“He Will Not Leave Us Alone and I Need the Courts to Help”: Defendants’ Use of Nonphysical Violence in Domestic Violence Protective Order Cases

Abstract

District court judges who make final determinations in domestic violence protective order (DVPO) cases in North Carolina indicate often using heuristics, such as the presence of visible injury, to guide their assessment of violence severity. This approach is concerning as it minimizes nonphysical intimate partner violence. We conducted a thematic analysis of DVPO plaintiff complaints to identify the types of nonphysical vioence described and its effects on plaintiff health outcomes. Most case files included descriptions of nonphysical violence and plaintiffs described fear as a significant mental health outcome. Findings highlight the potentially deleterious impact of nonphysical violence on the well-being of DVPO plaintiffs.