SWRK XXXXXXXXXXWeek 6 Intimate Partner Violence Part 2 -1
S W R K XXXXXXXXXX
V I O L E N C E A B U S E
& T R A U M A
W E E K 6 : I N T I M AT E PA RT N E R V I O L E N C E
TODAY…
Then & Now
Legislation & Process
The portrayal of violence
THEN…
NOW…
LEGISLATION &
PROCESS…
Since the 1970s there has been considerable change to the law relating to
domestic violence, family violence and sexual offences across Australia, as has
een the case in many other countries.
1982 - Amendments to the Crimes Act 1900 introduced Apprehended
DomesticViolence Orders in NSW
1987 - Amendments to the Crimes Act 1900 extended definition of
‘domestic violence offence’ to provide protection to a wider range of
elationships, including people living in the same household, cu
ent
and past relatives and intimate partners
DIFFERENT TYPES OF AVOs
There are two types of AVOs, differentiated by the nature of
elationship between the protected person and the defendant:
Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (ADVO)
Apprehended Personal Violence Order (APVO)
COMPARING
POLICE &
PRIVATE
APPLICATIONS
Police applications Private applications
Police officer is the applicant Protected person is the applicant
Police have a duty to apply for an ADVO
in certain circumstances
Registrar must accept the application for
an ADVO
Often police will not initiate APVO
applications
Registrar may refuse to issue an APVO
application
Only police can apply for urgent
provisional AVOs
Individual cannot seek a provisional order
through the court
Only police can apply for an AVO on
ehalf of a person under 16 years old
A young person under 16 years old
cannot make a private application
Police prosecutor appears in court on
ehalf of protected person
Applicant has to represent them self in
court or find a solicitor (help available
from Women’s Domestic Violence Court
Advocacy Service (WDVCAS)
HOW IS VIOLENCE
PORTRAYED?
Microsoft Word - Document7
Types of AVOs
In 1982, the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) was amended by the Crimes (Domestic Violence)
Amendment Act 1982 (NSW) to introduce apprehended domestic violence orders in NSW.
AVOs could be made for the protection of a person living in a ma
iage or those living
together ‘as husband and wife on a bona fide domestic basis’. In 1983, the protection was
extended to cover those who had previously been ma
ied or living in a de facto relationship
in recognition of the fact that violence frequently occurs after separation. In 1989,
amendments extended the cover of persons eligible for protection under an ADVO to
include a
oad range of domestic relationships.
In 2007, the law about AVOs was removed from the Crimes Act 1900 into a stand-alone Act,
the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 (NSW). In 2011, the NSW Department
of Attorney General and Justice commenced a statutory review of the Crimes (Domestic and
Personal Violence) Act 2007 (NSW). The report into that review is yet to be released but it is
expected there will be further changes to the laws around ADVOs in response to the review.
Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007
AVOs are sometimes called ‘restraining orders’ because an AVO ‘restrains’ (stops) a person
(the defendant) from doing something towards the fearful person (‘the protected person’).
For example, an AVO cannot order a defendant to complete an anger management course,
or drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Instead, an AVO can prohibit a defendant from doing
something, such as assaulting, intimidating, harassing or threatening the protected person
or going to places where the protected person lives or works.
The law relating to AVOs in NSW is set out in the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence)
Act 2007 (NSW). The objects of the Act state that Parliament recognises that: ‘Domestic
violence extends beyond physical violence and may involve the exploitation of power
imbalances and patterns of abuse over many years.'
As well as governing AVOs in NSW, the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act defines
domestic violence offences and creates the specific offences of 'stalking or intimidation with
intent to cause fear of physical or mental harm' and 'contravene AVO'. These offences are
set out in sections 13 and 14 of the Act. 'Stalking' is defined in section 7 and 'intimidation' in
section 8 of the Act.
Section 11 of the Act defines a ‘domestic violence offence’ as a personal violence offence
committed by a person against another person with whom the person who commits the
offence has or has had a domestic relationship. The meaning of domestic relationship is
defined in section 5.
All other domestic violence offences are listed in section 4 of the Crimes (Domestic and
Personal Violence) Act, including common assault, sexual assault and kidnapping. If a person
is convicted of a domestic violence offence, the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence)
Act enables this to be specifically recorded on an offender's criminal record. This makes it
easier for police and judicial officers to identify previous patterns of domestic violence so
they can be taken into account in police responses to incidents, AVOs and criminal
prosecutions. It also assists judicial officers in sentencing offenders, as previous convictions
for domestic violence offences may be an aggravating factor: see section 12 of the Act.
Different types of AVOs
There are two types of AVOs, differentiated by the nature of relationship between the
protected person and the defendant:
Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (ADVO)
Apprehended Personal Violence Order (APVO)
Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (ADVO)
An ADVO is made when the protected person is, or has been, in a domestic relationship
with the defendant. ‘Domestic relationship’ is
oadly defined in section 5 of the Crimes
(Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 to include ma
iage and de facto partnerships;
intimate personal relationships; people living in the same household; long term residents
in the same residential facility; carers; relatives; and extended family or kin in the case of
Aboriginal Australians. It does not matter whether the relationship is past or cu
ent.
Apprehended Personal Violence Orders (APVO)
An APVO is made when the protected person and defendant are not in a domestic
elationship with each other – for example, neighbours, people who work together, or
strangers.
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