U.S. flag
      An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.
        Here's how you know
      Here's how you know**Official websites use .gov**
            
            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
      **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
            
            A **lock** (
            A locked padlock
            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Menu

      
        close

            
            
                                              About NIJ
        
                    
  
          About NIJ
      
    
          The NIJ Director
          How NIJ Is Organized
          Mission and Guiding Principles
          Research and Development Process
          Strategic Framework
          Assessments of NIJ
          Annual Reports & Reports to Congress
          Staff Directory
          Funding & Awards
        
                    
  
          Funding & Awards
      
    
          Current Funding
          Forthcoming Funding
          Expired Funding
          Awards: Listing of Funded Projects
          Guidance for Applicants and Awardees
          Fellowship & Student Programs
          Travel Scholarships
          NIJ Challenge Program
          Library & Multimedia
        
                    
  
          Library & Multimedia
      
    
          NIJ Journal
          Podcasts
          Publications Listing
          Multimedia Listing
          Rated Practices on CrimeSolutions
          Rated Programs on CrimeSolutions
          Software & Databases
          Datasets
          Patents
          Topics
        
                    
  
          Topics
      
    
          Article Listing
          Corrections
          Courts
          Crime Prevention
          Crimes
          Drugs and Crime
          Equipment and Technology
          Forensic Sciences
          Youth Justice
          Justice System Reform
          Law Enforcement
          Tribal Crime and Justice
          Victims of Crime
          Events
        
                    
  
          Events
      
    
          NIJ 2024 Research Conference
          Scheduled Events
          On-Demand Events
          Research Meetings & Workshops
          NIJ-Hosted Online Training

                            
                                About
          Contact Us
          Subscribe
          Topics A-Z
                  Share
FacebookXLinkedInRedditPinterestEmail Home
                            Library & Multimedia
 Prosecuting Domestic Violence Cases With Reluctant Victims: Assessing Two Novel Approaches in Milwaukee, Executive Summary
NCJ Number
              169110

Author(s)
          R C Davis;
                        B E Smith;
                        L Nickles
Date Published

1997
Length
              33 pages
Annotation
              Two projects funded by the National Institute of Justice examined domestic violence experiments in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; the first experiment evaluated the effectiveness of a special domestic violence court that opened in September 1994, and the second experiment assessed the impact of a change in the district attorney's screening policy that admitted more cases into the special court.
Abstract
              The primary intent of the special domestic violence court was to speed up the disposition of cases in order to reduce backlogs, reduce the amount of the time the victim had to change her mind about prosecution, and reduce opportunities for pretrial violence. The liberalized prosecutorial screening policy was intended to determine whether arrests normally rejected by the district attorney for prosecution because victims failed to attend the prosecutor's charging conference could still be successfully prosecuted. Milwaukee officials reasoned fewer defendants would threaten or harm victims and fewer victims would change their minds about cooperating with authorities if they could simply reduce the amount of time it took to dispose of domestic violence cases. Data obtained from case records and victim interviews showed the special domestic violence court was generally successful. Case processing time was substantially reduced after the court began, and this reduction was the result of applying speedy trial concepts to domestic violence cases.  Convictions increased with the new court, indicating more defendants were getting into treatment programs. Less frequent use of jail time by the new court was consistent with victim desires. The prevalence of pretrial crime declined after the start of the court due to a smaller window of opportunity to inflict new harm. Despite increased convictions and reduced pretrial crime, however, victim satisfaction with various aspects of the criminal justice process did not increase. The district attorney's liberalized charging policy had several effects, none of them positive. One effect was to bring into the court system a larger proportion of cases with victims who were not interested in seeing the defendant prosecuted. Another effect was that case processing time increased as the special court became overwhelmed with cases. 30 references, 3 tables, and 4 figures
      
  
          Additional Details
Grant Number(s)
        94-IJ-CX-0052
                                95-IJ-CX-0105


  
  
        
  Agencies
        NIJ-Sponsored


  
  
        
  Publication Type
        Program/Project Evaluation
    
  
  
Date Published: January 1, 1997
    
          Downloads
        
                      PDF

Related Datasets
        
                      http://dx.doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR04409
Side navigation
  

        

  
  
              NIJ Journal
    
      
            
            
            
      Podcasts
    
      
            
            
            
      Publications Listing
    
      
            
            
            
      Multimedia Listing
    
      
            
            
            
      Rated Practices on CrimeSolutions
    
      
            
            
            
      Rated Programs on CrimeSolutions
    
      
            
            
            
      Software & Databases
    
      
            
            
            
      Datasets
    
      
            
            
            
      PatentsRelated Topics
        
                Case processing
        District attorneys
        Domestic assault
        Female victims
        Municipal courts



  
Similar Publications
        
                      Does Future Orientation Moderate the Relationship Between Impulse Control and Offending? Insights From a Sample of Serious Young Offenders
                  What's Sex (Composition) Got To Do With It? The Importance of Sex Composition of Gangs for Female and Male Members' Offending and Victimization
                  A Capillary Electrophoresis Method for Identifying Forensically Relevant Body Fluids Using miRNAs
 Top

      National Institute of Justice

        
        
                        About NIJ
                    About NIJ
      
    
                  How NIJ Is Organized
      
    
                  NIJ Director
      
    
                  Research Disclaimer
      
    
                  Funding & Awards
                    Funding & Awards Home
      
    
                  Awards Listing
      
    
                  Current Funding
      
    
                  Guidance for Applicants and Awardees
      
    
                  Resources
                    Events
      
    
                  Podcasts
      
    
                  Publications
      
    
                  Topics
      
    
                  Multimedia
      
    
                  Reuse Policy
      
    
                  Contacts
                    Contact NIJ
      
    
                  Staff Directory
      
    
                  Submit a FOIA Request
      
    
                  File a Civil Rights ComplaintFacebook
          
                      X
          
                      YouTube
  

      810 7th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20531
      
              Secondary Footer link menu
            Accessibility
              Plain Language
              Privacy Policy
              Legal Policies and Disclaimer
              No FEAR Act
              Freedom of Information Act
              USA.gov
              Justice.gov