Photo provided courtesy of Pixabay.com
By Elizabeth Fitch, Staff Writer
Across the globe, victims of domestic violence are trapped at home with their abusers amid the COVID-19 crisis. They are in more danger than ever, as places continuously shut down due to the pandemic.[1] “Court resources are being stretched extraordinarily thin… Under the legal triage, the standard for securing what is often the most immediate and vital reprieve for victims — orders of protection — has been raised to matters of ‘life or death.’”[2] Not only is COVID-19 impacting victims’ ability to access support systems like a shelter or counseling, but now the disease is being used by violent partners to further control and abuse.[3]
Tragically, the rise of domestic violence while in quarantine is a pattern playing out around the world. In early March, when cities throughout China were locked down, 26-year-old Lele found herself arguing with her husband, with whom she now had to spend every hour in their home in Anhui Province.[4] While Lele was holding her 11-month-old daughter, her husband beat her with a high chair until one of her legs lost feeling and she fell to the ground, still holding the baby in her arms.[5] Photos she took after the incident show the high chair lying on the floor in pieces while others show a huge hematoma emerging on her left calf.[6] Lele said that while her husband had abused her before, the outbreak made things considerably worse. “During the epidemic, we were unable to go outside, and our conflicts just grew bigger and bigger and more and more frequent,” she said. “Everything was exposed.”[7] After her husband attacked her, Lele staggered to the next room and called the police, only to hear that they could not help her.[8] Finding new housing during this time was too difficult, forcing Lele and her daughter to continue to live with their abuser.[9]
Governments everywhere failed to prepare for the way these new public health measures would create opportunities for abusers to control their victims and now they are frantically trying to offer services to those at risk.[10] While life is in such a state of uncertainty, women around the world like Lele should not have to suffer at home and wonder if help is out there.
State leaders have continuously emphasized to people that the best, and safest, place to be is home.[11] While these words may be disheartening to victims of abuse, what is crucial to know is that help is still out there. Although Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf extended his stay-at-home order across the state, county courthouses remain open for emergency functions, and are actively working to remind people that there is always a place to turn to, even during a pandemic.[12] Specifically in Pittsburgh, the Municipal Court Building remains open for Temporary and Emergency PFAs (Protection from Abuse).[13] A victim can file for a PFA order against an intimate partner or a family member including: spouses or ex-spouses, current or former sexual or intimate partners, and family members related by blood or marriage.[14] The PFA Act defines abuse as the occurrence of one or more of the following acts: causing to attempting to cause bodily injury, sexual assaults, false imprisonment, stalking, and threats of physical harm.[15] In a PFA Petition, a Plaintiff can request to prohibit abuse, threats, harassment or stalking, to evict the abuser from the victim’s residence, to prohibit contact, or to enter a temporary custody order or an order to relinquish weapons.[16]
Although the COVID-19 crisis has shifted a lot of the world’s norms, judges stress that while some of the processes have changed, the underlying goal — the safety and protection of abuse victims — has not.[17]
[1] https://nypost.com/2020/03/28/domestic-violence-victims-facing-higher-risks-amid-coronavirus-quarantine/
[2] Id.
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/03/coronavirus-quarantine-abuse-domestic-violence
[4] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/06/world/coronavirus-domestic-violence.html
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] Id.
[8] Id.
[9] Id.
[10] Id.
[11] https://www.inquirer.com/news/coronavirus-protection-from-abuse-orders-philadelphia-domestic-violence-20200406.html
[12] Id.
[13] https://www.alleghenycourts.us/downloads/Family/PFA%20Procedures%203.25.20.pdf
[14] Id.
[15] Id.
[16] Id.
[17] https://www.inquirer.com/news/coronavirus-protection-from-abuse-orders-philadelphia-domestic-violence-20200406.html
