Domestic Violence

Published on: April 26, 2012

New York has created a system designed to streamline the problems

by Stephen Bilkis

New York has created a system designed to streamline the problems that arise in prosecuting domestic violence cases in the court system. Historically, cases of domestic violence are often heard in several courts at the same time because of the very nature of the offenses. This is especially true if the domestic violence issue escalated through its continuation. A domestic violence case could conceivably begin as a subject violates traffic laws to either harass the other party or to get away from the other party. Since traffic infractions are considered to be minor legal torts below that of a misdemeanor. It would be historically sent to traffic court.

If after committing the traffic violation, the suspect then commits a misdemeanor crime, that crime would be heard in the state court of misdemeanor crimes. Felonies would be heard in the superior court of the state. Because, domestic violence cases often have elements in each of these courts, New York decided to pass the one case one judge policy. In this system, called the Integrated Domestic Violence system, one judge is assigned to one family. All of the cases that involve that family, from the most minor traffic to the highest felony are then heard by one judge appointed to their problem. In order for the judge to be able to hear all of the cases, the judge has to be a Supreme Court Justice.

Published on: April 25, 2012

New York Court Finds Order of Protection Doesn’t Apply Where Parties Don’t Live Together

by Stephen Bilkis

On August 7, 2009, the Family Court of Kings County New York received a petition for an order of protection. The Order seeks to prevent the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children from having contact with him. The petition arises from a situation where the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children got angry with him and on June 19 of 2009 placed several phone calls to the subject. These phone calls were of an insulting, threatening, and harassing nature. The subject is sure that the calls came from the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children. In addition to these phone calls, this subject maintains that the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children has also physically threatened him on at least three other occasions in the last seven months. The subject, a man from Kings County, stated that these occasions have placed him in fear. He fears that live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children will physically harm him in some way. He requests that the court issue this order of protection which would prevent the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children from coming close to him. He requests that it limit live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children from getting on his property, or place of business, and would prevent him from having any contact at all with this Kings County man. The Kings County man also acts that this petition limit the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children from being present while the Kings County man visits with his children. This Kings County man makes this application to New York Family Court in Kings County.

The reason that this petition is of interest is because of the nature of the relationships involved. In order for a case to be considered by the Family Court of Kings County, the party who requests the petition, in this case the Kings County man, and the person with whom the order is directed, in this case the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children, must have a domestic relationship. In this case, the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children have a domestic relationship in that they live together in the same residence and have a romantic relationship together. The Kings County man who is the petitioner on this order of protection has a domestic relationship with the mother of his children in that she is the mother of his children. However, the Kings County man and the live in boyfriend of the mother of the subject’s children do not have a domestic relationship as defined in the statutory law.

Published on: April 24, 2012

Petitioners File a Late Notice of Claim with New York Appellate Court

by Stephen Bilkis

It was a fateful day of April 18, 2007 when a mother, her companion, and a home health care worker were murdered by her own twenty-year-old son criminal who committed suicide after he accomplished the bloody murders that involved his own mother and companions. The petitioner is the victim’s seven-month-old son, brother of the murderer and sole heir who was not there when the murders happened in his family. The other petitioner is the father of the sole heir and who is now appointed as administrator for the estate of the decedent.

The petitioners made a motion for leave of court in May 2008 in order to file a late notice of claim charging infliction of emotional anguish, remiss in supervision, wrongful death, as well as gross neglect on the part of the police department. The city contradicted the said petition as it ascertains to all possible causes of action other than the claim with association to that of wrongful death.

Published on: April 23, 2012

New York Appellate Court Rules There is No Incident That Requires Wife’s Protection from the Court

by Stephen Bilkis

Domestic violence is much harder to accept because the perpetrator is a family member. There are many undocumented domestic violence cases because not only do victims get traumatized, they are also afraid of the outcome of the case, which usually means the breakdown of a family unit. This is a case between a married couple and a parole officer. The husband is forbidden to contact his wife without the parole officer’s permission. The special condition stated by the Supreme Court was to permit the husband to see his wife, even during out-of-curfew hours, as long as the wife wanted to see him, as well.

These provisions were agreed upon by the husband. He agreed to follow the curfew policy set by the parole officer. However, the husband appealed to remove the curfew clause and be with his wife. Although this was not a violation of his rights, he was still denied to visit his wife during non-curfew hours. But if his wife wanted to do so, he could visit her. In this case, is very important to consider the desire of the wife to see his husband. The court also convicted the husband of rape, domestic violence and assault.

Published on: April 21, 2012

Court Decides Neglect Case Filed Against Father

by Stephen Bilkis

On January 19, 2005 a King’s County man filed a petition with the Kings County Family Court seeking custody of the two children that he believes to be his that were born to a woman with whom he has lived for a number of years including the years that she was pregnant and the children. The father requested sole custody of the children because he claimed that since he has not been living with the children and their mother, they have shown up with burns and other injuries from accidents with their mother. Due to the allegations that the children are in harm, Judge Emily Olshansky of Family Court Kings County ordered an emergency investigation into the matters at the home.

