Abstract
This study examines heterosexual domestic violence incidents involving male and female suspects. The sample includes 428 incident reports filed at the Columbia (South Carolina) Police Department between 1993 and 1997. Police officers appear to use different arrest determinants for women than for men. The implications of these differential law enforcement practices are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Avakame, E. & Fyfe, J. (2001). Differential police treatment of male-on-female spousal violence.Violence Against Women, 7, 22–45.
Barnett, O., Miller-Perrin, C., & Perrin, R. (1997).Family violence across the lifespan. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Bayley, D. & Mendelsohn, H. (1969).Minorities and the police. New York: Free Press.
Berk, R., Fenstermaker, S, & Newton, P. (1988). An empirical analysis of police responses to incidents of wife battering. In G. Hotaling, D. Finkelhor, J. Kirpatrick, & M. Straus (Eds.),Coping with family violence: Research and policy perspectives (pp. 158–168). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Buzawa, E. & Austin, T. (1993). Determining police response to domestic violence victims.American Behavioral Scientist, 23, 610–623.
Buzawa, E. Austin, T., & Buzawa, C. (1995). Responding to crimes of violence against women: Gender differences versus organizational imperatives.Crime & Delinquency, 41, 443–466.
Cascardi, M., & Vivian, D. (1995). Context for specific episodes of marital violence: Gender and severity of violence differences.Journal of Family Violence, 10, 265–293.
Chang, V. N. (1996).I just lost myself: Psychological abuse of women in marriage. Westport, CT: Praeger.
Chesney-Lind, M. (1978) Chivalry reexamined: Women and the criminal justice system. In L. Bowker (Ed.),Women, crime and criminal justice system (pp. 197–223). Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath.
Daniels, S., Baumhover, L., Formby, W., & Clark-Daniels, C. (1999). Police discretion and elder mistreatment: A nested model of observation, reporting, and satisfaction.Journal of Criminal Justice, 27, 209–225.
DeFleur, L. (1975). Biasing influences on drug arrest records: Implications for deviance research.American Sociological Review, 40, 88–103.
Dobash, R. P., & Dobash, R. E. (1979).Violence against wives. New York: Free Press.
Doerner, W. G., Speir, J. C., & Wright, B. S. (1989). An analysis of rater-ratee race and sex influences upon field training officer program evaluations.Journal of Criminal Justice, 17, 103–114.
Fayerherm, W. (1981). Gender differences in delinquency: Quantity and quality. In L. H. Bowker (Ed.),Women and crime in America (pp. 82–92). New York: Macmillan.
Feder, L. (1996). Police handling of domestic calls: The importance of offender’s presence in the arrest decision.Journal of Criminal Justice, 24, 481–499.
Ferraro, K. (1989). Policing woman battering.Social Problems, 36, 61–74.
Follingstad, D. R., Rutledge, L. I., Berg, B. J., Hause, E. S., & Polek, D. S. (1990). The role of emotional abuse in physically abusive relationships.Journal of Family Violence, 5, 107–120.
Fyfe, J., Klinger, D., & Flavin, J. (1997). Differential police treatment of male on female spousal violence.Criminology, 35, 455–473.
Gelles, R. (1997).Intimate violence in families. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Hamberger, K. L. (1994). The intended function of domestic violence is different for arrested male and female perpetrators.Family Violence and Sexual Assault Bulletin, 10, 40–44.
Hamberger, K. L. (1997). Female offenders in domestic violence: A look at actions in their context.Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma, 1, 117–129.
Johnson, M. P. (1995). Patriarachal terrorism and common couple violence: Two forms of violence against women.Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 283–294.
Johnson, M. P. (2000). Conflict and control: Images of symmetry and asymmetry in domestic violence. In A. Booth, A. C. Crouter, & M. Clements (Eds.),Couples in conflict. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Johnson, M. P., & Ferraro, K. J.(2000). Research on domestic violence in the 1990s: Making distinctions.Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62, 948–963.
Johnson, W., Peterson, R., & Wells, L. E. (1977). Arrest probabilities for marijuana users as indicators of selective law enforcement.American Journal of Sociology, 83, 568–599.
Kane, R. (1999). Patterns of arrest in domestic violence encounters: Identifying a police decision-making model.Journal of Criminal Justice, 27, 65–79.
Kelling, G. (1999).“Broken windows” and police discretion. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.
Kirkwood, C. (1993).Leaving abusive partners: From the scars of survival to the wisdom for change. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Klinger, D. (1994). Demeanor or crime? Why “hostile” citizens are more likely to be arrested.Criminology, 32, 475–493.
