Frivolous Claims of Domestic Abuse are Common

from: huntingtonnews.net

-- One million claims of domestic violence are filed each year that are false or unnecessary. Such allegations prevent the true victims of abuse from getting the help they need. Today RADAR, a victim advocacy group, released 10 recommendations to curb such frivolous accusations.

The recommendations include common-sense strategies such as requiring actual proof of abuse before granting a restraining order, raising evidentiary standards, and penalizing accusers who knowingly make such claims.

In fact, the theme of October’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month is – False Claims Hurt True Victims.

“It is shameful that we have shortchanged true victims by wasting so many dollars to investigate false charges of abuse,” reveals RADAR spokesperson Elizabeth Crawford. “If we want to help victims, we must stop vindictive accusers from ruining other persons’ lives.”

Some of the issues related to claims arise from the absence of definitions in the Violence Against Women Act, instead vague terms such as “fear,” “afraid” and “harassment,” are undefined. Some advocates ask for even broader inclusiveness of “abuse” by including possessiveness, being concerned about the relationship or asking for joint child custody.

False abuse claims hurt almost everyone -- true victims, children, and persons who are falsely accused:

-- Judge Rucker Smith of Georgia was falsely accused by his ex-girlfriend of assault. After the jury’s acquittal, the judge explained, “For someone to falsely accuse another out of anger and vengeance silences the voices of the many real victims.”

-- Mr. General Parker of Illinois, delegate to the recent Democratic National Convention, has not been allowed to see his son for nearly four years, even though a jury found him innocent of all charges.

-- In Pennsylvania, Ben Vonderheide incurred over $350,000 in legal expenses defending himself from 40 allegations over a six-year period. Last month Wendy Flanders was convicted of perjury and making false claims of partner abuse.

Columnist Barbara Kay notes in an October editorial, “false allegations of domestic violence and sexual abuse of children against their former partners are so rife – and virtually never punished – that it is apparently the best-kept secret crime in the western world.”

The “secret crime” results in tarnished reputations, impacts employability, and often leads to forcing children into single-parent households. At their extreme, they trigger due process violations of the accused and undermine public confidence in the justice system.

Among the ten specific legal revisions advanced by RADAR are narrowing the definition of “harassment” and “stalking” to specific acts, not the “perception” or “feelings” of the alleged victim, requiring evidence of physical assault, harassment or stalking at the time the alleged victim requests a temporary restraining order, and vigorously pursuing false domestic violence claims as perjury.

One recommendation related to a narrowing of the criteria for domestic violence, harassment, and stalking to specific acts would free valuable community assets. Any partner abuse or perceived partner abuse that does not fall into the narrower definition of domestic violence would be addressed through counseling, treatment or mediation, not by law enforcement or the criminal justice system.

The remaining recommendations to stop false accusations can be viewed at: http://www.mediaradar.org/docs/RADARwhitepaper-False-Allegations.pdf