Judgment Days: On Domestic Violence, Battered Women and Children, and a Liberal Court

ISBN-10: 0542461560
ISBN-13: 9780542461569
Pages: 141
Language: English
Published: 2005
Publisher: University of California, San Francisco
Author: Anke Therese Schulz

Description

This ethnography is an observational study of a dedicated criminal domestic violence court in San Francisco. Ethnographic methods were used to gather data about the court that are typically unrecorded in court dockets and transcripts. Data were collected to examine five research questions: (1) How does the criminal court process cases of domestic violence against women and children?; (2) How are battered women and children treated by court officials?; (3) How does the court protect victim safety?; (4) How does the court address the needs of children?, and (5) How does the court deal with the issue of family privacy? Fieldwork was conducted for a period of six weeks in January and February, 2004. Data were analyzed using content analytical methods and NUD*IST, an ethnographic software program. Key themes and concepts were identified, coded and analyzed to identify underlying judicial and social processes involved in criminal domestic violence court cases.