Spotlight on: Juvenile Perpetrators of Domestic Violence

by Jennifer Henderson1

Recent years have witnessed a groundswell of interest in domestic violence. Public service announcements, education campaigns, and popular media have attracted considerable attention. Statistics and research findings are abundant in the professional literature. Despite the resources and attention that are committed to this issue, however, comparatively little is directed to juveniles as the perpetrators of domestic violence.

For purposes of this article, domestic violence is defined to include two types of offenses: teen dating violence and family violence. Much of what we have learned about the dynamics of domestic violence, as well as effective interventions and prevention strategies, apply equally to cases involving adult and juvenile offenders. This article reviews several key principles having particular application to the juvenile perpetrator, and offers specific strategies to address issues unique to these forms of domestic violence committed by juveniles.

Dynamics of Domestic Violence

The Power and Control Wheel, developed by the Domestic Abuse Intervention Project in Duluth Minnesota, is a useful tool for understanding how certain behaviors contribute to the cyclical nature of domestic violence and the environment of fear it engenders.2 It is a conceptual way of looking at some of the tactics perpetrators use and how they work together. Battering is not an isolated or accidental behavior. Although this framework was designed with adult perpetrators in mind, juvenile perpetrators use these same behaviors, with some variations that are described below, and prosecutors must respond accordingly.

Teen Dating Violence

Violent relationships often begin in adolescence. Studies suggest that between 25 and 40 percent of teens have been assaulted by dates.3 According to the 1997 Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 20 percent of high school girls and 7 percent of high school boys had been victims of teen dating violence.4 Abuse frequently escalates during pregnancy;5 more than 70 percent of pregnant or parenting teenagers are beaten by their boyfriends.6 Violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications for victims: many will continue to be abused in their adult relationships7 and are at higher risk for substance abuse, eating disorders, risky sexual behavior, and suicide.8

Between one-fourth and one-third of adolescent abusers reported instrumental uses of violence, i.e., to “intimidate, frighten, or force the other person to give me something.”9 Intimidation, coercion, and threats are behaviors that are found in the Power and Control Wheel. Isolation from one’s social circle is another abusive behavior that may be especially effective in teen dating relationships where the peer plays such a pivotal role. Insults and other forms of emotional abuse are likewise powerful acts commonly found in violent teen relationships.

The school environment has unique characteristics that may inhibit victims from reporting abuse. Victims may attend classes with the perpetrators and experience intense pressure to recant. As noted above, ostracism from the social group is a particularly powerful form of retribution among adolescents.

Family Violence

Juveniles commit family violence when they commit an act against a parent, caretaker or sibling “intended to cause physical, psychological or financial damage to gain power and control.”10 One source estimates that as many as 18 percent of all violent crimes committed by juveniles could be classified as family violence.11

Because control is the motivating factor, the behaviors of juveniles who perpetrate family violence are indicative of abuse, not some stereotypical teenage rebellion. Like their adult counterparts, juvenile abusers “victimize the people they see as vulnerable.”12

Intrafamilial victims of juvenile abusers are extremely reluctant to come forward, for many reasons. Parents, in particular, have a natural instinct to protect their children and may choose to endure abuse directed toward them or other family members rather than see a child get in trouble with the juvenile justice system. Parents are also inhibited by shame, secrecy, and fears of retribution, whether by the juvenile or by the courts, which may order other children removed from their care.

Like other victims of domestic violence, family members simply want the abusive behavior to stop, ideally without formal justice system intervention. Once an incident is reported, victims may attempt to discourage responding officers from doing anything more than counseling the juvenile. Investigators and prosecutors who can identify abusive behaviors by juveniles as indicative of a pattern of family violence are better situated to fashion appropriate dispositions and to prevent future violence. Prosecutors should charge these crimes under their state’s domestic violence statute, if applicable, or other appropriate offense category.

Prevention, Programs, and Solutions

The social, physical, and psychological consequences of domestic violence perpetrated by juveniles can be devastating, both for victims and for the perpetrators themselves, since abusive behaviors are likely to continue into adulthood. Prevention, education, and early intervention are key components of a comprehensive strategy to eradicate this serious problem.

Prevention and education programs typically are located in schools. In Massachusetts, for example, the state Department of Education has established Updated Guidelines for Schools on Addressing Teen Dating Violence. These guidelines encompass a written policy chart detailing certain behaviors, their consequences, and the persons involved. They also include a restraining order checklist, teen safety plan, and a model for implementation. In 2000, 50 schools in Massachusetts received funds to implement these guidelines.13 Other programs, such as the Teen Dating Violence Prevention Program (TDVP) in Houston, also provide education to teens through partnerships with area shelters, local universities, or other women’s programs. The TDVP is curriculum based, ranging from one hour presentations to a semester long program. Contact information for these examples are available through APRI.

Many police departments around the country have established protocols for investigating domestic violence. These protocols should be reviewed to assure their applicability to juvenile offenders. In San Diego, for example, the language throughout the Domestic Violence Protocol does not exclude juvenile perpetrators. The protocol also has a section specifically pertaining to teen dating violence.

