The Assaulted Wife: "Catch 22 Revisited"

An analysis of the historical origins of attitudes toward wife-beating. In England, the common law right of husbands to punish their wives through the use of force prevailed until the middle of the seventeenth century. Similarly, in the United States, the husband's right to chastise his spouse was affirmed in a decision handed down by the Supreme Court of Miss in 1824. By the end of the nineteenth century, the courts had reversed their previous stance & openly stated their rejection of the right of chastisement. Yet, as police records clearly attest, wife-beating remains prevalent in modern society. A study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of Mich's current legal system in furnishing assistance to women physically abused by their husbands. Dependent variables such as current societal & psychoanalytic attitudes, legal perspectives on marriage & victim to deal with the situation, were also reviewed. An analysis was made, not only of Mich statutes & cases, but also of legal, medical & sociological studies relating to wife assault. Twenty victims of assault were interviewed, but due to the limited size of the sample, valid statistical analysis was not possible. The results indicate that victims of domestic violence face a chance that the complaint will be taken seriously. In the event that the police do respond to the call, there is usually no guarantee of subsequent protection. Criminal courts will take the position that wife assault is not a crime, but is a family matter. Civil courts will declare it to be a crime that must be dealt with by the police. To correct these injustices, it is suggested that police personnel be more adequately trained in crisis intervention techniques, that temporary living facilities be provided for victims of violence. More important, early solution of the problem will not result unless wife-beating is universally regarded as a crime. M. Malley.