Lundman, R. (1974). Routine arrest practices: A commonwealth perspective.Social Problems, 22, 127–141.
Lundman, R. (1994). Demeanor or crime? The midwest city police citizen encounters study.Criminology, 32, 631–653.
Lundman, R., Sykes, R., & Clark, J. (1978). Police control of juveniles.Journal of Research in Crime & Delinquency, 15, 74–91.
Martin, D. (1985). Domestic violence: A sociological perspective. In D. J. Sonkin, D. Martin, & L. E. A Walker (Eds.),The male batterer: A treatment approach (pp. 1–32). New York: Springer Publishing Co.
Mastrofski, S. D. (1990). The prospects of change in police patrol: A decade in review.American Journal of Police, 9, 1–79.
Mastrofski, S. D., & Ritti, R. (1996). Police training and the effects of organization on drunk driving enforcement.Justice Quarterly, 13, 291–320.
Miller, L. (1989). Unintended side effects of pro-arrest policies and their race and class implications for battered women: A cautionary note.Criminal Justice Policy Review, 3, 299–317.
Powell, D. (1981). Race, rank, and police discretion.Journal of Police Science & Administration, 9, 383–389.
Powell, D. (1990). A study of police discretion in six southern cities.Journal of Police Science & Administration, 17, 1–7.
Reiss, A. (1971).The police and the public. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
Rennison, C, & Welchans, S. (2002).Intimate partner violence. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Renzetti, C. M. (1992).Violent betrayal: Partner abuse in lesbian relationships. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Robinson, A. L., & Chandek, M. S. (2000). Differential police response to black battered women.Women & Criminal Justice, 12, 29–61.
Rubinstein, J. (1973).City police. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
Saunders, D. G. (1986). When battered women use violence: Husband abuse or self-defense?Violence & Victims, 1, 47–60.
Saunders, D. G. (1996). Feminist-cognitive-behavioral and process-psychodynamic treatments for men who batter: Interactions of abuser traits and treatment model.Violence & Victims, 4, 393–414.
Schwartz, M. D., & Yonkers, S. L. P. (1991). Officer satisfaction with police in-service training: An exploratory evaluation.American Journal of Police, 10, 49–63.
Sealock, M., & Simpson, S. (1998). Unraveling bias in arrest decisions: The role of juvenile offender type-scripts.Justice Quarterly, 15, 427–457.
Smith, D. & Klein, J. (1984). Police control of interpersonal disputes.Social Problems, 31, 468–481.
Smith, D., & Visher, C. (1981). Street-level justice: Situational determinants of police arrest decisions.Social Problems, 29, 167–177.
Smith, D., Visher, C., & Davidson, L. (1984). Equality and discretionary justice: The influence of race on police arrest decisions.Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, 75, 234–249.
Smith, M. (1990). Patriarchal ideology and wife beating: A test of a feminist hypothesis.Violence & Victims, 5, 257–273.
Stanko, E. A. (1989). Missing the mark? Police battering. InJ. Hanmer, J. Radford, & B. Stanko (Eds.),Women, policing and male violence (pp. 46–49). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Straus, M. A., & Gelles, R. J. (1986). Societal change and change in family violence from 1975 to 1985 as revealed by two national surveys.Journal of Marriage & the Family, 48, 465–479.
Straus, M. A., Gelles, R. J., & Steinmetz, S. K. (1980).Behind closed doors: Violence in American Families. New York: Doubleday.
Tjaden, P. & Thoennes, N. (1998).Prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs.
U.S. Census Bureau (2000).Census 2000 redistricting data (public law 94–171), summary file. Washington DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Visher, C. (1983). Gender, police arrest decisions, and notions of chivalry.Criminology, 21, 5–28.
Waaland, P., & Keeley, S. (1985). Police decision-making in wife abuse: The impact of legal and extralegal factors.Law & Human Behavior, 9, 355–366.
Worden, R., & Pollitz, A. (1984). Police arrests in domestic disturbances: A further look.Law & Society Review, 18, 105–119.
Worden, R., & Shepard, R. (1996). Demeanor, crime, and police behavior: A reexamination of the police services study data.Criminology, 34, 83–105.
Wortley, R. (1990). The human factor in the decision to arrest.Police Studies, 13, 26–32.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ho, TN. The influence of suspect gender in domestic violence arrests. Am J Crim Just 27, 183–195 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02885693
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02885693