SAVE Press release: "Jim Crow Justice under Partner Abuse Laws, Report Finds"

Release here. Excerpt:

Jim Crow Justice under Partner Abuse Laws, Report Finds

WASHINGTON, May 3 / U.S. Newswire / -- Each year an estimated two million Americans see their basic rights compromised or vitiated by heavy-handed domestic violence policies. This number rivals, and in some ways surpasses the legal abuses of the infamous Jim Crow era, according to a report released today.

The analysis, “Assaulting our Rights: How Domestic Violence Laws Curtail our Fundamental Freedoms” is published by SAVE – Stop Abusive and Violent Environments. The report is available online: http://www.saveservices.org/special-reports/

Constitutional law experts have long expressed doubts about “get-tough” domestic violence policies. According to Cheryl Hanna of the Vermont Law School, “evidentiary standards for proving abuse have been so relaxed that any man who stands accused is considered guilty.”

The SAVE report identifies nine Constitutionally-protected rights that are often ignored by domestic violence laws. These rights include:

1. Probable cause for arrest: Twenty-three states mandate arrest for allegations of assault, even when probable-cause evidentiary standards are not met.

2. Right to due process: Civil domestic violence laws do not require notice or hearing, or even proof of abuse before a temporary restraining order is issued.

3. Equal treatment under the law: Domestic violence programs provide legal services to abuse accusers, but not for defendants, thus compromising the principle of "innocent until proven guilty."'