Child Abuse

Child Abuse:

I consider anything that harms a child (either physically or psychologically) as child abuse. I do consider spanking as child abuse because it can harm a child both physically and psychologically. Because of this, I do not think spanking should be allowed. Punishment should become a public concern when the parent/caregiver physically harms the child or goes way overboard yelling at the child. I think that acceptable form of public punishment would be a stern talking to or a time out. An unacceptable form of public punishment would be yelling at or hitting the child.

Sexual Victimization:

In Iowa, it is illegal to:

·         Employ, use, persuade, induce, entice, coerce, solicit, knowingly permit, or otherwise cause or attempt to cause a minor to engage in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of a prohibited sexual act that will be reproduced as a visual image of any kind. If convicted, a person commits a class "C" felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison. In addition, the court may assess a fine of not more than $50,000 for each such offense.

·         Promote any material visually depicting a live performance of a minor engaging in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of a prohibited sexual act. If convicted, a person commits a class "D" felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison. In addition, the court may assess a fine of not more than $25,000 for each such offense.

·         Purchase or possess any visual image which depicts a minor engaging in a prohibited sexual act or the simulation of a prohibited sexual act. A person who commits a violation of this subsection commits an aggravated misdemeanor for a first offense.

Offenders will usually be registered as a sex offender.  Sexting would fall under these laws. “Sexting” is sending nude or sexual pictures to someone via text. I think sexting should be punished, but not as severely as child pornography. I think the offender (the person who took/sent the picture) should be punished. I also think the person who receives the picture should also be punished if they encouraged the offender to send them the picture.

Article:

                One article lists several cases of children who died as a result of abuse or neglect. The first case mentioned was a boy named Kaleb, who was 18 months old. In an effort to get Kaleb to go to sleep, his father suffocated him, resulting in his death. His father was arrested and charged with 1^st degree murder and child endangerment. Seeing this article did affect me differently than the others I saw for other posts. I think it hits harder because these children did absolutely nothing to deserve this.  Also, they could do nothing to protect themselves or get themselves out of that situation.

Media:

                I found two pictures that depict child abuse. The first is a picture of a small child holding out his hand. On his hand is written “Stop the abuse pretty please.” The second picture shows what appears to be a child’s drawing of three kids. The drawing states “It shouldn’t hurt to be a child.”

 

http://mobilemediaguard.com/states/sexting_laws_iowa.html

http://www.dreamindemon.com/forums/showthread.php?52147-Iowa-Child-Abuse-Neglect-Cases-In-11-8-Deaths-But-Many-Mysteries

http://barefootrunninguniversity.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/child-abuse.jpg

http://images2.fanpop.com/image/photos/8800000/See-what-children-feel-like-stop-child-abuse-8860789-295-321.jpg

 

Murder

Homicide is the killing of a human by another human. Murder is a homicide that breaks the law. Some categories of homicide/murder are negligent, voluntary, vehicular, etc. One case of homicide that I found was the murder of five people by Shawn Michael Bentler. On October 14, 2006, Bentler shot and killed his parents and his three teenaged sisters with a shotgun. The apparent motivation was to ensure that he inherited the family fortune in its entirety. According to reports, Bentler had trouble keeping jobs, and was having difficulty paying his bills, including child support for two children conceived by two different women. He was sentenced to five consecutive life sentences on June 17, 2007. The media reports emphasize how shocking this crime was to the community and to the people who knew Bentler and his family.

The first media documentation of homicide that I found was a TV show called Homicide: Life on the Streets. This series, which aired from 1993 to 1999, was about a police homicide unit in Baltimore. The second was a movie called Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. This movie starring Johnny Depp and directed by Tim Burton, is based on a Broadway musical.

