NCJ Number
94584
Journal
University of California Davis Law Review Volume: 12 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1979) Pages: 673-699
Date Published
1979
Length
27 pages
Annotation
The conviction-oriented approach of the legal system fails to deal effectively with father-daughter incest and often has a detrimental effect on the victim, her father, and other family members.
Abstract
While an effective criminal justice system should seek to prevent the sexual abuse of a child, it should also try to preserve the family unit and safeguard the victim's emotional well-being. The present system does not meet these goals. In the investigative stage, police officers generally use an adversary approach with the objective of collecting evidence when interviewing a child victim. This often increases the child's feelings of shame and guilt and causes psychological damage. The child is then inadequately represented at subsequent court hearings and may be placed in a foster home while the offending parent remains in the family home. Finally, communities rarely offer the incest offender and his family treatment programs designed to rehabilitate the incestuous parent, reduce the trauma to the child, and reunite the family. To resolve these problems, police departments should train their officers to conduct interviews in a conversational, nonadversarial manner with paramount concern for the victim's well-being. The juvenile court should appoint an independent legal counsel to represent the child when removal from the home is considered. Since imprisonment generally is not an effective solution to incest cases, communities must develop treatment programs that incorporate family-oriented therapy, self-help groups, and close ties with the local police. A case study and 132 footnotes are included.