Domestic Relations

Domestic violence has been one of the most concerned issues for the authorities. Due to the complexities that it faces it is more difficult to report and control the problems. The domestic violence could be of any kind be it the child abuse, stalking, elderly abuse, intimate partner violence.

For a very long time the courts and police have not intervened in any of the above situation especially the child abuse and they were reluctant because most people made them stop by referring to the problem as family issue. And they were unable to do anything about it. But then new laws were passed that gave them the liberty they needed to protect the innocent children. (Kindschi, 2009)

Another problem with the problem of capturing the guilty ones was that police was unable to determine that the abuse that has caused any type of physical damage, bruises etc was caused intentionally or accidently and therefore they were unable to take any actions against them. But now that there is new technology doctors have sophisticated machines to find out the facts behind the situation. This made the people more aware and more reporting of the child abuses cases.

The first action that was taken against the child abuse case was when Dr. Kempe a radiologist proposed a term called battered child syndrome that referred to maltreatment of the children not only physical bus also the emotional and medical neglect. He then further went on to bring a change in the society. (Undefined, n.d)

Dr. Kempe had also proposed that physicians be required to report child abuse. According to the National Association of Counsel for Children, by 1967, after Dr. Kempe's findings had gained general acceptance among health and welfare workers and the public, forty-four states had passed legislation that required the reporting of child abuse to official agencies, and the remaining six states had voluntary reporting laws. This was one of the most rapidly accepted pieces of legislation in American history. Initially only doctors were required to report and then only in cases of "serious physical injury" or "non accidental injury." Today all the states have laws that require most professionals who serve children to report all forms of suspected abuse and either require or permit any citizen to report child abuse. (Undefined, n.d)

In result of that effort the first federal law against the child abuse was passed in 1974 called the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). This law strictly stated that any person responsible for the maltreatment of the child under the age of 18 would be punished by the court of law. This law further helped in creating the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN), which developed standards for handling reports of child ill-treatment. NCCAN also established a nationwide network of child defensive services and served as a clearinghouse for information and research on child mistreatment and neglect. (Undefined, n.d)

CAPTA also provides funds for the support of preventing of such events and give grants to public agencies. It also maintains a minimum definition for the child abuse to which everyone has to follow. It also maintains some thresholds points to identify the child abuse.

• Any kind of physical assault.
• Sexual abuse or exploitation. Or any kind of forcible act
• Close confinement or binding of arms and legs.
• Any other kind of threat given to the child
• Abandonment or the refusal to maintain custody.
• Encouraging child to the wrong behavior such as prostitution.
• Refusing to help the ch9ild in any kind of problem is it emotional or physical given that the care taker has the financial ability to do so.

The four major categories identified by the act that are included in the child abuse are emotional and psychological abuse, neglect of any form, physical and sexual abuse. (Kindschi, 2009)

This was one of the milestones in the area as this was one of the first acts that were passed by the congress. This act passes the grants for all the states to actually work on the issues related to child abuse therefore this was a very important step towards the progress.

The South Carolina Supreme Court issued an important decision today regarding cases heard under the Protection from Domestic Abuse Act. This statute set forth in S.C. Code § 20-4-10 et seq enables victims of domestic violence to seek an "Order for Protection" to prevent such future abuse.

In Moore v. Moore, after the husband's was arrested for criminal domestic violence (CDV), the wife filed an action pursuant to the above-referenced Act, and she requested an emergency hearing. At that hearing, the wife was offered a continuance to obtain counsel, but the husband’s request for a continuance was denied. At that hearing, the Family Court found that the husband had abused the wife and their son, and it issued an Order of Protection.

The Court found that the husband was provided procedural due process prior to the issuance of the Order of Protection, and it affirmed the decision of the Family Court. The Court then found that an Order of Protection issued pursuant to an emergency hearing (a) is temporary, (b) does not represent a final adjudication of the merits of the action, and (c) should not be used against a party in future litigation. (Stevens, 2008)

This is one of the examples of how one of the states took an initiative for the protection of their citizens. This particular event triggered the Supreme Court to go beyond the borders and helped the citizens to have peaceful and calm life.

According to this law the duration of the order is Minimum 6 months, maximum 1 year, may be extended keeping in consideration of minor protective order: maximum 60 days or until divorce or support or maintenance hearing. The Penalty for a Violation of Order could be for the 1st offense there is jail for 30 days or fine maximum $200. If contempt of court: jail maximum 1 year and/or fine maximum $1,500. (Undefined, n.d)

This actually reduced the violence on the women to a great level and thus implanted by the court.

References

-Kindschi, D. (2009). Heavy hands: an introduction to the crimes of family violence. Prentice Hall

- Stevens, B. (February 12, 2008). S.C. Supreme Court Takes Closer Look at Orders for Protection. In Turnipseed, Brannon & Stevens, P.A.. Retrieved May 14, 2010, from http://www.scfamilylaw.com/articles/domestic-abuse/.

- Undefined. (Undefined). Child Abuse—A History - Modern America. In Library Index. Retrieved May 14, 2010, from http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/1362/Child-Abuse-History-MODERN-AMERICA.html.

- Undefined. (n.d). South Carolina Protective Orders Laws. In FindLaw, a Thomson Reuters. Retrieved May 14, 2010, from http://law.findlaw.com/state-laws/protective-orders/south-carolina/.