Spousal Homicide/Battered Women

There has been much talk and debate about spousal homicide and about the "battered women's syndrome". These crimes and victims are on a different legal level due to the fact that there are different factors that contribute to the homicide, such as repeated acts of violence on an individual. It's important to acknowledge the different terms and categories of homicide as a basis to understanding the battered women's syndrome.

Battering: a repetitive pattern of behavior that is intended to gain power and control over a person (Gosselin, 2010)

Intimate Partner Violence: violence committed by a current or former spouse, opposite-sex cohabiting partner, same-sex cohabiting partner, date, or boyfriend or girlfriend (Gosselin, 2010)


Intimate Partner Homicide: is also identified as a family homicide. This category of family killing, is the killing of a spouse, ex-spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend (Gosselin, 2010)
             Femicide: killing of a woman by her relative, friend, or lover (Gosselin, 2010)

Justifiable homicide: killing without evil or criminal intent, for which there can be no blame, such as that done in self-defense to protect oneself or to protect another (Gosselin, 2010). 

Excusable homicide: a homicide committed accidentally or with sufficient provocation while doing some lawful activity is termed excusable homicide (Gosselin, 2010). 

Battered Women's Syndrome: 

       "Based on the theory of learned helplessness and the cycle of abuse. The battered victimbegins to believe that she or he cannot influence or escape the abuser's violence" (Gosselin, 2010). Sometimes these victims feel like their only option is kill the abuser. 

There are 4 general characteristics of the syndrome: 
1. The woman believes that violence is her fault.
2. The woman has an inability to place the responsibility for the violence elsewhere. 
3. The woman fears for her life and/or her children's lives.
4. The woman has an irrational belief that the abuser is omnipresent and omniscient.
(Gosselin, 2010). 

In the different cases in which women have killed their abusers, some argue that their actions are deemed justifiable and/or excusable. During court cases, some women use this syndrome as a defense for killing their partner. We saw in "Sin by Silence" that there were no laws in place or knowledge on the topic of battered women's syndrome, to help these women that had experienced abuse for many years. They were convicted solely on murder charges, and it wasn't until this information was put together, and laws began to pass, that these women were able to have their cases open up again. 

There is argument that women cannot use this "excuse" as self defense due to the fact that the abuse might have not been happening at that moment that she killed her partner. At the same time, it is justifiable and excusable because of the continuous amounts of abuse they had suffered, and their psychological state at the time of killing.

The women that are now behind bars for killing their partners as seen in the film, may remain in prison and carry out their sentence, but what they have done is create awareness and have created different advocacy groups and discussions that wouldn't have started without them. In my opinion, these women started another movement to help future women that may find themselves in these situations.

In 1989 the  Convicted Women Against Abuse was initiated and founded by Brenda Clubine. The first women to be granted clemency were Brenda Aris and Frances Caccavale. This organization of convicted abused women created advocacy and sought justice. Their efforts are impressive and admirable that they were survivors and had a voice.

October 22, 2008, Brenda Clubine, one of the women in prison convicted of murder, was released from prison and continues to speak out and advocate for victims of domestic violence. She was the 20th survivor to be released.

 
 











Brenda Clubine after being released!