On the night of August 31st 1986, Angelique Lavallee a battered 21 year-old woman in an unstable common law relationship was charged with murder. She shot her spouse, Kevin Rust in the back of the head while he was leaving the bedroom. Angelique was in fear for her life after being taunted with the gun and was threaten to be killed. Hence, she felt that she had to kill him or be killed by him. The psychiatrist Dr. Shane, did an assessment and concluded that she was being terrorized by her partner. Dr. Shane concluded that Angelique was physically, sexually, emotionally and verbally abused. As a result, in the psychiatrist’s opinion, the killing was a final desperate act by a woman who seriously believed she would be killed that night. This in turn identify her as a …show more content…
Therefore, this case plays on the idea that, when an individual feels his or her life to be in danger, self-defence is accurate. In the case of Ms. Lavallee, both reasonableness and ethics were questioned. Since Ms. Lavallee is a victim of battered woman syndrome, when she pulls the trigger at that life-threatening moment, cannot be understood except in terms of the cumulative effect of months or years of being brutally abused. Overall, this case is an exceptional example of how self-defence comes to play within the criminal justice system. It is important for the law to revaluate cases for a better understanding of the balance of inclination over pain. For instance, although Lavallee was thinking that her life was in danger with action she committed, there is reason and story behind her crime. When the case is viewed from this perspective, it becomes clear that the battered woman’s knowledge of her partner’s violence was so profound that she knows the extent and nature of the violence beforehand, which allowed her to determine that this time it was different, and would probably result in life threatening
For the purpose of the paper, I will summarize the facts and leading events of the case of Elenita L and Romer N. Fajota. As reading through this trial I discovered that judges don’t always make the right decision for families or individuals. Likely in this case it is presentably true. Elenita and Romer got married in June 2005 and have three minor children together. As their marriage progressed, in the beginning of the year 2006, Romero became physically violent against Elenita. Romer committed various acts of violence against her and stated in court that it continued “even while pregnant with their second child”. But however, from 2006 to 2008 the violence continued against Elenita and her children. As the domestic violence continued, Elenita filed a
The author has a reputation for tough sentences, thus earning nicknames like "Ice Princess" and "25 to Life" among defendants. Several criminals who passed through her courtroom have threatened her life. Her family has had round-the-clock protection on several occasions. One chapter in this book is devoted to the judge's experience and perspective as a "victim" in regards to these threats.
What principles with respect to women battering and self-defense have been established in Lavallee's case?
The present paper intent to enquire into a female serial killer. It shall describe and analyze the theories behind the occurrences and sequent offer explanations. The studies of criminology theories it is important to recognize why humans decide on living a life cycle of crime. Wikipedia.org defines serial killer as, “a person who murders three or more people, usually in service of abnormal psychological gratification, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant break (a “cooling off period”) between them.” Precisely of this, humans who tend to be a serial killer are prone to developmental and physical characteristics. Several of these trends could fit into a model standard of a crime. A good example of analyzing the life and crimes of Aileen Wuornos, an American female serial killer who killed
Although tallying just two deaths, Ed Gein is one of America’s most infamous murderers. His notorious killings are remembered as being among the most perverse of any this century. His lunatic atrocities were magnified by the number of victims who fell prey to his sick deeds and who also fueled his numerous habits of cannibalism, necrophilia of women, and his obsession with the female body, especially his mother, Augusta Gein. Although clearly guilty for the acts Gein committed, psychiatrists were confident in their conclusion of his insanity. As is in many cases, Gein’s birth of insanity started in childhood.
The term victim precipitated homicide was first introduced into the study of criminology by Wolfgang (1958), in one of his highly appraised classic novels titled. Patterns in Criminal Homicide. This term was coined throughout this crime drama as a means to define the victims of a homicide that used physical force against the individual responsible for taking their life (Klinger, 2001). This is also described as a victim of a homicide playing an active role in their own death (Polk, 1997). Today this type of suicide is defined as “suicide by cop” and consist of an individual presenting enough of a threat towards a police officer to ensure a fatal shooting.
The Battered Woman Syndrome (BWM) is a syndrome whereas women react in a certain manner because of repetitively physical or psychological abused imposed on them by their mates. The Battered Woman Syndrome (BMW) is not limited in one area or location it is a problem that is occurring all over in the world (2009, pg. 148). Like every other issue in the world criticism come into play by psychologists and others when someone claims that they are victims of the Battered Woman Syndrome or the Battered Woman Defense when they are taken to trial for killing their batterers (BMW) (2009, pgs. 162-163).