 

http://murderpedia.org/male.B/b/bentler-shawn.htm

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106028/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0408236/

Mob Violence

Mob violence is when a group of people become single-minded against some person or thing (building, institution, etc.) and become violent. One example would be a group of people who gather to protest in front of a bank, and end up throwing rocks at the building. Another example would be fans of a losing sports team who start throwing rock in store windows and burning cars. This type of violence exists partially because people can become deindividuated when they are in a large crowd. When one person in the crowd starts vandalizing property in certain situations the rest of the crowd will follow suit.

                One news story I found about mob violence was of a riot at Iowa State University in 1953. After the university’s football team won a surprise victory at the homecoming game, students began demanding to have classes canceled the following Monday in celebration. The riot quickly became violent as students started burning lawn ornaments. The mob was eventually dispersed by police, who had to resort to using clubs and tear gas.  However, the riots began again the next night as students demanded Tuesday off. This article views the rioting students as the offenders, and the university and the university’s president, James Hilton, as the victims.

                The first bit of media documentation I found is a picture of riot police standing in front of a sign that says “Stop mob violence!” Another image I found is of a flyer, probably from the early 1920’s, that proclaims lynching as “the shame of America”. This flyer, by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is to gain support for the Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill.

http://www.iowastatedaily.com/special_sections/article_263243a8-f213-11e1-96d1-0019bb2963f4.html

http://alieninliberia.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/mob-violence.jpg

http://historymatters.gmu.edu/mpimages/mp210.jpg

 

 

Sexual Assault

My state, Iowa, has a population of 1,730,732 and 834 incidents of reported forcible rape. The Statute of Limitations states that the offender must be prosecuted within 10 years of the incident, or within 10 years of the victim turning 18 years old if the victim was a minor.

Iowa law defines sexual assault as:

Any sex act between persons is sexual abuse by either of the

      persons when the act is performed with the other person in any of the

      following circumstances:

         1.  The act is done by force or against the will of the other.  If

      the consent or acquiescence of the other is procured by threats of

      violence toward any person or if the act is done while the other is

      under the influence of a drug inducing sleep or is otherwise in a

      state of unconsciousness, the act is done against the will of the

      other.

         2.  Such other person is suffering from a mental defect or

      incapacity which precludes giving consent, or lacks the mental

      capacity to know the right and wrong of conduct in sexual matters.

         3.  Such other person is a child.

 

Sexual assault is considered a class C felony in Iowa. This can be raised to a class B or A felony if:

·         the offender causes serious injury (Class A felony)

·         the victim is under 12 years old

·         the offender threatens the victim with a weapon

·         there is a substantial risk of death or serious injury

·         the offender is aided or abetted by one or more persons and the sex act is committed by force or against the will of the victim

One case of rape that I found was the rape of a former University of Iowa athlete by two former Iowa football players, Abe Satterfield and Cedric Everson. The defense claims that Satterfield raped her, and then Everson came and raped her while she was passed out. Both men were found guilty of assault. Everson had to serve 7 days in jail, and together they had to pay $2,084 in restitution.

One piece of media I found concerning sexual assault is an ad with a picture of a woman with two men around her. The ad states “It’s not sex…when she’s wasted. Sex with someone unable to consent = sexual assault”. Another image I found is a woman shielding her face with her arms. Written on her arms is “Real men don’t rape.” I think that these ads are accurate in their representations of sexual assault.

 

http://coolice.legis.iowa.gov/Cool-ICE/default.asp?category=billinfo&service=IowaCode&input=709

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/14541282/iowa-player-everson-grabbed-condoms-went-to-room

http://thegazette.com/2011/06/24/everson-to-serve-seven-days-in-jail-for-sexual-assault-at-iowa-dorm/

http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2012/12/3/10/enhanced-buzz-20805-1354549744-1.jpg

http://bestb4u.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/real-men-dont-rape.jpg

 

 

My state, Iowa, has a population of 2,904,419 and 15 incidents of hate crime reported. In the state of Iowa, hate crimes include:

·         Bias-motivated violence and intimidation

·         Civil action against someone based on race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, or disability.

