Britton Schams

3-18-13
Pd. 4
Final Draft
Should someone who killed an abusive partner in self-defense, be
sent to jail for the rest of their lives? Many people argue over whether or not
battered women syndrome should be allowed as a legal defense for women
who kill their abusers. On one side of the argument some lawmakers believe
women who kill their abusers should not have to spend serious jail time
because their act of violence was really just a form of self-defense. On the
other hand, its still murder, and if we let battered women syndrome used as
a defense it can be used as an excuse for almost any murder committed. To
explore this issue Ill give background information on the topic, why some
people want to use battered women syndrome as a defense, and why others
are against it.
Information I already knew about the topic I learned through TV, school
or from what friends and family have said related to the topic. Such as:
women tend to stay in abusive relationships because they feel trapped or
they think their abuser is capable of changing, (denial). Also there have
been several high profile cases depicted by the media about women who

murdered their supposed abusers. In one such case a women shot and killed
her husband while he slept, unplugged the phone, took her children, and
ran. She claimed to do this after years of suffering emotional, physical, and
sexual abuse at his hands. With that specific case it was a debate if the
husband had even abused her. A third thing I know is that even if a woman
manages to leave her abusive relationship, its not unheard of for them to be
stalked, harassed and even attacked by their former partner. Thats also why
some women feel trapped in their situation and that it would be better for
them to stay.
The reason I chose this topic was because I think the topic is
interesting and wanted to learn more about. Its also a highly controversial
issue with many different points of view on it which make it easy to discuss
and take a stand on. It can also have a profound effect on many different
people. I also wanted to learn why its still such a controversial issue still,
when so many different people think of this as a basic matter of common
sense. Although doing this wont change my point of view, I could
potentially change the points of views of others with the ideas I bring into
focus.
The way I went about receiving and gathering my information was
through the research data bases that are provided by the school. Any books I

used were also provided by the school in the school library . Some sources
were either very repetitive or just didnt have any usable quotes. If that
issued came to be I would just go to another source that seemed more
promising.
The term battered wife syndrome has been around for quite some
time. It was first "introduced in the late 1970s by psychologist Lenore Walker
to explain the psychological problems of women who are caught in a cycle of
domestic violence," (Proquest Staff online). The reason many women stay in
the abusive relationship is because the feel trapped, or they really do want
stay. Although, them wanting to stay is usually a result from the three stages
of an abusive relationship: the tension-building phase, the battering phase,
and the loving contrition phase. It is this last phase that leads many abused
women to believe the battering will not happen again," (Proquest Staff
online). What is also interesting is the wide gap in male to female and female
to male murder, 30 percent of female murder victims were killed by an
intimate partner from 1976 to 2004. 3 percent of male murder victims were
killed by intimate partner in same amount of time, (Jennings online).

People who want battered wife syndrome used as a legal defense for
murder often argue that abused women are really just victims, and when
women who are abused by their husbands their resort to murder, its really

just them using a form of self-defense. Some people are starting to look
more closely at women who killed male partners. For example: University of
Ottawa law professor Elizabeth Sheehy is currently analyzing 107 cases of
Canadian women who killed male partners. In 78 cases, Prof. Sheehy said
she discovered the victims were violent men and self-defense was used in
some form by the defendants," (Makin online). If these women had been
allowed to use battered women syndrome as a defense, most likely they
would not be sitting in jail for something that was, in a way, justified. Many
people continue to argue that women in an abusive relationship can just
leave, but that isnt always the case. "Battered women are more likely to be
killed themselves if they attempt to escape," (Leone online). So even if they
want to leave the threat on their lives make it almost impossible. Many
people argue that a woman, who has killed, is that she did what she had to
do to protect herself and her children,"(Gazette-Mail online). Battered
women often feel that death is the only way, but what many people dont
know is that many battered women who kill their abusers start out
intending to commit suicide themselves," (Leone online). So a person saying
she did it in cold blood is not an accurate statement. Another way of
thinking of it is "Clemency is really about mercy," (Jennings). When battered
wives kill their abusive husbands its because they feel its the only way. And
sending them to jail isnt justice, its punishing a victim who probably would

have ended up dead anyway. So that raises the question: In her web of
shame is death the only way? (David Draimen).

Many people are against using battered women syndrome as a defense

because they fear once that door is opened; it will be used to justify almost
every murder. Some people think the only reason its being brought up is
because "Feminists are playing the victim card with a vengeance, mostly
because it is the only card left, (Bakersville online). People are also against
using battered women syndrome as a defense because they fear it will open
Pandoras Box. They argue that using battered wife syndrome as a defense
will cause more problems than solve "because it can excuse almost any
killing," (Jennings). Many people who are for using battered wife syndrome,
argue that women are using self-defense, when in reality "women who killed
in domestic encounters... tended to premeditate the event," (Leone online).
How can it be claimed as self-defense when they planned out what they were
going to do? Also, using battered women syndrome is an unfair advantage to
men. "Men's groups complain that VAWA (Violence Against Women Act)
excludes male victims and point to research showing that men are equally
likely to be victims of domestic assault," (Bakersville). If women are allowed
to use an illegitimate defense that excludes male victims, then it should not
be allowed in a court of law. After all, murder is murder so "if she's going to
kill him ...she's going to have to suffer the consequences," (Jennings online).

In my personal opinion battered women syndrome should be allowed

as a legal defense. Sending an abused woman to jail for a long period of time
is not justice; its a crime in of itself. Although I am sure that in some cases
the woman isnt always the victim, it should be taken into consideration is if
there was a history of abuse, how intense the abuse was, and if she could
have left without suffering greater risks to herself. And besides, our court
system is about rehabilitation, and battered women dont need jail time, they
need help. I was not surprised at the information I found about the matter,
this is because the term battered women syndrome in of itself is often
disputed, let alone using it as a legal defense, so the opinions if found on
both side of the fence were not shocking to me in the least bit. Hopefully our
court system will find a way that will be best for all involved and put this
issue to rest.

Bibliography:
Bakerville, Stephen. Violence against Families. American Conservative 4
(2009): n. pag. Print
Leone, Bruno, et al., eds. Violence against Women. San Diego: David Bender,
1994. Print. Current Controversies.
Proquest Staff. At Issue: Battered Women. Proquest LLC: n. pag. SIRS.
Web.21 Feb. 2013

Few Acquittals Won with Battered Women Defense. Gazette-Mail

[Charleston, WV] 3 June 2007: n. pag. Print.
Jennings, Diane. Clemency Rare for Women Who Kill Abusive Men. Dallas
Morning News 15 Feb. 2007: n. pag. Print.
Makin, Kirk. Battered Women Defense Disappoints 21 Years Later. Globe
and Mail [Toronto, Canada] 11 Apr. 2011: n. pag. Print.
Draimen, David. "Innocence." 2010. Asylum. N.p.: n.p., 2010. N. pag. Print.