Types of Domestic Violence - Essay Example

Psychology Psychology Introduction According to McCue (2008), domestic violence is aggressive behavior at home and psychological mistreatment practices utilized by one individual towards the other partner in a relationship in order to control them. This can apply to individuals who are either wedded or un-wedded, those living together, divorced or dating. Domestic violence can either be criminal or no-criminal. Criminal conduct incorporates uninvited physical contact, for example, striking, kicking, gnawing, sexual compulsion and ill-use, conjugal assault, harassing the other by stalking, PC hacking, and criminal seclusion. Non-criminal conduct consists of being denied access to companions or other social contacts, shadowing, confining the utilization of the phone by securing telephones by locking them or hiding them when the abuser is not available as well as denying access to family funds. This essay will focus on Stalking as a form of domestic violence. Stalking According to Davis, Frieze, & Maiuro (2002), stalking is unwanted activities that comprises of one person deliberately following another and being constantly on the lookout for the activities that the victim engages in so as to distract and threaten them. Stalking is considered a crime and it results to fear, unease and uncertainty on the victim. Individuals engage in this practice so as to control the victim and make them submissive in the relationship. This behavior is rampant among people who were dating but fell apart due to various reasons. Stalking affects the emotions of the victim and hampers their productivity. Stalking behaviors Stalkers can be categorized by their behavior towards the victims. These behaviors include; destroying the property of the victim, following the victims everywhere they go, sending random and threatening text messages to the victim, sending voicemail messages and emails to the victim, blogging about the victim, appearing unannounced at places where the victim is, listening, watching, spying and locating the victim through the use of technology (Meloy, 2006). All these behaviors make the victim uneasy and terrorized. Many victims of stalking experience difficulty concentrating on their activities as they feel insecure throughout. Characteristics of stalkers Stalkers are generally a nuisance and they act without care or concern of the victims feelings. According to Davis, Frieze, & Maiuro (2002), most victims and perpetrators are of different sexes. Stalking is rampant among individuals in their fourth decade of life, making both the casualties and culprits of stalking older than most lawbreakers and casualties of other offences. This is mostly as a result of mental problems among the culprits. Stalkers will use most of their time following the victim since most of them lack other meaningful engagements to engage in, most of them being unemployed or underemployed. There is rampant drug and substance abuse among stalkers. California Law vs Montana law on Stalking One commits the offense of stalking if the individual intentionally or deliberately causes someone else reasonable enthusiastic trouble or sensible misgiving of real harm or death by always tracking the stalked individual or irritating, debilitating, or threatening the stalked individual, individually or via mail or electronic platforms. A first time stalking offender might be detained in the area prison for a term not surpassing 1 year or fined a sum not surpassing $ 1,000, or both (Leg.mt.gov, 2015). This also applies to California Law, where an offender is subjected to the same penalties. For a second or consequent offense or for a first offense against a casualty who was under the security of a restraining order request towards the guilty party, the wrongdoer should be detained in the state jail for a term not surpassing 5 years or fined a sum not surpassing $ 10,000, or both. This is quite different from the California law that stipulates that a repeat offender or an offender acting against a restraint order is subject to two, three or four years in prison. Stalking can be charged under domestic law where there is enough evidence of occurrence of a relationship between the perpetrator and the victim at the point of the event or before the event (Victimsofcrime.org, 2015). This division is paramount as it gets into the basic cause of the event of stalking and allows the crime to be prosecuted with understanding of the situations surrounding it. A man indicted stalking may be sentenced to pay all therapeutic, guiding, and different expenses incurred by the casualty as an after effect of the offense. Stalking law clearly stipulates the conditions that need to be evident in a case for it to be prosecuted as a domestic violence. These provisions are vital in preventing domestic violence in the form of stalking from taking place in different households (Victimsofcrime.org, 2015). Montana law on the other end does not give provisions for charging stalking even among couples as domestic violence and thus having these cases prosecuted as all other criminal cases that involve stalking. In order for Montana to enjoy the huge coverage of domestic violence, enhance prevention of stalking as a form of domestic violence and ensure maximum victim protection, the state of Montana needs to stipulate conditions for prosecuting stalking among married couples, divorced individuals, people in a relationship or those living together as domestic violence. According to Mullen, Pathé & Purcell (2000), while casualties can make safety arrangements all alone, it is regularly useful to enroll the help of prepared experts. These experts, including lawyers and law enforcement officers, can help a casualty figure out which choices will best improve their safety and work to devise a security plan to address every special circumstance and conditions. When arranging for safety, casualties can consider what is known about the stalker, the individuals who may help, how to enhance security in ones surroundings, and what to do if there should arise an occurrence of a crisis. A normal stalking case lasts for almost two years, in this manner, arranging for safety must start when the casualty first recognizes the stalking conduct. Security arrangements need to be re-assessed and overhauled consistently as the stalkers conduct, the casualtys schedules changes. The security arrangements for any prescribed technique must concentrate on what the casualty feels will work to their greatest advantage at any given point in time. Conclusion As a form of domestic violence, stalking should be discouraged completely and restrictive measures need to be set in place to prevent potential perpetrators from engaging in it. Perpetrators need to understand that a failed relationship does not provide a platform for people to disrespect the rights of others by stalking them. Victims on the other end should be cautious of stalkers and report any suspicious case to the relevant authority and formulate safety measures to deal with stalking. References Davis, K. E., Frieze, I. H., & Maiuro, R. D. (2002) Stalking: Perspectives on victims and perpetrators New York: Springer Pub Meloy, J. R. (2006). The psychology of stalking: Clinical and forensic perspectives. Amsterdam [u.a.: Academic Press. McCue, M. L. (2008). Domestic violence: A reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO. Leg.mt.gov, (2015) 45-5-220 Stalking -- exemption -- penalty Retrieved 27 May 2015, from http://leg.mt.gov/bills/mca/45/5/45-5-220.htm Victimsofcrime.org, (2015) California Retrieved 27 May 2015, from https://www.victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/stalking-resource-center/stalking-laws/criminal-stalking-laws-by-state/california Mullen, P. E., Pathé, M., & Purcell, R. (2000) Stalkers and their victims Cambridge, U.K [u.a.: Cambridge Univ. Press. Read More