Domestic Violence Case Processing: A Serious Crime or a Waste of Precious Time? (Law and Society)

Laws governing the criminal justice system's response to domestic violence have changed through the passage of mandated arrest and prosecution policies. However, while arrest rates for domestic violence increased throughout the 1990s and 2000s, these cases continue to receive lenient treatment by our courts. Most are resolved with dismissals. Currel-Dykeman explores if the court community literature can offer a possible explanation to this problem. She analyzes the local legal culture of two courts, a traditional court and a specialized problem solving court to understand how they discuss and process domestic violence cases differently. Court workgroup members were interviewed and candidly spoke about these cases in a way that helped explain the problem.