Outcomes of civil protective orders: results from one state

Effects of Intimate Partner Violence Perpetrator and Victim Race on Protective Order Determinations

The legal granting of temporary and permanent protective orders prohibits a perpetrator from engaging in contact with the victim. Although protective orders reduce risk of re-abuse, very little research has explored factors that predict the likelihood that a victim is granted a protective order. Thus, we conducted an archival analysis on data previously collected from a Protection Order Assistance Office in a midwestern region of the United States, testing the influence of victim and perpetrator race on protective order allocations. Specifically, we coded data gathered from 490 petitioners (i.e., victims) seeking a protective order against a perpetrator of intimate partner violence, stalking, or sexual offending. Analyses revealed that racial minority victims were significantly less likely to receive a temporary protective order compared to White victims - effects that were exacerbated when the perpetrator was White (versus racial minority). These results are in line with existing research and theory regarding aversive racism. Implications for theory, policy, and practice are discussed.

Firearm-related Abuse and Protective Order Requests Among Intimate Partner Violence Victims

Firearms play a critical role in the murder of intimate partner violence (IPV) victims and there is evidence that laws prohibiting protective order (PO) respondents from possessing a firearm reduce IPV fatalities. However, little research has compared specific abuse tactics involving firearms among victims who have and have not sought a PO against an abuser. This study investigates IPV victims' experiences with a range of firearm-related abuse tactics across victim race/ethnicity, in addition to the relationship between firearm IPV and PO requests, above and beyond IPV not involving firearms. Questionnaires were administered to 215 female victims recruited from six domestic violence shelters in Texas. Over one-half of victims who sought a PO were threatened to be shot by their abuser and victims who experienced high levels of firearm abuse incurred a 302% increase in the odds of requesting a PO. There were no significant differences between White, Black, and Hispanic victims regarding firearm IPV tactics. The results shed light on the magnitude of risk IPV victims can experience when seeking a PO against an abusive partner.

The Use of Structural Intersectionality as a Method to Analyze How the Domestic Violence Civil Protective Order Process Replicates Inequality

While protective orders remain a commonly used resource, multiply marginalized survivors are often unable to file for, obtain, serve, and enforce orders. I argue that using structural intersectionality as a method is the best way to reveal how the protective order process replicates broader social inequalities. I advocate for an alternative way of using structural intersectionality. I first identify the mechanisms by which inequalities exist and then describe how these can be traced back to intersecting social identities. In doing so, I highlight the importance of historical context and the blurring of the civil and criminal legal systems.

Hate the Players, or the Game? The Role of Court Mediators and Hearing Officers in the Civil Protection Order Process

Civil Protection Orders (CPOs) are among the most common legal tools that victims of intimate partner violence and abuse (IPV/A) use to protect themselves. The current study adds to the CPO research by using quantitative data to look at how female survivors' experiences with court personnel (attorneys, mediators, and hearing officers) shape their satisfaction with the court process, and what types of individual and court-related factors are related to perceived fairness of court personnel. The current study uses in-depth quantitative data collected from women over the age of 18 who sought a CPO due to violence from a male current or former partner. The findings indicate that women's satisfaction with the court process is significantly impacted by the perceived fairness of court personnel. In turn, specific behaviors by court personnel predict women's ratings of fairness of those personnel. Additionally, women's socioeconomic status impacts how fair they perceive the hearing officers to be. Court personnel play an integral role in helping victims navigate the legal system in ways that could protect their safety and influence how they perceive the CPO system as it relates to the abuse they have experienced.

Risk-Informed Intervention: Using Intimate Partner Violence Risk Assessment within an Evidence-Based Practice Framework

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive problem in the United States. IPV is often repetitive and may escalate; in a small number of cases, IPV leads to homicide. This article presents an evidence-based practice (EBP) model for risk-informed social work intervention with survivors and perpetrators of IPV. The EBP model combines the best available research evidence, practitioner expertise, and client self-determination to guide the most appropriate intervention. IPV risk assessment instruments provide the best available evidence of future reassault, severe reassault, or homicide. Practitioners who implement IPV risk assessment can use their expertise to adjust risk scores and to suggest risk mitigation strategies for their clients. Examples of risk-informed social work practice include the safe removal of firearms, safety planning around separation, and mitigating the negative consequences of strangulation and sexual violence. Clients ultimately use their self-determination to decide which risk reduction strategies to implement. An EBP model can be used by social workers in all areas of practice to provide risk-informed social work interventions.

Calling the Shots: How Family Courts Address the Firearms Ban in Protection Orders

Access to firearms increases the risk of a batterer killing his partner. Moreover, firearms may be more common in homes where intimate partner abuse has occurred. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 banned possession of firearms by individuals subject to civil protection orders. Yet little research has focused on how this ban is communicated to survivors and batterers. Drawing on systematic observations of protection order hearings, the current study explores factors related to judicial discussion of the ban in court. Implications for improving protection orders and for increasing battered women’s safety are discussed.

Removing guns from batterers: findings from a pilot survey of domestic violence restraining order recipients in California

Persons under certain domestic violence restraining orders in California are required to surrender any firearms in their possession within 24 hours of service. The California Department of Justice funded a pilot program in which Sheriff's Offices in two counties developed a system for better enforcing the firearm surrender requirement. As part of a larger process evaluation, 17 restraining order recipients were interviewed about their experiences with and feelings about the removal of firearms from their abusers. Most women surveyed wanted firearms removed and felt safer as a result of their removal. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Effectiveness, Victim Safety, Characteristics, and Enforcement of Protective Orders

This study sought to review the extant literature on effectiveness and safety associated with orders of protection from abuse. Forty-three scholarly articles were reviewed and placed in a table representing four themes, including (a) victim safety and effectiveness (as measured by protective order [PO] violations and revictimization); (b) perceptions of victim satisfaction, safety, and psychological well-being; (c) predictors and characteristics of victims, perpetrators; and (d) the enforcement of POs. Results suggest that approximately 40%–50% of POs are violated. Although some large-scale studies have found significant reductions in revictimization, a larger number of smaller community samples have found physical and psychological abuse increases upon issuance of a PO. Research on perceived safety and effectiveness suggests female victims feel safer when POs are issued and find them effective. Issues associated with enforcement demonstrate difficulty enforcing and POs. Issues of public policy and directions for future research are discussed.

Examining Systems Change in the Response to Domestic Violence: Innovative Applications of Multilevel Modeling

Facilitating systems change in the response to domestic violence has been touted as a central goal in the effort to hold systems accountable and create a coordinated response for survivors. However, examination of systems change and whether particular social change efforts (e.g., coordinating councils) contribute to such change is a notoriously difficult research endeavor due in large part to methodological barriers, including those that stem from nonexperimental designs and complex data that are characterized as nested and measured in proportions. This article describes important methodological challenges and proposes innovative techniques to address these challenges. Specifically, multilevel modeling is applied to examine two key systems markers, including protection order and domestic violence program referral rates over time in one state. For each marker, the methodological approach is highlighted and innovations in employing multilevel modeling are discussed.