Digital Commons Network^™

Procedural Justice: Tempering The State’S Response To Domestic Violence, Deborah Epstein

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Part I of this Article documents the recent legal reforms implemented on behalf of battered women in the criminal and civil justice systems. These include warrantless arrest, mandatory arrest laws, and no-drop prosecution policies, as well as civil protection order statutes and statutory modifications recommended by the Model State Code on Domestic and Family Violence. Part II describes the ways in which these reforms have improved the state's responsiveness to victims, yet simultaneously entailed serious costs by diminishing batterers' perceptions of procedural justice. Part III defines the building blocks of procedural justice and reviews the social science data demonstrating its …

A Question Of Revenge: Munchausen Syndrome By Proxy And A Proposed Diminished Capacity Defense For Homicidal Mothers, E. Selene Steelman

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP) should be legally recognized as a severe mental disorder, allowing defendants to use a diminished capacity defense in cases of accidental filicide. The author critiques the legal system's inconsistent treatment of MSBP, which often focuses on the physical harm to the child while neglecting the mother's mental state. By acknowledging MSBP as a psychiatric disorder, the law could achieve more nuanced outcomes that consider both the act and the defendant's mental condition, reducing stigma and promoting fairness in criminal liability assessments.

Women's Annotated Legal Bibliography

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Women's Annotated Legal Bibliography

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Unlocking Options For Women: A Survey Of Women At Cook County Jail, Samir Goswami

University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

No abstract provided.

The Future Of Civil Rights: A Dialogue, Margaret E. Montoya

Faculty Scholarship

Eight social science, humanities, and legal scholars discuss a wide range of perspectives on civil rights (edited by John Paul Ryan). The conversation traverses civil rights stories in the U.S. and abroad since 1968, the relationships between immigration and civil rights, the enforcement of civil rights and the role of the courts, and the impact of September 11 on civil rights in the future. Co-authored with John Paul Ryan, Angelo Ancheta, Erik Bleich, Tim Borstelmann, Gloria Browne-Marshall, Chai Feldblum, Anita Hodgkiss, & John D. Skrentny

The Dangers Of Mediation In Domestic Violence Cases, Sarah Krieger

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that mandatory mediation in family law cases involving domestic violence undermines the progress made by the battered women's movement by re-privatizing domestic violence issues. Mediation, while intended to resolve disputes amicably, fails to address the inherent power imbalance in abusive relationships and risks further victimizing survivors. The privatization of these disputes through mediation diminishes accountability for abusers and erodes legal protections for victims.

Victim Or Vamp? Images Of Violent Women In The Criminal Justice System, Chimène Keitner

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Gender Bias Task Force: Comments On Substantive Law Issues, Jane Marum Roush

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Title Vii Quid Pro Quo And Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment Claims: Changing The Legal Framework Courts Use To Determine Whether Challenged Conduct Is Unwelcome, Elsie Mata

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In examining the nature of sexual harassment claims, the author challenges the use of the "unwelcomeness" element to distinguish actionable conduct from nonactionable conduct. The author contends that the "unwelcomeness" element demeans women in two ways: (1) it assumes the male perspective and presumes that the plaintiff appreciated the challenged conduct unless she proves otherwise; and (2) it allows the defense to engage in intrusive, irrelevant, and damaging inquiries as it attempts to refute the plaintiff's allegation that the challenged conduct was unwelcome.

The author argues for three reforms. First, courts should shift the burden of proving that the challenged …

Science Gone Astray: Evolution And Rape, Elisabeth A. Lloyd

Michigan Law Review

Throughout A Natural History of Rape, coauthors Randy Thomhill and Craig Palmer resort to what is known among philosophers of science as "The Galileo Defense," which amounts to the following claim: I am telling the Truth and doing excellent science, but because of ideology and ignorance, I am being persecuted. The authors have repeated and elaborated upon this defense during the si:lable media flurry accompanying the book's publication in February 2000. Now, history has accepted this defense from Galileo. But in order for it to work for Thornhill and Palmer, of course, they must be telling the Truth and doing …

Mandatory Minimum Sentences And Women With Disabilities, Fiona Sampson

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article examines the issue of mandatory minimum sentencing from the unique perspective of women with disabilities. Concerns about the discriminatory application of mandatory minimum sentences are outlined and analyzed from a gendered disability perspective, as are concerns about the devaluation of the lives of persons with disabilities through the support of reduced sentences for those convicted of murdering persons with disabilities. This examination makes it clear that the different concerns of women with disabilities are difficult to reconcile, as they mandate contradictory positions with respect to the possible abolition of the sentencing practice. The challenges inherent in the development …

