Domestic Violence Protection Orders let victims ‘escape’

20 December 2011: More than 100 domestic abusers have been barred from their partners’ homes in Greater Manchester. The use of Domestic Violence Protection Orders (DVPO), which force offenders to leave residences and stay away from victims, began in the area in July.

The orders are being tested by the Greater Manchester, Wiltshire and West Mercia police forces. Det Supt Philip Owen said DVPOs allowed victims “to escape their abuser” without fleeing. The magistrate-granted orders ban people who have committed domestic violence from contacting their victims or entering their home, with those who breach the rules sentenced to up to six weeks in prison. Mr Owen said they had given police and other agencies a new approach to dealing with domestic violence.

‘Protect vulnerable people’

“In the past where there was no other alternative, police and partners would remove the victim and their family away from their home to a place of safety,” he said. “However, under this pilot, the perpetrator is the one who has to move out of the home and who is held to account, allowing the victims to stay in their own homes rather than flee to a friend’s home, or a refuge, to escape their abuser. “The courts can order the perpetrator not to go near the victim for up to 28 days and that allows the victim to take stock and decide where they want to be. “They can get help from Victim Support Services, solicitors and other support services who can draw up a safety plan.”

A 64-year-old woman who was granted a DVPO who had suffered abuse from her partner for 21 years said it had changed her life. “The DVPO allowed me to be free from abuse and start a whole new life for myself,” she said. “I would urge any other victims to report abuse as there really is help out there.”

Councillor Suzanne Richards, lead member for women’s issues at Manchester City Council, said DVPOs were “another tool” being used by the agencies involved with helping victims of domestic abuse. “We are using DVPOs to turn this situation on its head and help protect vulnerable people,” she said. “The fact that 100 have been issued demonstrates there is a genuine need for them.”

The pilot of DVPOs runs until summer 2012, when the Home Office will decide if they will be made available to all police forces.

Domestic violence suspects to face court even if victim scared to give evidence

The region’s chief prosecutor has ordered that cases should be prepared against suspects using evidence from other witnesses. They could include neighbours or children – as well as photographs of injuries taken by police and even transcripts of 999 calls.  It is part of a crackdown on attacks on people in the home ahead of an expected surge of cases during the festive season. On average 180 reports of domestic violence are recorded in Greater Manchester every day. Experts believe a far higher number go unreported.

The region is already piloting powers banning domestic violence suspects from their own homes for up to a month if police can show they have ‘reasonable grounds’ – even if the alleged victim does not wish to complain. Now Nazir Afzal, chief crown prosecutor for the north west, told the M.E.N: “I expect my prosecutors to prepare each domestic violence case as if it was a case without the victim’s support. If, tragically, that victim were to be killed, then we would prepare the case on that basis.

“Why, therefore, can we not do it in all such cases? “More and more. the police conduct investigations and prosecutors build cases focusing on other evidence in addition to the evidence from the victim themselves. “It might be the tape of the 999 call, photographs taken by police of the victim’s injuries, or the damage caused, or statements from neighbours or family who have heard or seen an assault.”

The north west has more domestic violence as a proportion of total crime than any other part of the country. An estimated 100,000 women experience at least one incident of domestic abuse each year in the region, and 12 are killed in domestic homicides.  Last year, there were 65,915 recorded cases of domestic abuse in Greater Manchester. The Crown Prosecution Service already takes more cases to court than anywhere else in Britain.  But Mr Afzal said he was determined to do more – and claimed they had already has success in prosecuting cases without the victim’s consent.

December and January traditionally see a spike in domestic violence cases, which experts put down to a combination of factors including alcohol and the economic pressures of Christmas.  Last year, the M.E.N. revealed how there had been 466 attacks on January 1– the highest of any day of the year and more than twice the average number.

Greater Manchester has also seen a number of high-profile murder cases which started with domestic abuse.

Manchester Evening News   19th  December 2011

Shake-Up Of Domestic Violence Laws Planned

Shake-Up Of Domestic Violence Laws Planned – December 2011

Ministers are planning a shake-up of domestic violence laws that could see “controlling” partners face criminal charges.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg is to launch a new consultation within days aimed at bringing in a legal definition of what constitutes abuse against a spouse or partner.

There were more than one million victims of domestic violence in England and Wales last year, according to the Home Office. Across the UK, one in four women are
likely to experience some level of domestic abuse. At present there is no specific criminal offence of domestic violence in Britain, although that may be about to change.

Survivors of domestic abuse have hailed the news as a step in the right direction. “When it starts off they are very careful and you don’t even realise it’s occurring,” said broadcaster Sonia Poulton, who was in an abusive relationship for three years. “The important thing people need to realise is that it isn’t just physical. He never laid a finger on me. “It’s more dangerous because it takes longer to realise what’s taking place.

“I went to bed every night and cried myself asleep because I was in love with him. “He would criticise my clothes, my hair, even my friends. When anyone called on the phone he would just stand there in the background… a seething, silent presence.”

The consultation could also be extended to take in those under 18 for the first time amid concern that teenage girls in particular are suffering at the hands of abusive boyfriends. The new definition would also cover women who bully their partners.

16 Days of Action Against Gender Violence

16 Days of Action against Gender Violence. Greater Manchester timetable of events 25 November to 10 December 2011. 2011 16 days timetable 2 

What is the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign?

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence is an international campaign originating from the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women’s Global Leadership in 1991. Participants chose the dates, November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women and December 10, International Human Rights Day, in order to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a violation of human rights. This 16-day period also highlights other significant dates including November 29, International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, December 1, World AIDS Day, and December 6, which marks the Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.

The 16 Days Campaign has been used as an organising strategy by individuals and groups around the world to call for the elimination of all forms of violence against women by:

• raising awareness about gender-based violence as a human rights issue at the local, national, regional and international levels
• strengthening local work around violence against women
• establishing a clear link between local and international work to end violence against women
• providing a forum in which organizers can develop and share new and effective strategies
• demonstrating the solidarity of women around the world organizing against violence against women
• creating tools to pressure governments to implement promises made to eliminate violence against women

Over 2,000 organizations in approximately 156 countries have participated in the 16 Days Campaign since 1991!