Columnist Sandra Thompson: Battle against domestic violence heightens

Sandra Thompson

Sunday, Jan. 9, 2000 | 9:52 a.m.

Sandra Thompson is vice president/associate editor of the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at 259-4025 or through e-mail at thompson@lasvegassun.com.

"Domestic violence" is a sanitized term that doesn't accurately convey the deep-rooted fears or lasting wounds of its victims.

Despite public awareness campaigns and media attention, domestic violence remains a problem.

From January to September 1999, 9,871 domestic violence offenses were reported in Clark County, which accounts for 75 percent of cases in the state. It's estimated that children were present in about a third of the incidents.

The Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence is working on ways to monitor criminal court cases involving domestic violence and hearings on temporary protective orders.

As part of a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, the group will hire seven monitors throughout the state to observe cases and "document what's going on," according to Elizabeth Stoffel, project attorney with the Nevada Network.

A 10-member oversight committee will be formed to look at the data and shape a final report that will be presented to Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa and state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bob Rose.

Stoffel, who was hired by the network last month, says the program is still in the design stage; there are no preconceived notions. "I don't know what we'll find," she says.

Here are some areas that should be looked into: Are laws governing domestic violence incidents being enforced? Are they being applied fairly? Should there be more education and training for judges on the dynamics of domestic violence?

Particular attention should be paid to Family Court cases involving domestic violence.

According to state law, there is a presumption that custody should not be awarded to those with a history of or conviction for domestic violence. Yet there are a number of cases where custody of children has been given to batterers.

That flies in the face of the law and goes against the best interest of the child. So why does it happen?

Some victim advocates say judges simply don't know enough about the dynamics of domestic violence. One Family Court judge admitted that "if you can't understand the syndrome, you can't be effective" in recognizing or dealing with the problem.

Scrapes, bruises and broken bones are readily recognizable. A victim's fear and a batterer's method of controlling the victim often are not that apparent.

"It's not uncommon for perpetrators of domestic violence to use the children in order to gain power and control over their victims," Kathleen Brooks, associate director for Temporary Assistance for Domestic Crisis, wrote in a letter on behalf of a domestic violence victim.

Some abusers threaten to kill their spouses or take away their children if they leave the relationship. If a victim finally gets the strength to leave, the abuser may skillfully use the court system to continue the pattern of abuse.

Domestic violence also may not be taken seriously because ex-spouses sometimes make false allegations as a way of getting back at each other.

That can cause a backlash, according to Veronica Boyd-Frenkel, domestic violence ombudsman for the state.

"That creates a bias (among judges) -- is this a frivolous allegation -- but it also presents a challenge to thoroughly investigate it," she says.

Boyd-Frenkel advocates more education and training in domestic violence issues. Such training may be part of a judicial leadership meeting set for May for all judges throughout the state.

The Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence also will look at temporary protective orders. In 1999 in Clark County, there were 6,146 court hearings on TPOs. Hopefully the network's court-watch program can help determine how effective TPOs are.

Over the last few years in the Las Vegas Valley alone, several women have been murdered by their ex-boyfriends or ex-spouses despite having a TPO. To put it bluntly, a piece of paper is not going to protect you if someone really wants to harm or kill you. However, it will make a difference on whether and how the police respond to your call if your ex-boyfriend or ex-spouse comes near you and/or threatens you.

In the coming weeks, we'll look into a few of the more notable domestic violence cases, some of the problems involved in proving abuse and measuring the effects on children, the mind games people play to manipulate the system and the response to the attorney general's prevention initiative called Nevada Employers Against Domestic Violence.