Pittsburgh Domestic Abuse Lawyers
Divorce: Fleeing an Abusive Spouse
There are many forms of spousal abuse: mental, emotional, physical, and sexual.
If you are the victim of spousal abuse, there are actions you can take to protect yourself.
You may file a criminal complaint with your local police department and seek to press charges if you are the victims of physical or sexual abuse. Domestic abuse charges commonly include: assault, harassment, stalking, reckless endangerment, and terroristic threats.
You may also consider filing for a Protection From Abuse (PFA) order to prohibit all contact and even have the abuser evicted from the marital residence. A PFA may be obtained on grounds of physical violence, sexual violence, harassment, or stalking.
If you are suffering mental or emotional abuse, you may request a hearing for exclusive possession of the marital residence, which would enable you to stay in your home during the divorce process and prohibit your abuser from the premises.
If you need immediate shelter from an abusive partner, there are many resources available to assist you.
Spivak Law Firm provides strong, compassionate, cost-effective representation in all family law and criminal defense matters with a special focus on child custody and domestic abuse. Call us today at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Domestic Abuse and Mass Shootings
Experts say there are striking parallels between the factors that drive domestic violence and mass shootings.
FBI data on mass shootings from 2009 to 2015 show that 21 percent of the attackers had previously been charged with domestic violence.
For instance, Omar Mateen, the gunman in the nightclub massacre in Orlando, Florida, had reportedly beaten and attempted to control his ex-wife during their brief marriage.
“Take the dynamic of coercive violence to its most horrible extreme,” according to an article in The New York Times, “and it looks an awful lot like how the Islamic State treats women. It is intimate violence on an industrial scale.”
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law and criminal defense with a special focus on domestic abuse.
Call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Children Who Witness Domestic Abuse
Children who witness domestic abuse may have the following range of symptoms:
- Loss of appetite
- Sleep disturbance
- School problems – refuses to attend, truancy, poor performance
- Anxiety, fear of abandonment
- Increased violent behavior
- Verbal abusiveness, lying
- Regression – wanting bottle, baby talk, thumb sucking
- Perfectionism
- Shyness
- Tantrums
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law, including: child custody, child support, divorce, Protection From Abuse (PFA) and Children Youth and Families (CYF).
To schedule a consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
What Is CYF?
Children Youth and Families is the name of the child-welfare agency in Allegheny County.
The stated purpose of CYF is: to protect children from abuse and neglect, to keep families together whenever possible, and to make sure that every child has a safe, permanent home.
The agency ensures that basis needs are met by their families, including: food, safe housing, supervision, clothing, and medical care.
The agency investigates reports of child abuse, neglect, and teen issues to determine if they are true.
If the reports are true and safety issues identified, the agency must decide if the child will be safe if they stay in their parent’s home.
Most of the time, children can stay in their home with their parents and the family will receive services to address the safety issues.
Other times the safety issues cannot be addressed while the child remains in the home and the child enters placement.
Children may be placed with a relative, in a foster home, or in a group home facility.
When a child is placed, visitation must be arranged for the child and the parent to keep their relationship strong.
Spivak Law Firm provides strong, effective advocacy for people facing child abuse allegations. To speak with an attorney experienced in family law and criminal defense, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Protecting Abuse Victims
Victims of domestic violence may obtain Protection from Abuse (PFA) Orders to curb the abuse and prohibit contact with the perpetrator.
But even obtaining a PFA may not provide adequate protection.
The Pennsylvania Legislature recently approved a resolution to examine PFA law and practice for potential insufficiencies.
The commission will work closely with professionals experienced with PFAs to identify and remedy flaws to more adequately protect victims of domestic abuse.
To speak with an experienced PFA attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
PFA and Domestic Abuse Amid Coronavirus
“Mass shootings garner attention and frighten the public much more than episodes of domestic violence,” according to a recent article in The New York Times. “But domestic violence has a much higher death toll in the United States.”
Each year, some 900 women in the United States are murdered by their current or former intimate partners.
That single-year tally is more than nine times the number of people killed in jihadist attacks on American soil in the past decade.
At their most basic level, both mass terrorism and intimate terrorism of domestic violence are attempts to provoke fear and assert control. Many experts have expressed concern about the rise of domestic violence incidents during stay-at-home orders related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law and criminal defense with a focus on domestic abuse and child custody. For a free consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.