Abuse at Home and Domestic

Abuse at Home and Domestic Violence Should Be Punished

Domestic violence and abuse at home have always been a common issue in any society. The ethical issues that arise from domestic violence include the appropriateness of the sentence in relation to the crime committed and how the gender of the victims determines how their cases are handled. I believe that abuse and domestic violence allegations should be handled as domestic violence cases and not consider the gender of the victims.

The Home Office defines domestic violence as any violence between current and former partners in an intimate relationship whenever the violence occurs. This is abuse that is physical, sexual, emotional and financial. It occurs across society regardless of age, gender, race, sexuality, wealth, level of education and geography. Domestic abuse is however not restricted to partners or former lovers, it can be extended to other people in a domestic situation, such as the children and siblings. Although women make the majority of domestic violence, it does not completely eliminate men as victims.

There are several common myths that people believe with regards to domestic violence. Some people believe that the victims can just walk out of the relationship the first time the abuse took place. This is untrue as there are many economic, social and emotional factors that contribute to their decision to stay. Some victims are usually dependent on their abusers to provide for them and leaving them means they are committing themselves to a life of economic hardship. The victims are more likely to stay in an abusive relationship if there are children involved. Some believe that it is important for their children's well being to make the relationship work. Some victims see that giving up on the relationship is a sign of their failure. Other victims believe that by leaving the relationship does not necessarily mean that the violence will end. Some women lack knowledge of their rights or have no access to appropriate help. Others suffer from isolation from either their families or friends as a result of the abuse. Others hope that their abusers will change and this is usually the case with victim's commitment to the relationship. Victims of domestic violence and abuse usually suffer from feelings of guilt and shame as they might feel that the abuse was their fault. For example, if there was an argument before the assault took place, the victim may think that they pushed the abuser too far. In cases where the alcohol or drug abuse, the victims may think that it is the alcohol or drugs is responsible for the abuse and not the person (H.O.P.E., 2006).

Consequences of domestic violence and abuse include physical injury to the victim in the case of battery. There is also possibility of the victims having low self-esteem and feelings of self-worth. Some victims may be left permanently disfigured or experience lingering chronic pain as a result of the abuse. Rape can lead to the victim developing emotional or psychological issues. Domestic violence can result in death, where the victim can get killed in the course of the violence or they might kill themselves or the abuser in an attempt to end the abuse. Children who grow up in a family with domestic violence and abuse may continue the cycle of abuse in the future as they may think that it is normal behavior. Children may also develop emotional issues such as lack of trust of their future partners or be violent as they may see that if they are not abused, they may not be truly loved. The ethical issues rising from punishment of domestic violence is the severity of the punishment to suit the crime. There have been cases whereby the perpetrators get a tap on the wrist as punishment for committing domestic violence. This can be in the form of getting enrolled into anger management classes for physical injury inflicted on the spouse or partner after they claim that they did it out of anger. There are also cases whereby one is given a light sentence as it is their first crime regardless of the severity. There have been cases where perpetrators enroll in anger management classes and seek counseling in a bid to convince judges that they are making an effort to change and therefore reduce their sentences. This might give room for the perpetrators to continue their abuse and even threaten their victims and make them lose faith in the justice system.

Issue Statement

Domestic violence is usually considered a woman's problem. It is therefore rare for male victims of domestic violence to come forward and report their perpetrators. Studies by the University of Florida have found that women are more likely than men to stalk, attack and abuse their partners. Women are also nearly as twice as likely as men to be the perpetrators of domestic violence in their relationship. The reason why male being victims of abuse for long is due to the thought that it is unmanly to be abused by women. They fear that they will be seen as weak and cannot face up to abuse. The ethical issues rising are whether the female perpetrators should be punished less or equally than male perpetrators.

The current ethical problem

The forms of abuse that male victims undergo include getting stabbed, kicked in the genitals, burned or scalded. Male victims always face discrimination and prejudice against them when from social agencies, police and courts when they claim abuse. According to Dewar (2008) little action is usually taken against female perpetrators who are accused of domestic violence as opposed to their male counterparts and only if the man has a visible and significant injury. The male victims unlike the female victims have more chances of being separated from their children when they report abuse and even be removed from their homes. Male victims also encounter difficulty when attempting to obtain court orders against their partners. There are also few, if any, few treatment programs for female perpetrators and only few women are arrested or charged in domestic violence. There are also few shelters for men who have suffered domestic violence and this brings about desperation in their plight.

I believe that there should be punishment for domestic violence and abuse and that there should be equality in the way the perpetrators, male or female, of domestic violence and abuse are punished. Domestic violence or abuse against a woman or man is still abuse of a person. They are human beings first and foremost before they are men or women. There should be serious investigation undertaken before one is sentenced. The level of violence should be taken into account before the perpetrator's criminal past when one is to be sentenced. For example, just because one has not been arrested for spousal battery, should not be considered when they are accused of causing grievous bodily harm to their spouse. When a magistrate gives a warning to a perpetrator of domestic violence, they should actually follow up with carrying out the threat when they commit the crime again. This is in the case where a Samuel Gutierrez killed his girlfriend after been given several warnings in previous charges of domestic violence (Hannah, 1998). In the case where there are children involved, they should be isolated from their parents so as to ensure that their testimonies are not influenced by any particular parent. This is because the children do observe a lot and they will be the only ones who will be able to tell the truth about the abuse.