Domestic violence (also named domestic assault or family violence) is violence or other abuse by one person against another in a domestic setting, such as in marriage or cohabitation. It may be termed intimate partner violence when committed by a spouse or partner in an intimate relationship against the other spouse or partner, and can take place in heterosexual or same-sex relationships, or between former spouses or partners. Domestic violence can also involve violence against children, parents, or the elderly. It takes a number of forms, including physical, verbal, emotional, economic, religious, reproductive, and sexual abuse, which can range from subtle, coercive forms to marital rape and to violent physical abuse such as choking, beating, female genital mutilation, and acid throwing that results in disfigure mentor death. Domestic murders include stoning, bride burning, honor killings, and dowry deaths.
A domestic assault charge in Los Angeles threatens more than just your marriage. Like any other assault, a domestic assault conviction can result in not only the loss of your family, but the loss of your freedom as well. Emotionally-charged and aggressively pursued by prosecutors, domestic assault charges are serious and a conviction can result in serious penalties.
Various individuals and groups have defined domestic violence to include everything from saying unkind or demeaning-words, to grabbing a person’s arm, to hitting, kicking, choking, or even murdering. Domestic violence most often refers to violence between married or cohabiting couples, although it sometimes refers to violence against other members of a household, such as children or elderly relatives. It occurs in every racial, socioeconomic, ethnic, and religious group,although conditions such as poverty, drug or alcohol abuse, and mental illness increase its likelihood. Studies indicate that the incidence of domestic violence among homosexual couples is approximately equivalent to that found among heterosexual couples.
Domestic assault involving married or cohabiting couples received vast media attention during the 1990’s. The highly publicized 1995 trial of former professional football player and movie actor O.J. (Orenthal James) Simpson for the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Lyle Goldman thrust it onto the front pages of newspapers for many months. Simpson was acquitted of the murder charges, but evidence produced at his trial showed that he had been arrested in 1989 for spousal Battery and that he had threatened to kill his ex-wife. The disclosure that a prominent sports figure and movie star had abused his wife prompted a national discussion on the causes of domestic violence, its prevalence, and effective means of eliminating it.
Domestic violence is an epidemic all over the world. Victims tend to be women, though men are frequently victimized too in both heterosexual and same-sex relationships. More than 38 million American women have been victims of domestic violence. The technological revolution has opened up new ways for abusers to dominate, intimidate, and control the people in their lives through manipulation, cyber-stalking, and emotional blackmail. But the #MeToo movement and new research have exposed ways for abuse victims to fight back and free themselves from the fear and control of dangerous, narcissistic abusers.