The Case Of R V. Lavallee's Battered Women Syndrome

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“If I didn’t kill him myself, then he would’ve killed me first,” said Angelique Lavallee. Mrs. Lavallee is one of the many women who have been accused for murder of a male partner within a household. When questioned by the police for statement evidence, she kept on repeating the same statement over and over again. Domestic violence has been on an rise ever since the 1960s, and has not shown any signs of slowing down. In the United States, statistic shows that a woman who lives with an aggressor dies every 14 minutes. In average, more than 200 women die every year. (WHERE IS THIS FROM) Such concerns have been continuously brought up in court, and this usually arises in situations where an abused woman survives the continuous violent abuse …show more content…

In the landmark case of R v. Lavallee , the accused has been living with her aggressor for four years. On the day of the incident, both the accused and her partner had a gathering at their house, where when most of the guests have departed, the accused and her partner had an argument where the partner then pushed her down a flight of stairs. The accused then ran outside of her house to ask for help from her neighbours, when her partner came looking for her. The accused then ran into the house and hid herself in the closet in their bedroom. Her partner then came in and opened the closet and hit her. He then exerted a gun and gave it to her and shot their bedroom window. When he reloaded the gun, he stated “You’re my old lady. You do as you’re told. Either you kill me or I’ll kill you.” When her partner put the gun next to the accused and turned around, the accused picked the gun up and shot him in the head. The accused was found talking to herself and crying when police came and arrested …show more content…

The issue with this syndrome is the extent of defining the syndrome in applying in courts during trial. There are ample theories on what is ‘Battered Women Syndrome’ but none of it provides any certainties in ensuring a fixed platform for judges or juries to base their decisions upon. Their decisions are heavily influenced with the basis of the law of

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