PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Rebecca Stewart

Telephone: 513-479-3335

Email: info@EndToDV.org

Abuse Coalition Launches Project to End Over-Incarceration of Black Men, Curtail Harsh Domestic Violence Policies

WASHINGTON / October 19, 2021 – The over-incarceration of Black men is a widely acknowledged problem in the American criminal system. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, “black males were imprisoned at rates that ranged between 5 and 7 times the rates of white males.” (1) To address this problem, the Coalition to End Domestic Violence (CEDV) is launching an ambitious new project to stop the over-incarceration of Black men.

Each year, 1.47 million Black men, compared to 1.38 million Black women, are victims of sexual violence, domestic violence, or stalking, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (2). But inexplicably, there is more than a four-fold difference in the number of male vs. female African-Americans arrested for domestic abuse each year (3):

  • Male arrestees: 27,031
  • Female arrestees: 6,341

This arrest disparity is caused by a variety of factors such as mandatory arrest laws, biased predominant aggressor policies (4), and faulty training programs (5).

Some observers have referred to this disparity as “mass incarceration:”

  • The “criminalization of social problems has led to mass incarceration of men, especially young men of color” – Ms. Foundation for Women (6)
  • “Day after day, prosecutors proceeded with cases against the wishes of victims, resulting in the mass incarceration of young Black men.” — Law Professor Aya Gruber (7)

Numerous persons have noted that the current emphasis of domestic violence programs on arrest, prosecution, and incarceration has not been shown to be effective in reducing abuse (8). Forty-six state domestic violence/sexual assault coalitions have expressed regret for their over-emphasis on “increased policing, prosecution, and imprisonment as the primary solution” to domestic violence, and instead called for “transformative justice approaches.” (9)

The CEDV project to end the over-incarceration of Black men is supportive of the recent proposal of Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont to reform the Violence Against Women Act to emphasize restorative justice approaches. During the October 5 hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Leahy explained, “One size doesn’t fit all in the criminal justice system….I think utilizing restorative justice approaches is one of those necessary improvements” to the Violence Against Women Act (10).

The CEDV project is supported by a Consultant Panel that consists of representatives from civil rights groups, the criminal justice community, academia, and other sectors. Each week, members of the Consultant Panel receive draft recommendations to comment on issues ranging from domestic violence diversion programs, mental health approaches, and impartial police investigations. The Consultant Panel also holds a monthly Zoom call. The final recommendations of the Consultant Panel will be presented to state lawmakers beginning in January 2022.

The Coalition to End Domestic Violence is inviting interested persons to serve on the Consultant Panel. For more information, contact arrests@endtodv.org .

Citations:

  1. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/p11.pdf
  2. Centers for Disease Control, National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey: 2010-2012 State Report. Tables 5.3 and 5.6. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs-statereportbook.pdf
  3. https://endtodv.org/black-men/
  4. https://endtodv.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Predominant-Aggressor-Mass-Inceration.pdf
  5. https://endtodv.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Thirty-Years-of-DV-Half-Truths-Falsehoods-and-Lies.pdf
  6. Foundation for Women (2003). Safety and Justice for All. New York, p. 17.
  7. Gruber A (2007). The Feminist War on Crime. Iowa Law Review, Vol. 92, p. 941. https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/articles/325/
  8. (https://www.saveservices.org/2021/03/women-say-vawa-programs-lack-effectiveness/
  9. https://endtodv.org/pr/46-state-abuse-coalitions-call-for-end-to-harsh-vawa-driven-criminal-justice-policies/
  10. https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/renewing-and-strengthening-the-violence-against-women-act Minutes 1:08:10 to 1:11:30.