Domestic Violence In Military Families Essay ⋆ Criminal Justice Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

The Department of Defense defines domestic violence as an assault, battery, threat to injure or kill, other acts of violence, and emotional maltreatment committed by a spouse against another spouse. The definition recognizes only “spouse abuse.” The definition does not reference violence between unmarried intimate partners of military personnel. Relationships between girlfriends or boyfriends, engaged individuals, former spouses, or individuals who share a child in common are excluded by the definition. The definition differs substantially from standards contained in state and federal statutes.

Reports have shown that the victim seeking services from the military departments is predominantly the female civilian spouse of active duty personnel. Victims normally have children and more than half have been married approximately two years. Spousal abuse as substantiated by the military departments is predominantly perpetrated by male active duty personnel. An increasing number of military families reside off the installation, which impacts the response of civilian and military authorities to incidents of domestic violence.

Policy And Program Development

Programs, policies, and procedures to address spousal abuse and child maltreatment in military families have existed in the U.S. Armed Forces since the enactment of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974. Child advocacy programs were mandated within the military departments by the act. The military effort was initially fragmented among the services in the late 1970s. The General Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report, Military Child Advocacy Programs—Victims of Neglect, criticizing the inconsistency and recommending centralized efforts at the Department of Defense level, including a single policy for collection of incidence data, increased staffing and education, and training of military personnel in the child abuse area. A series of regulations, instructions, directives, and orders mandated the development of the Office of Family Policy and Family Advocacy Program. Subsequently, each service adopted policies and programs.

The parallel development of policies to address child maltreatment and spouse abuse resulted in mandatory reporting to military authorities of maltreatment, neglect, or abuse occurring on a military installation, involving service members, and reported to military and civilian personnel, including health care professionals, to be codified.

The passing decades have produced changes in military and civilian communities’ response to domestic violence. The civilian community has supported shelters, criminal statutes, and treatment and training programs, culminating in the enactment of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and its reauthorizations. The Department of Defense issued a zero tolerance memorandum declaring that domestic violence will not be condoned or tolerated among the ranks. The message has not been clear or consistent throughout the armed forces, however.

Intimate partner violence in the U.S. Armed Forces attracted significant public attention following tragic events at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in 1998 and Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in 2002. The homicides in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, fostered the establishment of the Department of Defense Domestic Violence Task Force (DTFDV). The mission of the DTFDV was to conduct a broad, thorough investigation of the nature of domestic violence within the military community and the systems’ response, and to develop policy and program recommendations for change. The annual reports of the DTFDV contained nearly 200 recommendations for consideration of the Department of Defense.

The homicides in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, precipitated the enactment of the Armed Forces Domestic Security Act. The act enables the service and enforcement of civilian orders of protection on military installations. In addition, the Department of Defense was authorized to create a privacy policy for victims of domestic violence and enhance the victim advocate program within the services.

The Department of Defense established the Family Violence Policy Office to implement the recommendations of the DTFDV in 2003. The Department of Defense issued 16 interim directive-type memoranda. Funding was provided to the policy office to contract victim advocates and conduct training for military command, first responders, chaplains, and personnel.

In 2006, the Department of Defense established a privacy policy for victims of domestic violence, Restricted Reporting Policy for Incidents of Domestic Abuse. Victims choose unrestricted or restricted reporting following an incident of domestic violence. Nonrestricted reporting follows the current channels of reporting (including chaplain, command, Family Advocacy Program, victim advocates, and others), resulting in notification of the command of an alleged perpetrator and law enforcement. Restricted reporting enables a victim to receive victim advocacy services and medical treatment without notification of the command or law enforcement. Adult victims of domestic violence who choose the restricted reporting option may report only to health care professionals, victim advocates, or supervisors of victim advocates.

A report by the General Accounting Office, Military Personnel: Progress Made in Implementing Recommendations to Reduce Domestic Violence, but Further Management Action Needed, outlined the limitations of data collection within the services, criticized the failure of the Department of Defense to fully implement the DTFDV recommendations, and defined the limitations of the directive-type memorandums.

The Department of Defense subsequently issued the instruction Domestic Abuse Involving Department of Defense Military and Certain Affiliated Personnel. The instruction includes previously issued directive type memoranda outlining the role of the command, law enforcement, judge advocate, victim advocate, medical personnel, chaplain, and Family Advocacy Program staff. The directive supports the development of a coordinated community response to domestic violence within the armed forces.

Risk Factors

The military community or culture encompasses risk factors that enhance the vulnerability of victims of domestic violence, including, but not limited to, geographical isolation from family and friends; social isolation within the military community; residential mobility; financial insecurity; economic dependence; and fear of adverse career impact. Military training affords a perpetrator an opportunity to develop and enhance techniques. Deployments impact the prevalence and severity of incidents. Combat stress and posttraumatic stress disorder may influence risk and prevalence of domestic violence in the armed forces.

Prevalence

The prevalence of domestic violence within the armed forces is difficult to ascertain due to the lack of standardized data, uniform interpretation of data, and failure to implement databases authorized by Congress. Recidivism and re-offense data remain unreliable. Department of Defense estimates suggest that domestic violence in the military rose during the 1990s. The rate escalated from 19 cases per 1,000 individuals in 1990 to 26 per 1,000 in 1996. Reporting practices were altered in 1997, which resulted in a decrease. Although substantiated reports decreased, the levels of moderate to severe violence increased.

The Department of Defense estimates indicate a slow decline in the number of cases of substantiated domestic violence since 2000. In 2004, the rate was 14 per 1,000, entailing 16,400 reported cases with 9,450 substantiated incidents. The army consistently shows the highest rate of domestic violence, followed by the marines, navy, and air force.

The GAO reports that the failure to fully implement the domestic violence component of the Defense Incident-Based Reporting System, personnel shortages, installations not reporting command disciplinary actions, law enforcement systems not yet operational, and ineffective communication of standards preclude a comprehensive analysis of Department of Defense data or a comparative analysis of military and civilian communities.

Bibliography:

Defense Task Force on Domestic Violence. (2001). Initial report. Arlington, VA: U.S. Department of Defense.
Defense Task Force on Domestic Violence. (2002). Second annual report. Arlington, VA: U.S. Department of Defense.
Defense Task Force on Domestic Violence. (2003). Third annual report. Arlington, VA: U.S. Department of Defense.
Hansen, C. (2001). A considerable service: An advocate’s introduction to domestic violence and the military. Domestic Violence Report, 6(4), 49–50, 60–64.
The Miles Foundation, Inc., & Survivors in Service United (SISU). (2007). Choices and challenges: A guide to surviving intimate partner violence in the U.S. Armed Forces. Newtown, CT: The Miles Foundation.
Rosen, L., & Hansen, C. (Eds.). (2003). Violence against women associated with the military: Part I. Intimate partner violence. Violence Against Women [Special issue], 9(9).

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