1) In the 19th century in North America caning was not illegal. A husband could beat his wife with any object that was no bigger around than his thumb.
2) It was not until 1968 that a divorce would be granted on the grounds of physical cruelty
3) Prior to 1983, it was considered a husband’s right to perform all forms of sexual activity with his wife. This included rape and activities that led to injury. Spousal Rape was legal in Canada
4) Rape had to be reported immediately after occurring. It was believe that is a woman was raped she would want it dealt with right away. If she waited the authorities believed that she was lying and it was consensual intercourse
5) The Rape Shield was introduced to the Canadian Criminal Code in the late 1980’s. This caused the victim’s sexual past to be inadmissible in court proceedings. Was she promiscuous? Have many sexual partners? – If yes, it was believed not to be rape, so this law allowed the victim to have a fair trial.
6) In 1991 the Supreme Court of Canada said that the Rape Shield violated the rights of the victim so the Limited Rape Shield was introduced. If the judge believes that questioning the victim’s sexual history is necessary it is allowed.
Canadian Law
1) If police believe there is spousal abuse present they are bound by law to press charges. Even if the woman refuses charges are laid.
· Problems
Ø The victim sometimes will face
charges because the police do not know who the perpetrator is.
Ø Police do not always follow the law and press charges.
2) The Domestic Violence Intervention Act allows a victim to seek a 30-day Emergency Protection order. This order allows a woman to ask a Justice of the Peace to protect something of value. If a woman only has a small amount of valuables she may have to sell them in order to flee from the abuse. She can protect her children, car, television etc.
·
Problems with this order:
Ø You have to find the man to serve the order
Ø There is no real punishment for violating the order
Ø If she protects her car, he could cancel the insurance
Ø Only valid for 30 days
Law that allows Violence against
Women:
In
Greece and Rome wife beating and wife killing is viewed as a husband’s
right. In these cultures as well as
many others, women could be killed by burning for contradicting or scolding
their husbands or other male family members.
1) A study conducted
between 1997-2002 showed that of those charged with sexual assault 48% were
only sentenced to probation, 28% received a prison term, and 24% received a
conditional sentence.
2) Canada was the first country to introduce Sexual Assault Laws
3) There is only one sexual assault centre
in Halifax Regional Municipality
Violence is glorified and this causes desensitization. Violent behavior is often observed and the viewer stops thinking of the behavior as wrong. Regular exposure to violence influences some people to model the behavior seen.
Boys and girls are socialized differently. Boys learn to value competitiveness, strength and the use of control. Girls learn to be submissive, nonassertive and nurturing. Boys try to live up to their role and overcompensate with extreme strength.
There’s a need for control and being the only recipient of a woman’s attention and become competitive.
Traditional norms give men greater status and power than women and violence allow men to maintain control.
Believe that sexual assault is a product of
social institutions giving men more privileges and authority over women.
The legal system often re-victimizes women throughout its processes.
Reporting the Crime and the Police
-the police are mainly white, male and middle class
-women may not want to report because they feel they will not be believed
-in crimes of a sexual nature, a female victim may feel uncomfortable talking to a male
-there is a ‘culture of disbelief’ where victims feel they have to prove themselves
-victims may feel blamed for their role in
the crime
Lack of Communication
-victim may speak to a different officer every time
-case can be dropped without victim’s consent or knowledge
-particularly problematic in domestic violence cases where the victim needs to know the status of the case in order to arrange for their safety
Prosecutor Acting on Behalf of the State
-victim is only a witness to the crime
-decisions are made between the prosecutor and the police, the victim has no say in how the trial is conducted
-no appeal process for victim
-victim feels like they are on trial rather than the defendant
Length of Time
-trials can be put on hold for lengthy periods of time
-victim may drop the charges because they wish to move on with their life
Patterns of Crime by Women:
-Women commit less crime than men and they also commit less violent offences. However, when women do commit crimes such as homicide 71% of their victims are related to the offender domestically, which means family members. For men it is only 24%.
- The sentencing that a woman receives is usually in the form of a non-custodial sentence, which is an alternative to custody, examples: fines, treatment for an addiction, probation, or house arrest.
- Patterns for Race: Aboriginals in Canada were more likely to be charged with more
violent crimes than non-Aboriginals.
Why this has been neglected:
Because women and violence is a topic that society needs to be aware of, many times the topic of women as the offender goes unaccounted for. Although men are still seen as being primarily responsible for violence, female crimes are increasing. The feminists bring one reason for society neglecting these crimes: they don’t want to believe that women are capable of such violent acts, because they are always viewed as the oppressed. Another one of the main problems with women and their aggression is that many people feel that because women are seen as nurturing and loving, when they do become violent they are seen as inadequate and unnaturally masculine.
There are also difficulties in getting the information about these crimes and the women that commit them. Four things that make this difficult are:
Explanations of these crimes:
There are many different ways to explain these violent tendencies although it is very difficult to pinpoint the right answer because people who study different subjects have differing opinions. Recently, it is being said that we need to start looking more into environmental and situational factors for the explanations and not just concentrating on individual behaviours. One psychologist states that there are two different groups of behaviour when it comes to violent acts, one for men and one for women.
1. These two groups are Instrumental and Expressive:
Instrumental: Men = a means for imposing control over others. Use aggression for the benefits it offers (respect). It is a coercive power.
Expressive: Women = a release of accumulated tension. Based on socialized factors. Taught to restrain and develop self-control.
2. Experiencing Violence:
Most psychologists believe that if someone experiences violence as a child, they are more apt to use violence as an adult, although it is not always inevitable.
3. Moving from Victim to Offender:
Most women who have performed violent acts did so after leaving the home because of the abuse and had to turn to things like prostitution to survive, but that only leads to further abuse from others in society. Women from lower socio-economic status are more likely to experience violence on an everyday basis.
4. Alcohol and Drugs:
Prescription drug abuse and alcohol abuse are the two drugs of choice for violent women who have been charged with violent crimes.
Reference site to check out: http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/prgrm/fsw/fsw23/toce_e.shtml