What is domestic violence?

In Washington State, domestic violence usually means a that a family or household member has threatened or actually harmed another family member

These are often acts of domestic violence:

• If you or someone else has been slapped or punched or grabbed.


• If an object has been thrown at you or someone else in your household.


• If you or someone else has been forced to have sex.


• If you or someone else has been threatened by a relative or partner.


• If you or someone else has been followed by a relative or partner.

The context of situation really determines whether there has been an act of domestic violence. Was the other person trying to hurt, frighten or intimidate?

A parent is allowed to use physical force to discipline a child, but within limits. Striking a child with a closed fist or to the face is abusive.

How common is domestic violence?

There is a lot of confusion on this point because different authorities use different definitions of domestic violence and are looking at different data.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, there were 691,710 acts of domestic violence committed in 2001. About 70% of the acts were simple assaults. The remainder of the acts were aggravated assaults, robbery and sexual assaults.

According to the Center of Disease Control. nearly 5.3 million intimate partner victimizations occur each year among women ages 18 and older.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, by the most conservative estimate, each year 1 million women suffer nonfatal violence by an intimate.

According to the American Psychological Association, 4 million women experience a serious assault by an intimate partner in a given year.

Who are the victims of domestic violence?

Most victims of spousal domestic violence are women. Even this is disputed. There have been studies that conclude that there are an equal number of victims of women and men. Although men are also victims of domestic violence, the weight of most credible studies suggests that women are more the likely victims of domestic violence. According to the US Department of Justice, about 85% of the victims of domestic violence are women and about 15% are men. That ratio may be a bit overstated because there is a stigma attached to a man claiming he was the victim of domestic violence.

What should you do to protect yourself or someone in your family?

If you are in immediate danger, call 911 or call the the Crisis Line number.

If you are afraid when the abuser is at home, contact an attorney or go to a court to get a domestic violence protection order. The court has domestic violence advocates who can help you fill out the paperwork. There is no fees involved.

What should you do if you suspect domestic violence of the children?

If the children have told you of abuse, then you should either contact Child Protective Services or take the children to a pediatrician or counselor who can verify the disclosure.

Children often tell the truth. When there is a pending divorce or custody dispute, however, it is common for the parents to manipulate their children. In the context of a custody dispute, studies have shown that young children are as likely to make a false abuse statement as they are a true statement. Someone falsely accused of child abuse needs to contact an attorney to mount a vigorous defense.

Copyright © 2007 Allen A. Glass, P.C. All rights reserved.