Emerson Dobash and Russell P. Dobash take an insightful look on how men who murder an intimate partner think and how many contradictions are made to be proven as innocent. The authors use many research devices such as qualitative research, scientific evidence and case files to indicate to the audience that the main role of the abusers was to show “masculine possession” and “sexual ownership”, which eventually lead to a deadly outcome. The main advantage of this article was to illustrate the cognitions of the partner murderers and explain what issues arise before the killings are taken place. The most fundamental limitation of this article that was not mentioned was that not many point of views were recounted, which usually could leave readers in doubt. In conclusion as more research is being done into the brutality of this topic, it is the duty of the community to address issues to the youth of today so that the stream of violence does not continue into generations. This article will be one of the main references used in assessments to come, as it is a very useful source of reliable
Aileen Wuornos killed seven men. Her life story is one of abuse, neglect, abandonment and violence. Wuornos’ disturbed behaviour from a young age failed to attract positive intervention or support, although she easily fit the criteria for the disorders with which she was later diagnosed. Although Wuornos was made a Ward of Court at age 15 (“The Case of Aileen Wuornos - The Facts”, n.d.) within a year she was alone, unsupported, living rough and surviving as a prostitute (Note, 2004). This case study examines whether psychological theory supports the premise that Wuornos’ background and life experiences led to the offending which culminated in her becoming a serial killer. Relevant risk factors in her life are also evaluated in terms
Battered woman syndrome is a mental disorder that emerges within victims of long-term domestic abuse (Thomson Reuters). Around 4,000 women a year die at the hands of their abusers — 75 percent of them because they are trying to leave. For women, killing is often seen as a last resort (Starre Vartan). An example of a battered woman syndrome case is the case is People v. Scott in 1981, Caroline Scott murdered her husband Arthur Lee because she feared that he would murder her and her children ( Tobias Barry). In the novel, a similar situation occurs, with Beatrice. She believed that the only way to break free from the shackles her husband placed upon their family. The catalyst for her murder was when her husband abuses Kambili so much to the point she becomes “seriously ill”(212).
Aileen Wuornos Carol born on the 29th of February 1956 was one of the most famous serial killers of all times. Regarded as the first female serial killer in the United States, Aileen depicts the life of thousands of other people around the world whose lives were either changed or altered by their biological, environmental and developmental factors that made them to commit unimaginable crimes. This study analyzes the life of Aileen beginning with the crimes she committed. In addition, the study will examine the biological, developmental and environmental factors that led to the crimes she committed. Theories that could be applied to her actions including factors such as psychopathy will also be analyzed together with how they may have led to her crimes. In conclusion, the court
Domestic Violence In Rhonda Copelon’s chapter on “Intimate Terror: Understanding Domestic Violence as Torture” she compares official torture with domestic violence, claiming how the two are not the same but goes on to discuss the similar attributes they hold and uses examples to parallel the two. According to Copelon, there are two reasons for why intimate violence is not seen as torture or a human rights violation. The first being that intimate violence is not viewed as the textbook definition of violence, it is private, personal, and a “family matter.” And the second being the difference between public and private life in international law.
When viewed from a strictly medical, psychological aspect, Andrea Yates medical history indicates that after the birth of her first child, she began to suffer from various forms of depression and suicide attempts. If one only examines the paper trail and doesn’t think beyond what the medical history does or does not indicate, then perhaps, Andrea would be innocent by reason of mental insanity as the 2006 acquittal suggest. However, when viewed form a legal aspect there are several inconstancies that challenge if this former nurse was insane or if she in fact premeditated the murder of her children as well as her acquittal.
There are many cases where self- defense has been used as a plea where the victim felt they were in harms’ way or unable to escape a specific situation that ended badly. The definition for self- defense is: 1. Defense of oneself when physically attacked 2. Defense of what belongs to oneself, as ones work or reputation 3. (Law) the right to protect oneself against violence or threatened violence with whatever force or means reasonable or necessary. According to an expert on battered women, a woman must experience at least two complete battering cycles before being labeled a battered woman. (Walker) According to Dowd, “he believes the proper use of BWS assists the fact finder to understand the state of mind of the battered woman at the time she fought back against her abuser.”(1) Women should be able to use BWS as a plea when habitual abuse occurs within a relationship with a significant other and results in violence or worse death.
Judge Deborah Kooperstein told the story of an abused woman who came into the court crying hysterically begging for an order of protection to be ordered. The court granted her the order but two days later she came back with her husband demanding the charges and order be dropped (Marshad, N., & Olson, D 1995). This is a common situation seen where offenders will threaten their victim to drop chargers or court orders. Orders of protection can be very useful and work well in protecting a victim, but in order to be effective they need to be enforced. Many offenders know they are nothing but a piece of paper and more likely than not will not be enforced providing them with the change to reoffend. Of all the women in an emergency room, 35% of them are due to domestic violence. Hospital nurse John Ferry noted that many women will come in with injuries such as a black eye but will not disclose the rest of the information such as them being pushed down a flight of stairs which could also cause broken ribs. One woman reported that she had spent more days in hiding and in the hospital than her batterer did in jail. Police are often put into tricky situations because when calls come in for domestic violence calls they will go to detain the offender but the female will turn on them