|
In partnership with the National Institute for Justice, OVW is proud to sponsor a presentation on the latest research on protective orders, with experts Dr. TK Logan and Teri Faragher from the Kentucky Civil Protective Order Study. If you will be in the Washington, DC-area, please join us for the presentation at 801 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC on Thursday, October 22 from 1 PM to 2:30 PM. Please RSVP to Tosha Preston (tosha.preston@usdoj.gov) by Friday, October 16. Reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis as space is limited.
Civil protective orders are used to help protect individuals, mostly women, from partner violence. However, the media episodically report failures of protective orders in some of the most extreme cases. But do we know the actual effectiveness of protective orders for the majority of women who seek them? Do they hold out a false promise of increased safety? Finally, in the most comprehensive examination of protective orders, these questions can be answered. Protective order outcomes were assessed using victim self reports (213 women), court data, and key informants from the courts, law enforcement and advocacy.
This presentation will walk through a set of three intensive studies that answer most of the concerns of victims, victim advocates, and other professionals in the in justice system. Questions like, “Do protective orders stop or reduce violence?” “How do protective orders impact victim perceptions of safety?” “What are the public and personal costs of partner violence and protective orders?” “Are there differences in the experience of partner violence and the protective order process for rural compared to urban victims?”
Results were re-assuring but still indicative of the need for system improvement. Protective orders stopped violence for half of the women. And, for those who experienced violations of the protective order the abuse and violence was significantly reduced. Victims who experienced stalking before taking out the protective order were far more likely to experience violations and continued abuse after the issuance of an order. In fact, this finding was so robust that it suggests a need to alert the court system to take stalking cases far more seriously and to view them as needing far more intensive enforcement and monitoring. Enforcement of the protective order was minimal, especially in the rural area and in cases involving stalking. Also, in the most conservative analysis, the protective orders were cost neutral to society and, when victim quality of life was factored in protective orders actually resulted in huge cost savings. The study also identified some critical gaps in victim safety that have received limited attention in the past.
|