Battered Women And Mandatory Minimum Sentences, Elizabeth Sheehy

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

The author argues for the repeal of mandatory minimum sentences based upon their role in the distortion of defences available to battered women on trial for the homicide of their violent mates. After reviewing other legal strategies aimed at eliminating the discriminatory biases facing women who attempt to plead self-defence, and illustrating the ways in which defences to murder are distorted, she turns to the examination of the transcript of a recent murder trial for a woman who argued self-defence. The author uses the transcript to provide concrete illustrations of three ways in which self-defence is distorted by the mandatory …

Ethnocentrism And Feminism: Using A Contextual Methodology In International Women's Rights Advocacy And Education, Antoinette M. Sedillo Lopez

Faculty Scholarship

I have proposed a method of comparative analysis that respects culture by contextualizing analysis of women's issues. I believe that we can help women around the world improve their lives while retaining their cultural values and identity. We can use comparative law as a tool to help identify laws that successfully address women's needs and those that do not. Comparative theory does not posit an evaluation of the law determining which law or legal system is "better." Rather, comparative theory can illuminate differences based on systemic and cultural diversity. Understanding these differences can help us understand how best to use …

Mainstream Legal Responses To Domestic Violence Versus Real Needs Of Diverse Communities, Elizabeth Murno, Jessica F. Vasquez

Fordham Urban Law Journal

Keynote speaker Marcia Ann Gillespie, editor-in-chief of Ms. Magazine, discussed the importance of getting to the root of what makes violence against women. She stressed the importance of looking at what makes men act violent, taking down barriers of reporting violence, and analyzing other contributing factors. Panelist Aurora Salamone from the New York City Department for the Aging then discussed domestic abuse against elders, stressing that domestic violence in the household does not all the sudden stop at a certain age. Panelist Kimberly A. Madden from from the Jewish Association for Services of the Aged discussed how violence against elders …

Women's Annotated Legal Bibliography

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of The Protocol To Prevent, Suppress And Punish Trafficking In Persons, Especially Women And Children, Kelly E. Hyland

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.

Combating Fetal Substance Abuse And Governmental Foolhardiness Through Collaborative Linkages, Therapeutic Jurisprudence And Common Sense: Helping Women Help Themselves, David C. Brody, Heidee Mcmillin

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

Annually thousands of babies are born exposed to alcohol or illicit drugs while in their mother's womb. While the government has addressed the problem by punishing pregnant women and their children, the number of affected infants continues to rise. This is largely due to states taking gendered, punitive and illogical actions, which are antithetical to the social, scientific and medical research that has shown that treatment, not punishment, is the appropriate means to deal with the problem. Instead of addressing the problem honestly in search of a practical solution, states have focused on casting blame and meting out punishment upon …

Reinforcing The Myth Of The Crazed Rapist: A Feminist Critique Of Recent Rape Legislation, Christina E. Wells, Erin Elliott

Faculty Publications

Part I of this article reviews these new legislative provisions, discussing their requirements as well as the general impetus behind their enactment. Part II discusses both the history of rape prosecution and feminist efforts in the 1970s and 1980s to eliminate barriers to successful rape prosecutions. This part also elaborates upon the myth of the crazed rapist and its relationship to feminist reform efforts. Part III explains how the current legislation is rooted in and reinforces that myth by encouraging unsupportable distinctions among rape defendants. Finally, Part IV discusses the feminist response to such laws and argues for a more …

The Deterrent Effect Of Arrest In Domestic Violence: Differentiating Between Victim And Perpetrator Response, Johanna Niemi-Kiesilainen

UC Law SF Journal on Gender and Justice

The effects of arrest in domestic violence have been debated since Professor Lawrence Sherman et al. published their widely cited empirical studies in the 1980s and early 1990s. These studies, however, focused on the perpetrator and did not consider the effects of arrest on the victim's willingness to report repeat violence to the police. In this article, Professor Niemi-Kiesiliinen argues that the effect of arresting the perpetrator on the behavior of the victim is a crucial factor in determining the overall effectiveness of arrest. It is likely that the arrest of the perpetrator deters violence, but it is equally possible …

