Senate Hearings in 1990
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S. Ho. 101-939, Pt. 2 WOMEN AND VIOLENCE HEARINGS BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FIRST CONGRESS SECOND SESSION ON LEGISLATION TO REDUCE THE GROWING PROBLEM OF VIOLENT CRIME AGAINST WOMEN AUGUST 29 AND DECEMBER 11, 1990 Part 2 Serial No. J-101-80 Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary U.S. GOVERNMENT PRIUNTINO OFICE 88-468 WABHINGTON : 1991 For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, Congressional Sales Office U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402 V ~-F~ COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Delaware, Chairman EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts 8TROM THURMOND, South Carolina HOWARD M. MZTZENBAUM, Ohio ORRIN 0. HATCH, Utah DENNIS DxONCINI, Arizona ALAN K. SIMPSON, Wyoming PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont CHARGE& ORASSLEY, Iowa HOWELL HEFIN, Alabama ARLEN SPECE1R, Pennsylvania PAUL SIMON, Illinois GORDON J. HUMPHREY, New Hampshire HERBERT KOHL, Wisconsin RoNAW A. KeN, Chief Counsl DIANA Hwrvuu, Staff Director J"nny J. PsOK, Oeneral Counwl Tnv L. Woom, Minority Chief Counstl and Staff Director CONTENTS Hearings held: Page Women and Violence, Wednesday, August 29, 1990 .......................................... 1 Violence Against Women: Domestic Violence, Tuesday, December 11, 1990 .........................................................................................................................88 STATEMENTS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS Biden, Hon. Joseph R., a U.S. Senator from the State of Delaware .................. 1, 88 Thurmond, Hon. Strom, a U.S. Senator from the State of South Carolina ......... 86 Grassley, Hon. Charles E., a U.S. Senator from the State of Iowa ........................ 182 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF WITNESSES WEDNESDAY, AUousr 29, 1990 Christine Shunk, Coatesville, PA; and Nicole Snow, New Canaan, CT ................ 5 Panel consisting of Dr. Mary P. Koss, professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Arizona Medical School, Tucson, AZ; Robin Warshaw, author, Pennsauken, NJ; and Erica Strohl, Students Together Against Acquaint- ance Rape, Philadelphia, PA ............................................................................. 27 ADDITIONAL MATERIAL FOR THE RECORD Posters and chart: What Is a Woman's Chance of Being Raped ............................ 74 Statistics on Sexual Violence Against Women ........................................................... 77 Ten Facts About Violence Against Young Women ................................................... 78 Ten Facts About Violence Against Women ................................................................ 79 Letter to Senator Biden from the UAW, September 10, 1990 ................ 80 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1990 Panel consisting of Charlotte Fedders and Tracy Motuzick (formerly Tracy T hurm an)............................................................................................................... 88 Panel consisting of Angola Browne, professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts' Sarah M. Buef, assistant district attorney State of Massachusetts, ana supervisor, Harvard Law School BattereJ Women's Advocacy Project; and- Susan Kelly-Dreiss, executive director, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence .............................................. 110 ALPHABETICAL LIST AND MATERIAL SUBMITTED Browne, Dr. Angola: Testim ony .................................................................................................................. 110 Prepared statem ent ................................................................................................. 116 Buel Saah M.: Testim ony ................................................................... ................................... .... 122 Prepared statem ent ..................................................... ................................. .... 128 Fedders, Charlotte: Testim ony ............................................................................................................ ... 88 Prepared statem ent ................................................................................................ 91 Kelly-Driss, Susan: Testim ony ......................................................................................................... ,.... 188 Prepared statem ent .................................. ..................................... 187 Kous Dr Mary P.: T stim ony ................................................................................................................. 27 Prepared statement .................................................. 81 (III) ITV Motuzick, Tracy: Pa Testim ony .................................................................................................................. 99 Prepared statem ent ................................................................................................. 101 Shunk, Christine: Testim ony ................................................................................................................. 5 Prepared statem ent................................................................................................. 8 Snow, Nicole: Testim ony ............................................................................................................ it Prepared state t ................................................ ...................................... 14 Strohl, Erica: Testimony .................................................................................................................. 58 Prepared statem ent ................................................................................................ 61 Warshaw, Robin: Testimony .................................................................................................................. 47 Prepared statement ...................................... 50 APPENDIX S. 2754, a bill to combat violence and crimes against women on the streets and in hom es ................................................................................................................. 185 WOMEN AND VIOLENCE WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 29, 1990 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:09 a.m., in room SD-226, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Joseph R. Biden, Jr., chairman of the committee, presiding. OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN BIDEN The CHAIRMAN. The hearing will come to order. Let me explain, before we begin, to our witnesses-and I thank them all for being willing to come to discuss this important sub- ject-how we proceed. To those of us who do this every day, day in and day out, it seems like an orderly procedure. But to any one of the witnesses, it may come across as a very arcane procedure, so let me explain it very briefly for our witnesses. First of all, I will shortly make an opening statement explaining the purpose of the hearing, my purpose in holding this hearing, and speak very briefly to and about the witnesses that will be here to testify today. Then what we will do is I will ask our first witness to come forward and ask her if she has an opening statement. I want to make it clear to all our witnesses, particularly to Ms. Snow, who is our first witness, that this is not anything that is so imposing and formal. I have tried, but this room is not big enough. I have tried to set it up so that we have a table on the other side of this bench where I am sitting-the same height, the same level as the witnesses that are before us-because it looks like this is a court of law and someone is sitting up here and looking down on you. It is difficult when you have never come before a committee, and the camera is there, testifying, and testifying about a very, very, very tragic incident or incidences in your life where you have been victimized. It surely is not the intention of this chairman to, in any way, put you in a position or any witness in a position-in attempt- ing to help us here decide what we can, if anything, do to deal with this horrible problem of violence against women in America-to put you in a position that is either uncomfortable or a position that makes it difficult for you. So as much as you can-and it may not seem possible to you at this moment-this is intended to be a conversation. This is not in- tended to be an interrogation. I say that to all the witnesses who will come before us today. Again, I apologize-for those of you who have never testified before-for the imposing specter of the television cameras up on a platform, and me sitting here, the great seal behind us, as if some- how you are in a court of law. That is not what this is today, nor is it intended to be, nor will it be. Let me begin by suggesting that, unfortunately, today's headlines dramatize just how vulnerable young women are as they return to campuses in America. And, I might add, a young man who appears to have been an incidental victim, but nonetheless a tragic victim, at the University of Florida last weekend. Three 18-year-old freshmen were brutally murdered and possibly raped. And by I'uesday, two more bodies had been found. It should not take such a grisly and horrifying incident for us to act. We al- ready know that young women are disproportionately victimized by violent crime. And we already know that rape is the one major crime for which these young women are at the greatest risk on col- lege campuses. This is our second hearing on the Violence Against Women Act of 1990, a bill that I introduced in June. Our first hearing led to an overwhelming outpouring of support. Quite frankly, far beyond what I anticipated.