Arsheen Qasim
Last week, I attended CAADA conference on how to keep children and families affected by domestic violence safe. At the conference, I met a range of professionals- school nurses, health visitors, psychologists, refuge providers, local drug and alcohol workers- who seek to prevent domestic violence.
I was struck by the sheer number of interested parties present, and the range of inter-related issues that revolve around the problem of domestic violence. That in itself is not surprising. Domestic violence has far-reaching effects on the lives of those who are directly abused or who see it in the home. Its impact is felt right across our society: in health, education and social care. So, it’s right that all these professionals are committed to tackling domestic violence.
And yet sometimes the role of the courts can be missed out. While many people don’t report domestic violence and many who do don’t end up in court, courts can help keep victims safe and bring perpetrators to account. The Centre’s most recent report, looking at specialist domestic violence courts, looks at the role they play. The evidence gathered in the report strongly backs the idea of specialist courts that address domestic violence. However, our report argues that more needs to be done to make perpetrators accountable. In particular, the report recommends experimentation with sentencer reviews – a sentencing option that brings perpetrators back in front of the judge after court-mandated attendance on perpetrator programmes. The evidence is becoming clearer that it may help keep the victim safe, by reducing re-offending and deterring further abuse.
Prevention, early detection and support are paramount but it’s also important to have criminal justice processes in place that deal with the unfortunate, inevitable cases of domestic violence when they do occur. To have anything less would be a disservice to the vulnerable people who suffer from domestic violence in our society.