Child Exposure to Domestic Violence
Child Exposure to Domestic Violence
Cyndi White
CJA/314
January 9, 2012
G. Andrew Smith
The policy issues that seem to be a major concern in the United States is about children being exposed to domestic violence in the home. No-one really looks at what the children have to go through when this happens. There could be some major damage done to the children that have been exposed to this happening. Boston police go on an average of about 200 calls a month on domestic violence. The content of the video on “Child exposure to Domestic Violence” was a personal crime. First we need to understand what the definition of “personal crime” is: “rape, sexual assault, personal robbery, assault, purse snatching and pocket picking. This category includes both attempted and completed crimes” (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010). Even though some people do not think of personal crime as a domestic violence, it is considered to be assault. Also, many people do not think of verbal assault, which is just as bad for a child to hear, but not as bad as domestic violence. When watching the video some of the causal factors that were noticed were that of a mother having a restraining order against her on again of again boyfriend. The boyfriend, who was also the father of a three year old boy that was in the home, was trying to get in through a window. When the female speaker called 911 she informed them that there was a restraining order in affect against the suspect. Even though at this time there were no signs of domestic violence taking place, the suspect had committed them before and that is the reason for the restraining order. Also, in the video a speaker named Hugh Downs talked about OJ Simpsons children and if they had witnessed any abuse happening towards their mother by the hands of their father. One child expressed how her parents are always fighting, mainly when she is in her bedroom. This little girl also was afraid that her father would kill her mother and then
Cyndi White
CJA/314
January 9, 2012
G. Andrew Smith
The policy issues that seem to be a major concern in the United States is about children being exposed to domestic violence in the home. No-one really looks at what the children have to go through when this happens. There could be some major damage done to the children that have been exposed to this happening. Boston police go on an average of about 200 calls a month on domestic violence. The content of the video on “Child exposure to Domestic Violence” was a personal crime. First we need to understand what the definition of “personal crime” is: “rape, sexual assault, personal robbery, assault, purse snatching and pocket picking. This category includes both attempted and completed crimes” (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010). Even though some people do not think of personal crime as a domestic violence, it is considered to be assault. Also, many people do not think of verbal assault, which is just as bad for a child to hear, but not as bad as domestic violence. When watching the video some of the causal factors that were noticed were that of a mother having a restraining order against her on again of again boyfriend. The boyfriend, who was also the father of a three year old boy that was in the home, was trying to get in through a window. When the female speaker called 911 she informed them that there was a restraining order in affect against the suspect. Even though at this time there were no signs of domestic violence taking place, the suspect had committed them before and that is the reason for the restraining order. Also, in the video a speaker named Hugh Downs talked about OJ Simpsons children and if they had witnessed any abuse happening towards their mother by the hands of their father. One child expressed how her parents are always fighting, mainly when she is in her bedroom. This little girl also was afraid that her father would kill her mother and then
References: Bureau of Justice Statistics: BJS. (July 26, 2010) Terms & Definitions: Crime Type http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov Child Welfare Information Gateway (2009) “Domestic Violence and the Child Welfare System” www.childwelfare.gov Downs, H. (1999) “Domestic Violence and Children” Films media group. 2011 by films on demand http://digital.films.com