The mother in this case filed a family offense petition on the very same day in Kings County Family Court seeking an order of protection against the father for her and the children. Her petition states that the father of the children has hit her and elbowed her in the face in front of the children causing them to be considered neglected by him. She claims that he uses drugs and is armed or has access to a knife and guns. The mother also seeks sole custody of these children.

Published on: April 13, 2012

New York Appellate Court Discusses Jurisdiction Related to an Order of Protection

by Stephen Bilkis

On Feb 7, 1997, a Rochester man appeared before the Supreme Court Appellate Division, Fourth Department to request that an order of protection against him that had been granted to his step daughter be revoked. The order had been granted by Family Court in that the step daughter testified that her stepfather had stalked her and that he had been convicted of raping her in 1985. At the time that he was convicted of raping her, she was only 11 years old. The mother divorced the stepfather that same year presumably because of these actions. The girl advised that he began stalking her in 1995.

The stepfather argued that since the girl was his step daughter and no actual relation to him that the divorce severed any ties that would give Family Court any venue over this case. He argued that the relationships defined in the law as domestic relationships does not apply to that of stepfather and step daughter.

Published on: April 12, 2012

New York Appellate Court Rules on Manslaughter Case

by Stephen Bilkis

In 1978, a young woman moved in to a trailer home with her boyfriend off of North Shore Road in the little New York town of Cuba. They had a fairly normal life together according to her statements until July or August of 1981. In 1979, she had been unfaithful in her marriage and riddled with guilt had confessed her infidelity to her then husband. Her husband began to become abusive. While she struggled to try to keep him happy and be the best wife and mother that she could be to make up for her failure in the beginning of the marriage; her husband becomes more possessive. He questioned her repeatedly about men that she spoke to. He accused her of sleeping with men constantly. He began to be physically abusive. Following Christmas of 1982 , the violence escalated rapidly.

The young wife did not know how to drive and was by all accounts visibly battered. Her mother in law tried to get her to take the children and leave with her. By this time there were two children in the relationship. The wife stated that she was afraid to leave. She stated that if she left that he would find her and kill her. There were several serious incidents of battery and aggravated assaults. In one assault, the husband took a pencil and stabbed it into the wife’s foot. The pencil was removed at the local hospital, but there does not seem to be a police report to detail the incident surrounding the stabbing. The husband purportedly took her outside and beat her head against a tree on one occasion. Still, she did not call out for help or notify the local police.

Published on: April 11, 2012

New York Courts Decide Family Matter in Light of Domestic Violence Allegations

by Stephen Bilkis

On January 15, 1993 a man and a woman were married in a civil ceremony in Albania. Several years ago, they moved to Brooklyn, New York. In 2005, the parents and their five children went to visit their family in Albania. The wife is a stay at home mother who does not speak English. The husband is a businessman of questionable veracity. He has reported his income in three different places, three different ways. He has obviously grossly under estimated his income each time. When the husband left Albania to return to the US, he left his wife and children with his parents.

Two years later, his wife took the youngest child and went to her parent’s house. Before long, they discovered that because the children are American citizens that they would have to get divorced in Brooklyn. Eventually, the entire family made their way back to the US. The father and the oldest child live in the marital home, an apartment in Brooklyn. The mother and the four youngest children reside in a shelter.

Published on: April 10, 2012

Father Opposes Termination of Parental Rights in Light of Assault Allegations

by Stephen Bilkis

On September 28, 2010, the Family Court of Monroe County, New York heard a petition to grant two small children to be declared permanently neglected by their father. The father opposed the termination of his parental rights. The court addressed the issues.

In 2008, the children were removed from the home of their mother and father following an application for temporary removal of the children based on domestic violence incidents between the mother and the father of the two boys. The children were placed in foster care.

Published on: March 26, 2012

Plaintiff Challenges Domestic Violence Prevention Act in New York Court

by Stephen Bilkis

On April 18, 2007, police responded to a home in Queens, New York. What they found there was a horror. Four bodies were found dead in the home. One was an elderly woman. A second was the companion of the woman. The third was a home health care worker assigned to the woman. The fourth was the twenty year old son of the woman, he had killed himself. Evidence at the scene revealed that he had first killed his mother, then her companion and the home health care worker, and then he had killed himself. The woman was survived by another younger son who had not yet reached the age of consent.

In May of 2008, the surviving son filed a complaint alleging wrongful death in the case of his mother. It also alleged infliction of emotional distress, negligent supervision and gross negligence on behalf of the New York City Police Department. By May 20th the court had denied all of the child’s claims, which were made through his father, on the grounds that the time limit to file such claims had expired. The only remaining claim is that of criminal wrongful death.