There are reasons why women are afraid to confront their abusers and stay with them for years.
It it private, women are afraid, they are embarrassed.
Even when they complain, they often recant, it is all part of the battered woman's syndrome.
Judges dealing with domestic violence cases must be trained to understand such issues.
Well, a Florida judge, Jerri Collins, was obviously not trained on these important issues - and did not have her own heart and judgment to inform her decisions.
Not only she put a reported victim of domestic violence, a young mother, in jail for not showing up to testify in court as a witness, but she rejected her pleas that she had anxiety and was afraid to confront her abuser in court by reportedly saying:
"You think you're going to have anxiety now? You haven't even seen anxiety" - and sent her to jail.
That is because the mother asked the prosecution not to continue with the case and did not come to court because she was afraid to confront her abuser.
Here is what the young mother said to the judge that the judge ignored:
The prosecution, apparently, did not listen and not only proceeded to trial, but subpoenaed the victim who already told them she wants to have the charges withdrawn.
The question must be raised whether the prosecution was correct to pressure with the charges which the witness wanted withdrawn, and continued to spend public money on the trial that the complaining witness did not want to continue.
For the judge, apparently, the young mother had no right to withdraw her complaint about the father of her child, not even out of fear.
Nothing like victimizing the victim even further.
Nothing like punishing a woman for having a mental health problem, anxiety.
Nothing like taking the mother from a young child because she was too afraid to confront a person who she said choked her and threatened her with a knife.
Now, the concept of "contempt of court" presupposes respect to courts as institutions dispensing justice.
Yet, such contemptible acts of injustice as what Judge Jerri Collins did to the young mother, breed exactly what Judge Jerri Collins purported to punish - contempt of court. Because what Judge Jerri Collins did is, once again, contemptible.
I wonder whether any discipline is coming Judge Collins' way.
I think, people like Judge Collins have no place on the bench.
Because due to Judge Collins, the abused young mother, and other young women like her, were taught a lesson not to come forward and not to ask help from authorities.
And, if they do not ask for help, however imperfectly, they may die, their children may die, and other women and children may die at the hands of their abusers.
What judge Collins did in discouraging victims of domestic violence to come forward, for fear that they will not be able to carry through with the testimony against their abuser and will be put in jail and a criminal record will be created AGAINST THEM, is not only inhumane and downright contemptible behavior for a public servant, but it is also dangerous.
Judge Collins has no place on the bench.
And, the most idiotic thing that I've ever seen is when a TV station "legal analyst" stated that it makes no sense for the young woman to appeal her sentence of criminal contempt, because she already served it.
Of course, it makes sense.
Because if the sentence is overturned on appeal, the woman will not have a criminal record, her fine will be returned, her feeling of self-worth will be returned, her trust in the fairness of the justice system and that it will protect her instead of victimize her more, will be at least somewhat restored.
Not to mention that she will have a lot more grounds for a disciplinary complaint against the judge.
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