Reply #68: In CA, victims of domestic violence cannot be punished for not testifying against their abusers.

[Garbo 2004]

California law does not require victims of domestic violence to press charges or testify in court. Furthermore, a victim of domestic abuse cannot be charged with contempt or threatened with incarceration for not testifying.

New Law Grants Protection for Domestic Violence Survivors
Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Yee’s bill will shield battered women from threat of incarceration, Advocates believe more victims may now report assaults

SACRAMENTO – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Los Angeles) today signed into law a bill that victim advocates believe will result in more women coming forward to law enforcement after falling victim to domestic violence. Senate Bill 1356, authored by Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), protects domestic violence survivors from the threat of incarceration when they refuse to testify against their abuser in court. The law mirrors an existing statute for sexual assault victims.

“I am very pleased to see the Governor and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle support this commonsense and much-needed legislation,” said Yee. “Domestic violence survivors have been through enough; the last thing they need is to be re-victimized by our legal system or be exposed to threats of incarceration. This law is not going to result in fewer prosecutions, but instead just the opposite. Survivors are more likely to report incidents of domestic violence when they trust law enforcement and our system of justice.”

In fact, in a letter regarding another bill before the Legislature in 1991, then Los Angeles District Attorney Ira Reiner agreed with Yee and victim advocates. The letter from Reiner’s special counsel John Lovell stated, “Prosecutors who raise the spectra of possible incarceration of victim/witnesses diminish the credibility of the criminal justice system as an effective instrument in combating domestic violence. The unintended consequence of those types of warnings is a chilling constraint on victim/witnesses to come forward in these types of cases at all.”

“SB 1356 ensures that victims of domestic violence have the same statutory protections as sexual assault victims and exempts them from the threat of being incarcerated for refusal to testify against their perpetrators,” said Schwarzenegger. “Domestic violence victims, like many sexual assault victims, are victimized by perpetrators they know, and experience similar psychological trauma and fear of retribution from the abuser or the abuser’s family members.”

“Coercion is a draconian practice that should not be used in getting a victim to testify after just facing a similar control tactic from her abuser,” said Yee. “Instead, prosecutors should work with advocates in getting the victim to a place where she is comfortable and willing to testify, which in turn will result in a much more successful prosecution. SB 1356 also rightfully considers the children in domestic violence cases, who will no longer be put at risk of losing both parents and being unfairly pushed into foster care.”
http://democrats.sen.ca.gov/index.asp?Type=B_PR&SEC=%7B3FCA7D16-2378-49E0-886D-685939CE9683%7D&DE=%7B51FD7419-D2B9-4CB3-B66D-FAC9E57928F8%7D

Rihanna gave statements to the police so she cooperated with the investigation. There was at least one witness who reported the incident as it was occurring and there are statements and evidence the police collected and can be submitted in court. In CA the victims of domestic violence are not required to press charges or testify in court. And cannot be penalized for not doing so.