent, one of the highest in the nation, and the police chief said that there's no doubt the economy has created turmoil in homes.

Supporters of the Violence Against Women Act in New Jersey and elsewhere are hoping that a Senate debate can spur elected officials to reauthorize the legislation. The Act has been reauthorized twice before after first being adopted into law in 1994.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the reauthorization of the bill in February, and the Senate debate is expected to begin this week. The goal of the Violence Against Women Act is to encourage reporting and prosecution of violence against women, including domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.

Welcome back. We are currently discussing the disturbing results from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, which found that close to one in three women and one and four men are the victims of domestic abuse by an intimate partner at some point during their life.

Alarmingly, the survey also found that about 22 million women reported having been raped or having been the victim of an attempted rape during their lifetime. This translates to about one in five women.

Half of the women said that their abuser was an intimate partner, and another 41 percent said that their abuser was an acquaintance.

As we often discuss, domestic violence is a very real problem affecting countless families in New Jersey. The sad part is, many instances of domestic violence in New Jersey go unreported, either because the victim is afraid or some another reason.

In fact, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, more than one in three women has been the victim of sexual assault, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner at some point during their lifetime. The survey found that one in four men is victimized during their lifetime as well.

As we often say, domestic violence does not discriminate and affects the lives of countless Americans each year. Even well-respected actors and actresses are sometimes caught in the crosshairs of domestic abuse allegations.

Recently, Iron Man actor Terrance Howard had a temporary restraining order put into place against him after his estranged wife claimed that the actor had abused and threatened to kill her. The order forbids the actor from contacting his wife or going within 100 yards of her until the next court hearing, which is scheduled for Jan. 17, 2012.

A 2-year-old New Jersey girl was allegedly killed by her father last week. In the wake of the death, the commissioner of the state Department of Children and Families said that some of its guidelines involving domestic abuse will be reviewed.

Domestic abuse is a serious issue in New Jersey and impacts countless families. The truth is, anyone can become a victim of domestic violence or abuse, but perhaps the most troubling cases are those involving children.

Domestic violence is a real problem in New Jersey and the rest of the country. Each day victims of domestic violence are threatened, hurt and killed by people whom they have been in an intimate relationship with.

Unfortunately, along with the many very real reports of domestic abuse, there are also false and exaggerated claims of domestic abuse. Sometimes in divorce and child custody proceedings, laws that are meant to protect victims of abuse are actually taken advantage of.

Not all accusations of domestic violence are real. However, there are many instances where domestic violence is far too real. In some situations, the abuser controls the victim and the victim's finances to the point that the victim feels powerless and unable to leave the relationship.

This issue was discussed in a recent article from The Huffington Post, which gave several steps that abuse victims can take to help gain the financial freedom that could allow them to leave their abusers. The article said that by taking these steps and seeking professional help, a new life is possible.

Although sometimes accusations of domestic violence are false or exaggerated, it continues to be a real problem in New Jersey and the rest of the country. Anyone can be affected by domestic violence as it doesn't target only a specific sex, age or race.

Each day, people are threatened, controlled, hurt and killed by their spouses. Many abuse victims stay with their abusers because they don't feel able to leave. In some circumstances, victims have no financial independence and that's why they feel compelled to stay.

A recent article from The Huffington Post addressed this issue and gave several tips for gaining financial independence for victims who feel trapped in abusive marriages. But first, the article pointed out that there is help available for abuse victims. Victims do not need to be alone in the struggle to leave their abusers.

Although Halloween is just around the corner and the month is rapidly coming to an end, it's not too late to point out that October is national Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Sadly, many families in New Jersey are affected by domestic violence, and it is something that likely will not go away anytime soon. That is why it is important to raise awareness.

Here are a few facts on domestic violence from a recent article in the Huffington Post.

1. Domestic violence can affect anyone. No matter your age, race, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic background or marital status, you may know someone who is a victim or become a victim yourself. Domestic violence doesn't discriminate.

Domestic violence can tear a family apart. Each year, people are threatened, hurt, and killed by people with whom they have an intimate relationship. But people aren't the only victims of domestic abuse. In fact, abusers who target people also often target pets when on a violent rampage.

That is why a New Jersey state lawmaker has sponsored a bill that would help protect animals that are caught in the middle of domestic abuse situations. And the new bill has gained the approval of animal cruelty investigators and domestic violence awareness advocates alike.

As we began discussing in first post of this series, domestic violence within the Muslim community has been brought under attention after a young Muslim mother was shot to death in New Jersey and her husband admitted to playing a role. It was also discovered that the couple's marriage had a history of domestic abuse, which like too many cases, ended tragically.

The New Jersey Star-Ledger recently interviewed the director of the first and only nonprofit that focuses primarily on domestic violence in the Muslim community, Turning Point for Women and Families in New York City on the topic. Here is more of a brief overview of what the director said:

Last month, a 27-year-old mother of two was tragically shot to death while on an evening walk with her family in a quiet New Jersey suburb. The story turned even more tragic when it was discovered that the Muslim woman had long been a victim of domestic violence, and eventually her husband and father to her children admitted to being involved with the murder.

The Boonton, New Jersey, shooting has highlighted the issue of domestic violence within the Muslim community, even though the community remains somewhat reluctant to discuss it. Recently, the New Jersey Star-Ledger discussed the issue in an informative column for women, particularly of the Muslim faith, who may be victims of domestic abuse.

A parent's worst nightmare is the kidnapping of a toddler -- especially when another young child has recently been abducted from the neighborhood and was found dismembered just days before your own child goes missing.

That nightmare became vividly real for one Brooklyn mother on Wednesday, July 15, when her three-year-old child's biological father assaulted her, took their son and left. The woman dialed 911 and an Amber Alert was quickly issued. She had a valid child custody order, and his father had not seen the boy for two years.

With fathers' rights groups making plenty of noise about family law issues important to them, it was perhaps fitting that Bergen County's The Record ran an article on the day before Mother's Day about moms in child custody battles.

One woman interviewed for the article has been making mothers' rights noise for years. She held her annual Mother's Day march, protesting that women are too often subjected to the whims of a fraternal family law system, she said.

While it's been hard to avoid Charlie Sheen's crazy antics all over the media lately, what is no laughing matter is the temporary restraining order that was issued against Sheen by a Los Angeles judge. Brooke Mueller, Sheen's estranged wife, asked for the restraining order against the troubled actor, saying that he threatened to stab her in the eye, among other things.

Sheen, who has been convicted twice in the past for domestic violence, temporarily lost custody of his two youngest children and was barred from coming within 100 yards of Mueller.