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Georgia: Hotbed of Domestic Violence

Jill

Tens of thousands of Georgia women suffer intimate partner violence, and their abusers go unpunished.

A very small percentage of women in Georgia seek help and justice after suffering violence. Many stay with their partners because they have nowhere else to go; currently there are only two shelters in all of Georgia, both run by NGOs. Police have sometimes not responded to complaints of violence, and women who do go to the police are often beaten again by their husbands or partners.

Domestic law presents a further hurdle to fighting impunity. If a woman sustains serious injuries, the state is obliged to open a criminal case. However, for crimes such as “premeditated infliction of minor damage to health” and “beatings” the state does not initiate prosecutions — the abuse survivor has to file a complaint herself in order to obtain justice. These laws put survivors of domestic violence at further risk because batterers often pressure women to drop their cases.

Emphasis mine. via Feministing, which has tons of great stuff up today.

3 thoughts on Georgia: Hotbed of Domestic Violence

  1. Are these prosecution guidelines specific to DV? And is the suggestion that they should be changed only with respect to DV? I can certainly see the merits of the state not initiating prosecutions in cases of “premeditated infliction of minor damage to health” and “beatings” for common assaults that come to the laws attention outside of DV.

    The debate between mandatory prosecution vs. intervention only with the victim’s consent is an interesting one. I can see the motivation for mandatory prosecution. Though I suspect victims withdraw cases not just because of presure, but also because many of them have a relationship with their partner and for their own reasons genuinely do not wish them to be punished because it would disrupt this.

    If I ever was a victim I would like the police to do what I wanted, and not act against my wishes. But when it comes to other people I think maybe the state does know better than they do what’s good for them. So I’m in two minds.

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