·         Data collection

·         Training for law enforcement personnel

Iowa defines a hate crime, which is classified as a class D felony, as one of these crimes “committed against a person or a person’s property because of the person's race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, age, or disability, or the person's association with a person of a certain race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, age, or disability”:

1. Assault in violation of individual rights

2. Violations of individual rights

3. Criminal mischief in violation of individual rights

4. Trespass in violation of individual rights

 

One case of hate crime that I found in Iowa was the 2011 mob beating of 19 year old Marcellus Andrews, who died two days later after being taken off life support. Although this case was not officially classified as a hate crime, there was a lot of out-cry from the public because “witnesses said the assailants called Andrews a derogatory name relating to sexual orientation as they beat him.” Police arrested Paris Anding (19 years old), who was said to have used a bat in the attack against Marcellus, and charged him with second-degree murder. He was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter, which has a maximum jail-time of 10 years.

 

I found two posters that urge people to report hate crimes. The first says “Being different is not a crime, victimization is…” The second states “Verbal abuse. Swearing. Threats. Intimidation. Harassment. Bullying. Physical abuse. Vandalism. Graffiti. You don’t have to hit for it to be hate crime.”

 

http://globegazette.com/news/local/beating-death-prompts-call-review-iowa-law-on-hate-crimes/article_aa32e848-e197-11e0-b96c-001cc4c03286.html

http://cedarfalls.patch.com/articles/jury-convicts-man-in-beating-death-of-college-man-reportedly-taunted-by-anti-gay-slurs

http://www.gay-glos.org/HC-poster1.jpg

http://www.lbp.police.uk/images/lgbt_poster_01.jpg

 

 

 

Although I could not find a story of a specific case of Intimate Partner Violence or Domestic Violence in Iowa, I did find a story about a study done by the University of Iowa College of Public Health's Injury Prevention Research Center. The study found that “women in rural and isolated areas of Iowa experience higher rates of intimate partner violence and greater frequency and severity of physical abuse than women in urban areas” according to the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH). They surveyed 1,478 women that were seeking an induced abortion. Their findings showed that 61.5% of the women living in rural areas said that they had experienced four or more events of physical violence in the past year. This is compared to 39.3% of urban women. Also, rural women reported a higher severity of abuse. Over 30% reported severe to very severe physical violence. Ten percent of urban women reported severe to very severe physical violence. The article states that one major reason for this difference is the distance from domestic violence intervention resources.

                In Iowa, domestic violence can be either a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the severity of the crime. According to the Domestic Violence Intervention Program, Iowa law defines a domestic relationship as:

·         Two individuals that are married, divorced or separated.

·         Two individuals that have lived together at some point in the past year.

·         Two individual that have a child in common, whether or not they have been married, divorced or living together at some point in the past year.

·         Two individuals in an intimate relationship or have been within the past year.

The DVIP also states that the consequences for domestic violence include jail time and having to attend a Batterer’s Education Program.

                There are tons of places a victim of domestic violence in Iowa can go for help. A very quick Google search produced a PDF a hundred pages long full of information to help victims of domestic violence in Iowa. This included information on help lines, shelters, police departments, medical centers, legal services, national resources, and more.

                I found two pictures that were created to make a statement against domestic violence. The first is a woman with a man’s hand covering her mouth. The second is a picture of a severely beaten woman. The caption says “He says it won’t happen again.”

 

Article:

http://fridayletter.asph.org/article_view.cfm?fl_index=1695&fle_index=16708

Iowa Law:

http://www.dvipiowa.org/law.htm

Resources:

http://www.cfiowa.org/Portals/0/Resource%20Guide_LowRes.pdf

Media:

http://files.dosomething.org/files/styles/blog_landscape/public/pictures/actionguide/Domestic%20Violence%20Month.jpg

http://www.jacksonfuller.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/slide4.jpg