Setting The Record Straight: A Proposal For Handling Prosecutorial Appeals To Racial, Ethnic Or Gender Prejudice During Trial, Andrea D. Lyon

Michigan Journal of Race and Law

This article proposes that direct or indirect references to the protected classes of race and/or gender should always be subject to the Chapman v. California "harmless beyond a reasonable doubt" standard. Once the defendant has shown appeals to racial or gender bias in prosecutorial argument or other conduct during his trial, the burden must shift to the prosecution to show at an immediate hearing outside the presence of the jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, that this impermissible appeal to bias did not affect the fairness of the defendant's trial. Furthermore, courts must take the examination of the prosecution's proof seriously, …

Crime Control And Feminist Law Reform In Domestic Violence Law: A Critical Review, Donna Coker

Articles

No abstract provided.

Overcoming Barriers In Communities

Fordham Urban Law Journal

Panelist Evelyn Cardona, discussed the work of the Brooklyn Coalition Against Family Violence, where she is the director, her own experience as a battered woman, and how she overcame it. Panelist Nechama Wolfson, president of the Shalom Task Force, then talked about the work of Shalom Task Force, a grasroots group of Orthodox Jewish women was doing on the community. Panelist Angela Lee, associate director of the New York Asian Women's Center, discussed the work her organization does with Asian battered women. Panelist Mircia Sanchez discussed the Harlem Dowling West Side Center for Children and Family Services, where she is …

Gendering The Pension Promise In Canada: Risk, Financial Markets And Neoliberalism, Mary Condon

Articles & Book Chapters

This article argues that retirement income provision in Canada is built on gendered assumptions, which produce material disadvantage for women. These inequalities are being exacerbated by current neoliberal trends towards the 'marketization' and individualization of pension provision, supported by tax, securities and corporate legal norms. The argument is developed using recent legislative changes to the operation of the Canada Pension Plan and recent developments in the regulation of mutual funds in Ontario as case studies. The article concludes by sketching out some possible points of departure for feminist interventions in pension privatization debates.

Confronting The Agency In Battered Mothers, Elaine M. Chiu

Faculty Publications

Despite the progress of the last three decades, the American public and even feminists remain caught in a web of ambivalence and contradictory attitudes and beliefs about battered women. Are battered women traumatized victims who suffer at the hands of their individual abusers and from the systemic failures of a male-dominated culture? Are they, therefore, unable to save themselves or their children? In contrast, are these women survivors who manage to protect themselves as best they can under uniquely difficult circumstances? Do they deserve recognition for their efforts, or do battered women somehow contribute to or exacerbate their own abuse …

In-Prison Day Care: A Correctional Alternative For Women Offenders, Jessica Y. Kim

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that traditional incarceration of mothers can have detrimental effects on both the women and their children, advocating for alternative correctional methods such as in-prison day care programs. These alternatives aim to maintain the mother-child bond, reduce recidivism, and mitigate the negative societal impacts of separating mothers from their children.

Supreme Court Of Pennsylvania Committee On Racial And Gender Bias In The Justice System: Testimony Of Professor Michelle J. Anderson, Michelle J. Anderson

Women’s Law Forum (2000-2006)

In testimony given before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Committee on Racial and Gender Bias in the Justice System in December 2000, Professor Anderson addressed the present state of rape law in Pennsylvania. Professor Anderson discussed the leading Pennsylvania criminal cases addressing rape. Professor Anderson's testimony concludes that the substantive law of rape in Pennsylvania continues to evince a profound gender bias and that the processing of rape complaints by police in Pennsylvania can also be gender biased.

A Different Voice: The Feminine Jurisprudence Of The Minnesota State Supreme Court, Linda S. Maule

Buffalo Women's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Human Rights In Transition-- Freedom From Fear, Dorothea Beane

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

"Trapped" In Sing Sing: Transgendered Prisoners Caught In The Gender Binarism, Darren Rosenblum

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

This Article first summarizes gender, transgendered identity, and legal issues facing transgendered people to contextualize the lives of transgendered prisoners. Parts II and III explore respectively the placement and treatment issues that complicate the incarceration of the transgendered. Corrections authorities, through indifference or incompetence, foster a shockingly inhumane daily existence for transgendered prisoners. In Part V, I examine the plight of transgendered prisoners through the metaphor of the miners' canary. Transgendered prisoners signal the grave dangers facing all of us in a wide array of social structures, elucidating the apparently intractable problems of gender. This Article simultaneously explores a human …