Why Do Domestic Violence Victims Recant

Why Do Domestic Violence Victims Recant Relationships Violence and Abuse Print Why Do Domestic Violence Victims Recant? Why Its More Complicated Than Fear of More Violence By Buddy T facebook twitter Buddy T is an anonymous writer and founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee with decades of experience writing about alcoholism. Learn about our editorial policy Buddy T Updated on February 20, 2020 Photography by Elvira Kalviste/Getty Images More in Relationships Violence and Abuse Spouses & Partners LGBTQ Its surprisingly common for victims of domestic violence to decide to recant their testimony and not follow through on pursuing charges against an intimate partner. In some states, laws have been passed requiring mandatory arrest and prosecution of the cases whether the victim cooperates or not. If a victim of domestic violence refuses to testify, or recants and testifies that the incident did not happen, it makes it harder to get a conviction. Instead, the abuser is released from jail, avoids consequences, and the cycle of violence is free to repeat itself. How to Help Victims of Domestic Violence Here are some of the reasons a victim of domestic violence may recant their story. Threats of More Violence Advocates and counselors working with people who have experienced domestic violence used to believe that victims recanted their stories because they were afraid of more violence. The thought was that victims changed their minds about pursuing charges because the perpetrators threatened them. However, recent research has revealed that it is not threats that the abusers use to sway their victims into changing their stories; rather, its a sophisticated emotional appeal that typically progresses through five distinct stages designed to minimize their actions and gain the sympathy of the victim. The Recantation Process For security reasons, many jails and detention centers record conversations of telephone calls placed by inmates. The participants know that their conversation is being recorded because an announcement is made at the beginning of the call. By studying many hours of recorded conversations between male inmates facing felony charges of domestic violence and their female victims who later decided to recant researchers were able to gain insight into the recantation process. Signs of Intimate Partner Violence The Five Steps of Recantation Researchers have identified a five-step process of recantation. It begins with victims forcefully defending themselves and ends with them uniting with the perpetrator and planning on how they will change their testimony. The five stages of recantation are as predictable as the cycle of violence that repeats in a physically abusive relationship. Step 1: Strong and Resolved Early telephone conversations are often heated arguments about the events leading up to the acts of violence. In these initial calls, the victim is strong and resists the perpetrators account of events. In the first or second calls, the victims are almost always resolved to see the abuser prosecuted for their actions. As the calls continue, that resolve begins to erode. Step 2: Minimizing the Abuse In later calls, the perpetrator tries to convince the victim that the incident was not that serious. More importantly, it is during this stage that the abuser tries to gain the sympathy of the victim by casting themselves as a victim (e.g. suffering in jail, miss the family, etc.) This is a critical turning point in the process when the real victim begins to see the perpetrator as a victim. Once the victim begins soothing and comforting the abuser, the next three steps of the process tend to occur relatively quickly. Warning Signs a Relationship Could Turn Violent Step 3: They dont understand us. Once the abuser has gained the victims sympathy, the pair begins to bond over their love for each other. The couple becomes united in a fight against a world that doesnt understand their relationship. Step 4: Lie for Me Now that its them against the system, the state, or an uncaring society, the abuser will simply ask the victim to recant their accusations. Once the victim agrees, they move into the last stage. Step 5: Developing the Plan When the victim agrees to change their story, the couple then works together to develop (and corroborate) their stories. Is Your Partner Abusive? Preparation Could Be Key Amy Bonomi, associate professor of human development and family science at Ohio State University, conducted a first-of-its-kind analysis of actual conversations between abusers and their victims. Bonomi believes the findings will give advocates and counselors a new model for how to work with victims of intimate partner violence. Specifically, if victims are prepared ahead of time that their abusers are likely to use sympathy appeals and minimization techniques, victims may be less likely fall for the ploy and more apt to follow through with the prosecution. Bonomi concludes that without such help, it may be difficult for some victims to disentangle themselves from violent relationships. Quiz: Is Domestic Violence Putting Your Life in Danger?