Family Violence and Intimate-Partner Abuse
Marcia Norman, 39, and her husband, Mitchell, had been married for 25 years and had several children. Mitchell did not work. He forced Marcia to make money by prostitution, and he made fun of that fact before family and friends. He beat her if she resisted going to a truck stop and offering her body. On a few occasions, he made her eat out of the pets' bowls and insisted that she bark like a dog. He threatened to kill or maim her numerous times.
Marcia and Mitchell got along very well when he was sober. But early one morning, he was intoxicated when he went to a highway rest area where Marcia was prostituting herself and assaulted her. He continued beating her all day after they got home. She called the police and was told to come in and file a complaint, but she was afraid that he would kill her if she had him arrested. She ingested a bottle of pills, then panicked and called EMS. Her husband cursed her as the paramedics treated her and urged them to let her die. After they left, Mitchell continued to slap, kick and throw objects at Marcia. At one point, he put a cigarette out on her upper torso, causing a small burn. After he fell asleep, Marcia took their baby to her mother's so that she would not wake him, returned with a pistol and killed him.
At trial, Marcia pleads self defense, which is defined as "the necessity, real or reasonably apparent, of killing an unlawful aggressor to save oneself from imminent death or great bodily harm." The state does not have a battered-person syndrome statute. (Source: North Carolina v. Norman, 378 SE2d 8 [Supreme Court of North Carolina 1989])
In a paper of approximately 2,200 words, make alternate arguments that 1) Marcia Norman is not guilty of the murder of her husband; 2) Marcia Norman is guilty of the murder of her husband. What rights does a spouse have to demand "sexual services"? What rights does a battered spouse have to protect herself/himself from such abuse? Use the paper to show what you have learned about intimate-partner abuse and the pros and cons of battered-spouse syndrome.
You do not need to look at the case or research the law of North Carolina or any other state. Use the information from the assigned text. You may supplement the paper with independent sources, but this should not be necessary. Papers based on internet sources alone will not receive credit. You should be demonstrating that you have read and understood the material assigned.
Family Violence and Intimate Partner Abuse
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Family Violence and Intimate Partner Abuse
Over the years, there have been efforts made towards solving the issue of family violence and intimate partner violence, and researchers have been at the forefront in collecting data on the same. The media ranging from popular magazines and televisions, have been at the forefront of bringing viewers family violence incidents in the community. Statistics have shown that there are cases of both men and women victims in intimate partner relationships; however, there are more men offenders in intimate relationships than female individuals. Also, Law enforcement agencies are a rich source of data from their reports on family violence, including the National Crime Victimization Survey and the American Humane Society. Also, the Violence Against Women Act plays a significant role in changing the criminal justice system with information on crimes of violence against women. In the case of Marcia and Mitchell, the husband abuses his wife both physically and emotionally, which might have affected the wife's mental wellness resulting in his killing. However, it was still lawfully wrong for Marcia to take the law into her hands and take a life.
Marcia's verdict can be made against her for different reasons. Several factors are said to be contributing to intimate partner violence. IN the case of Marcia, her husband only got violent when he was intoxicated. When sober, he and his wife got along well. In this situation, the substance Abuse Theory can be applied to draw judgment in Marcia's trial. The theory holds that drugs or alcohol is a major cause of family violence and intimate partner abuse (Wallace et al., 2019). This theory holds that the substances taken impair an individual's judgment, which leads to violent acts. Mitchell was drunk when he committed violent acts towards his wife. This implies that the wife is guilty of committing the crime since the husband was intoxicated and thus not in the right mental state, but she had not taken any drugs implying that she committed the crime very consciously. However, the criminal justice system holds that substances are not a cause of family violence but are used to commit violent acts. Many people drink and abuse their partners, and their change when sober might conclude that the violence is due to the intoxication. Despite intoxication, men need to be punished if they abuse their partners, whether they committed the act while intoxicated or not.
The plea of Marcia that the killing was a result of self-defense requires the victim to be in fear that the offender will inflict deadly harm to them at that particular point. During the time of the killing, Marcia took the children to the grandmother's house before going back home and killing the husband with a gun. The actions of Marcia before she killed her husband imply that it was premeditated. Imminent peril did not exist to the victim at the particular time that the shot was fired. The law required that peril appears to the victim as both present and immediate rather than prospective or in the future (Wallace et al., 2019). Marcia first took her child to the grandmother's house, came back home, picked a gun, and went to shoot her husband. Therefore, she had decided to kill her husband early enough and had a lot of time to change her mind. The court, in this case, might therefore find the victim guilty of murder.
There has been significant research conducted on the relationship between mental disorders and the abusers in intimate relationships; no data distinguishes the difference between those who abuse and the other population. This implies no research showing that the abuser had mental issues to support his abuse case. Also, many mentally ill people are in society but do not engage in aggressive behavior. Consequently, the abuser cannot be mentally disturbed, as it does not justify the abuse he inflicted on his wife. A sober mind engaging in aggressive behavior shows that it is a personal choice to act this way, and the wife might have felt at the edge as he was not changing for the better.
On the other hand, Marcia's actions can be justified based on multiple factors. Intimate partner abuse has a long-lasting impact on victims, where they, in most cases, lose a sense of self-esteem, and helplessness feeling piles up. Physical abuse was prominent in the relationship between Marcia and Mitchell, to the extent that police were called to the homestead. Aggression can start by being grabbed in the arm, slapping, which escalates in severity to the extent that the victim finds no means out of the relationship (Wallace et al., 2019). Marcia went through humiliation violence where Mitchell forced her to go into prostitution, a humiliating act that she was most likely unwilling to do. Also, being beaten at the truck station was significantly humiliating to Marcia, as passersby may have seen the incident. In addition, she was humiliated in the presence of family and friends regarding prostitution, while it was him who forced her into the acts. Marcia was also a victim of sexual abuse as she was forced to prostitute her body and take back the money to her husband. Prostitution, in this case, is used by the husband as a form of livelihood, which is an act that Marcia was most likely unwilling to do. However, fear was instilled in her, to the extent that she could not say no to her husband. According to Wallace et al. (2019), most sexual abuse victims begin to develop self-blame and self-hatred, which results in an increase in vulnerability and issues adjusting as years go by. The feelings of self-hatred Since she was 39 at the time, the aging process might have increased the loss of confidence.
Psychological problems most likely triggered Marcia's action after prolonged periods of abuse. Emotional abuse goes far beyond using derogatory names o...