Type:	Journal Article
Title:	Crime in the intimate sphere: prosecutions of intimate partner violence
Other Titles:	Newcastle law review.
Authors:	Douglas, Heather
Keywords:	Men as victims;Criminal justice responses;Post-separation violence
Year:	2003
Publisher:	Faculty of Law, The University of Newcastle
Citation:	7 (2), 2003/2004
Notes:	Overview: This Australian paper reports on a study of a number of Queensland Court of Appeal judgements involving intimate partner violence and interrogates the role played by the judicial system and the criminal law in domestic violence cases. Objective: The study sought to examine what draws a case of intimate violence to the criminal law domain, how judges respond to such offences and whether the intimate nature of the violence aggravates or mitigates the penalty. The study sought to identify the ‘ingredients’ for prosecution, given the small number of criminal prosecutions in comparison to the large number of criminal offences alleged in applications for Domestic Violence Protection Orders. Methods: The study examined thirty cases in which men were prosecuted for intimate partner violence against a female partner, and eight cases in which it was alleged women perpetrated violence against a male partner. Findings: The study found that violence between intimate partners is only considered by criminal law in limited contexts. While judges tend to find that a breach of a DVO will aggravate the penalty in a domestic violence case, the study did not find that the intimate nature of the violence aggravated or mitigated the penalty. * There is a witness to, or other strong corroborative evidence of the violence The study found that women’s violence towards their male partners was less likely to involve torture or to such high levels of brutality and subjection as the violence of men towards their female partners.
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/14066
ISSN:	13248758
Appears in Collections:	Journal Articles

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