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Under New York's Family Court Act of 1994, parties may obtain protective orders through Family Court and Integrated Domestic Violence Court only if they are married to or divorced from their alleged abuser, they are blood relatives of their abuser, or are single adults with children in common with their abuser. This means that a lot of people who want to get orders of protection must go to the criminal courts. That might seem fine, except for the fact that the standard of proof for permanent protective orders thus becomes 'beyond a reasonable doubt' rather than 'by a preponderance of the evidence.' In addition, the individual victim loses control of the process by having to involve the police and rely on overworked prosecutors to vigorously pursue the abuser.
Proposed Changes: Same-Old, Same-Old
In this year's legislative session, as in most other years' sessions since 1988, a change to the Family Court Act was proposed to address this problem. Unfortunately, it once again failed to progress and will have to be taken up again in next year's session. The proposed legislation, sponsored by Assembly- woman Helene E. Weinstein, D-Brooklyn, would have changed the definition of 'member of same family or household' to include a 'former spouse whether or not living together and unrelated persons who continually or at regular intervals reside in the same household or have done so in the past, and persons who are or have been in a dating or intimate relationship whether or not they have ever lived together.'
As in other years, Democrats tended to support the change and Republicans did not. Among opponents' objections is the fact of an already busy Family Court system. In an interview, Sen. John A. DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said, 'Family Court is meant to deal with family issues.' In his opinion, the expansion of the definition of 'family' that was proposed in Assembly Bill A6060, was 'pretty darned broad ' If you've got a [Family Court] system and you've got to make it work, and you've got an insufficient number of judges, why burden the system by increasing the definition of family, which would substantially increase the amount of cases that would go to that overburdened court?' Advocates counter that the increase in caseload would be minimal in comparison to what the Family Courts are already handling. 'Orders of protection cases are a small percentage of what the Family Court handles,' says Amy Barasch, executive director of the Albany-based State Office for Prevention of Domestic Violence. 'There would be an increase to the Family Court, no question about that,' said Barasch, 'but I'm not sure that would be a reason not to extend access.'
'Eternal Optimism'
For now, New York will remain the only state in the union that limits civil protective orders to those in relationships more traditionally defined as 'family.' The elderly and handicapped who are abused by their non-family caregivers, people who are merely dating and those in same-sex relationships are still relegated to the criminal court system, a far more difficult system in which to gain a protective order. Still, considering the number of times in recent years that proposals have been made to open up the civil courts to more victims of harassment and abuse, the issue will undoubtedly be brought up again next year. As Assemblywoman Weinstein said when asked about the prospects for a change in the law, 'I'm eternally optimistic.'
Under
Proposed Changes: Same-Old, Same-Old
In this year's legislative session, as in most other years' sessions since 1988, a change to the Family Court Act was proposed to address this problem. Unfortunately, it once again failed to progress and will have to be taken up again in next year's session. The proposed legislation, sponsored by Assembly- woman Helene E. Weinstein, D-Brooklyn, would have changed the definition of 'member of same family or household' to include a 'former spouse whether or not living together and unrelated persons who continually or at regular intervals reside in the same household or have done so in the past, and persons who are or have been in a dating or intimate relationship whether or not they have ever lived together.'
As in other years, Democrats tended to support the change and Republicans did not. Among opponents' objections is the fact of an already busy Family Court system. In an interview, Sen. John A. DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said, 'Family Court is meant to deal with family issues.' In his opinion, the expansion of the definition of 'family' that was proposed in Assembly Bill A6060, was 'pretty darned broad ' If you've got a [Family Court] system and you've got to make it work, and you've got an insufficient number of judges, why burden the system by increasing the definition of family, which would substantially increase the amount of cases that would go to that overburdened court?' Advocates counter that the increase in caseload would be minimal in comparison to what the Family Courts are already handling. 'Orders of protection cases are a small percentage of what the Family Court handles,' says Amy Barasch, executive director of the Albany-based State Office for Prevention of Domestic Violence. 'There would be an increase to the Family Court, no question about that,' said Barasch, 'but I'm not sure that would be a reason not to extend access.'
'Eternal Optimism'
For now,
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