What exactly is a victim of domestic violence?

westerner1959

Legally speaking, a victim of domestic violence includes any person who is assaulted, battered, harassed, stalked, or threatened with violence in a domestic situation. The most common victims of domestic violence are children. Women (wives, girlfriends) are the second most common victims. However, men, parents, grandparents, siblings, relatives, and even roommates can be victims of domestic violence.

Psychologically speaking, the list of victims is quite a bit more extensive. All family members and loved ones are victimized in a domestic violence situation, even if only one person is the actual recipient of violence.

The criminal legal system is sometimes not effective at dealing with the actual victims of domestic violence because the victims are often unwilling to proceed with pressing charges or participating in the prosecution. In addition, the legal system is almost totally inadequate in dealing with the psychological victims.

If you are in fear or know a family member who is a victim, please look at the link below and call the legal authorities.

Winston

Anyone who has been assaulted physically or verbally by a family member or significant other.

And yes, that joke was distasteful and didn't even merit a smile.

starryeyed

For one thing, a person who did not see the warning signs beforehand, probably feeling comfortable with old, unhealthy patterns.
That's the just the behavioral psychology study in me, saying that we do indeed teach people how to treat us.
Well, I left my abusive mother when I was 11, so I guess if I can beg my dad to rescue me from my mom at that tender age, then everybody should be able to recognize abuse and get out.
Abuse means that there is (well in my opinion) there is a consistent pattern of negative behaviors directed at the "victim" (who often is, but sometimes is just not smart enough to leave).
It means that the jokes someone teases the person with are consistently negative, and eventually the person starts to believe that they are worthless (been there with an ex).
It means that instead of just sometimes getting mad and saying mean things, the abuser is always rude or emotionally distant.
It means that there is physical violence, whether provoked or not.
On that one, there is no question- you keep your hands to yourself.
We've all known that since kindergarten.
If on one or two occassions, a person says something that crosses the line, that's a mistake.
If the person is emotioanlyl distant and it's not due to a death in the family, etc., and it's not beacuse the "victim" refused to get divorced or something (I've been through that, and I think that was abuse all by itself)
then guess what?
It's a consistent pattern and it's abuse.
Also, not letting he other person visit with certain friends or family memebers,
controlling person's work or school schedule, etc. is also abuse.

laughter_every_day

Laws are named and defined differently in each state and country. I could give you the elements of the crime in my state, but I have no idea if that would be even close to the definition in your state or country.

minni-me

a victim is when someone is in a relationship that is getting abuse
either physical, social, emotional, cognitively etc

hope that helps

anymore help e-mail me on lilxmcdowall@yahoo.co.uk

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