Santa Clara County, California, established a Juvenile Delinquency Domestic and Family Violence Court to encourage a coordinated community response to these problems. The Court mobilizes a wide range of specialized probation services, including comprehensive investigation, intensive supervision, age-appropriate violence prevention/batterers intervention programs, victim advocacy, referral and support services, and domestic and family violence prevention education programming.14

Batterers treatment programs for juvenile offenders should mirror their counterparts that serve adult perpetrators. These programs share six basic principles:15

1. Each person is responsible for his own behavior. The victim cannot cause the violence or eliminate it.
2. Provocation does not justify violence.
3. Violence is a choice – a dysfunctional, destructive choice with negative consequences.
4. Nonviolent choices exist as appropriate alternatives.
5. Violence is learned. Perpetrators can also learn to be nonviolent.
6. Violence impacts the whole family. Children learn that violence is an acceptable choice.

In addition to batterers treatment, juvenile offenders may benefit from other interventions, such as anger management, drug/alcohol therapy, family counseling, or individual therapy. Prosecutors must recognize, however, that none of the other interventions can substitute for treatment that is explicitly designed to confront and eliminate battering behaviors.

The Prosecutor’s Role

Prosecutors can and should play an integral role in developing and implementing protocols for investigating and prosecuting domestic violence cases involving juvenile perpetrators. Working with local law enforcement on protocols, as was the case in the San Diego example mentioned above, ensures all parties understand the applicable laws, opens lines of communication, and creates the opportunity for both police and the prosecutor to work together toward the common goal of addressing this violence and preventing future violence.

Prosecutors can be vigilant to charge juvenile domestic violence offenses for what they are. By documenting “dating violence” or “family violence” in all reports, case files, and court proceedings, prosecutors underscore the seriousness of this violence and lay the foundation for appropriate case disposition.

Like their counterparts in adult criminal court, juvenile court prosecutors often must contend with reluctant or recanting victims, or indeed, no victims at all. Often the hearsay rules and exceptions, as well as other rules of evidence, such as Rule 404(b), can be used to build a strong case in chief without a cooperative victim. Prosecutors should also maximize their use of photographs, medical information, and other witnesses.

In preparing dispositional recommendations, prosecutors should consider the wide range of treatment alternatives described above. Frequently, these options are offered among an offender’s probationary requirements. Some jurisdictions have first-time offense deferred sentencing statutes that allow dismissal of charges upon the successful completion of a probationary period and probation requirements.16 Even where this option is not available, probation can be an effective way to hold juvenile offenders accountable for their behavior.

Prosecutors also have opportunities to educate the public and other personnel in the juvenile justice system. The dynamics of juvenile domestic violence can be discussed in the context of jury voir dire (if a jury trial is available for juveniles) or arguments and questioning of witnesses during a bench trial. Countywide trainings, in-service training, and community gatherings offer additional opportunities to reach judges, other court workers, police officers, treatment professionals, and the general public.

Conclusion

Dating violence and family violence committed by juveniles are serious crimes and serious harbingers of future violent behavior. By recognizing these behaviors among adolescents, treating them seriously within the juvenile justice system, and marshaling age-appropriate resources for juvenile offenders, prosecutors stand a far better chance of halting the trajectory of violence.

1 Staff Attorney, APRI’s National Juvenile Justice Prosecution Center
2 The Power and Control Wheel can be found at www.duluth-model.org/daipmain.htm
3 Houston Area Women’s Center, Teen Dating Violence Website, hereafter, HAWC, www.hawc.org/topics/teen/facts.html
4 Massachusetts Department of Education’s Updated Guidelines for Schools on Addressing Teen Dating Violence, www.doe.mass.edu/lss.tdv/tdv1.html
5 HAWC; See also Helping Victims of Teen Dating Violence, Connecticut Clearinghouse Fact Sheet, hereafter Connecticut Fact Sheet, www.ctclearinghouse.org/fteendt.htm and the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic Violence Statistics, www.abanet.org/domviol.stats.html
6 Id., citing the Bureau of Justice Statistics that “95% of the reported incidents of assaults in relationships are committed by males.”
7 National Crime Prevention Council, ”Crime Prevention Program Ideas: Combating Teen Dating Violence”
8 Silverman, Jay G., Raj, Anita, Mucci, Lorelei A., Hathaway, Jeanne E., Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Use, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Suicidality, Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 286, no. 5, August 1, 2001
9 The American Bar Association Commission on Domestic Violence Statistics, citing Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 335 (Summer 1995)
10 Cottrell, Barbara, Parent Abuse: The Abuse of Parents by Their Teenage Children, page 3
11 Snyder, Howard N., Juvenile Arrests 1998, Juvenile Justice Bulletin OJJDP, December 1999, page 5
12 Cottrell, Parent Abuse, page 10
13 Massachusetts Department of Education’s Updated Guidelines for Schools on Addressing Teen Dating Violence, Background section, www.doe.mass.edu/lss.tdv/tdv1.html.
14 www.santaclaracounty.org/probation.Juvenile.html
15 Center on Crime, Community, and Culture, citing Tolman and Edleson, Intervention for Men Who Batter: A Review of Research (1995)
16 See Michigan Compiled Laws 769.4a