Predicting Repeat Abuse Among Arrested Batterers

Abstract

As a result of mandatory arrest and no-drop prosecution policies, domestic violence cases are flooding courts throughout the country and overwhelming available resources. Ideally, the most dangerous offenders would be prosecuted and sentenced most aggressively and victims at the highest risk would receive the most intensive advocacy. Thus, judges, prosecutors, probation officers, and advocates are calling for empirically validated methods to assess future risk among arrested batterers. This article describes a pilot investigation of the utility of the Danger Assessment Scale for contributing to the prediction of repeat abuse. Findings suggest that the Danger Assessment Scale, administered to battered women seeking help from the justice system, can contribute significantly to the prediction of short-term abuse recurrence among arrested batterers. Implications for future research are discussed.