“Restraining Orders and the LGBT Community” by Jonathan Watson

Although this may sound like a bizarre question, I would like to start this posting by asking readers “who do you envision as an ‘ideal victim’ in a domestic violence situation?” Your thoughts might’ve gone immediately towards a heterosexual couple, so let’s expand our perceptions to include LGBT couples. With October being National Domestic Violence Awareness Month and LGBT History Month, this might be a great opportunity to do so.

According to “When Intimate Partner Violence Meets Same Sex Couples: A Review of Same Sex Intimate Partner Violence” (2018), the rate of domestic violence amongst the LGBT population may be just as underreported as in heterosexual households in the United States. The following figures regarding the LGBT population were mentioned in the piece:

“…almost one-third of sexual minority males and one-half of sexual minority women…affirmed they were victims of physical or psychological abuse in a romantic relationship. In addition, over 50% of gay men and almost 75% of lesbian women reported that they were victims of psychological IPV [intimate partner violence] (Breiding et al., 2013). Breiding et al. (2013) identified that 4.1 million people of the LGB community have experienced IPV in their lifetime in the United States.”

Other studies such as “Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Patients” (Ard & Makadon, 2011), The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (2013) and “INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ABUSE AMONG LGBT PEOPLE” (Brown & Herman, 2015) offer comparative statistical data. Padgett (2023) wrote about the rise in such cases post-pandemic. Comparatively, Frankis and Maxwell (2023) assert that “one in four gay and bisexual men (GBM) in Scotland have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) in the past year” in their study conducted at the Glasgow Caledonian University. As stated in a posting by JD Law Firm (2022), battered same sex individuals might not report the domestic violence for the following reasons: potential homophobia from domestic violence service providers, the risk of rejection from family and friends if they are “outed”, and the lack of resources tailored specifically for LGBT victims.

What could happen when domestic violence is reported by an LGBT individual? In her article “The Disproportionate Effect of Mutual Restraining Orders on Same-Sex Domestic Violence Victims”, Jacquie Andreano (2020) discusses how common it is for dual arrest to be executed in such situations. When discussing the concept of “battered women’s syndrome,” Andreano describes how LGBT victims “do not often fit the traditional stereotypes of dependent or weak females” or as being “meek, helpless and feminine”. She mentions how mutual restraining orders are often issued by judicial officers despite one not being requested by the respondent—perhaps in part to avoid a trial in which the aggressor and victim must be proven.

While this might be perceived as a litigious benefit, Andreano mentions the difficulty faced when a mutual restraining order is violated and the difficulty that law enforcement has when determining who the violator is. In the case of a same-sex couple, there might be the perception that the abuse is mutual or consensual because it is not occurring between people of the opposite sex. You might consider reading “’It happens in gay relationships too’: the story behind a domestic violence cabaret” or Carmen Maria Machado’s memoir In the Dream House for insight into how domestic violence can start regardless of the individual’s sexual orientation and gender identity. You might also check out Mayo Clinic’s article about domestic violence against men.

Whether you are a pro per litigant or a legal expert, be sure to visit Solano County Law Library for your legal reference needs. We possess materials that address procedures and the paperwork involved in the four main types of restraining orders. If you are seeking restraining order assistance, you might try the services listed on our “Legal Assistance: Free or Low-Cost Legal Services” brochure.

This blog posting is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for legal advice. Please consult with a legal expert for the best guidance.

“The Works of Poet Lawyer Reginald Dwayne Betts” by Jonathan Watson

In honor of April’s National Poetry Month, this posting will focus on activist, playwright, performer and self-described “lawyer poet” Reginald Dwayne Betts. Maryland-native Betts was a high school honor student when—at the age of 16—he was tried as an adult for participating in a carjacking (Lim, 2022). It was during his nine-year incarceration that Betts began reading and writing poetry.

In “Finding Freedom In Words: Lawyer Poet Reginald Dwayne Betts Receives MacArthur Fellowship” (Mosely & McMahon, 2021), Betts mentions how he was influenced by poets Etheridge Knight and Lucille Clifton. In a 2016 PBS News Hour segment, Betts shared how poetry “…was my idea of how to be somebody. Being a poet…gave me something to pursue, and I could easily tell when I was doing it right by people’s response.” You might view the following lines from his poem “A Postmodern Two-Step” as a peek into his thoughts while imprisoned:

Some people say prison is the country

where life is cheaper than anywhere else;

you wouldn’t think that watching us take leave,

our caravan three deep and black against

the wine-dark asphalt, and two of three

are nothing but escorts: four uniformed

shotguns (off safety) leading and flanking

our coffle, all intent to keep us here…

After serving his time, Betts attended Prince George’s Community College. He earned his B.A. degree in English from the University of Maryland, MFA from Warren Wilson College, and a Juris Doctorate degree from Yale Law School. In 2021, Betts began working on his PhD in Law at Yale University (Maryland Today, 2021). His other accomplishments include serving as a member of the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and having founded Freedom Reads (an organization devoted to providing access to literature in prisons).

In 2023, Betts and artist Titus Kaphar released the book Redaction. As described by Griffiths (2019), the work started off as an exhibition and “…draws on source material from lawsuits filed on behalf of people incarcerated because of an inability to pay court fines and fees”. On “All Things Considered” (NPR; 2023), Betts hoped that “…when you read the poems and when you look at the images, you see that it runs the gamut…of the American experience in America.” Fellow interviewee Kaphar expressed how “…as artists, we can somehow get people to feel, that’s a powerful gesture in itself…”

Solano County Library carries Betts’ poetry collection Felon at Solano County Library. You can request a copy of Redaction via the LINK+ system. LINK+ also allows you to request other Betts titles such as his memoir A Question of Freedom. Be sure to also visit his Poetry Foundation profile to read more of his poetical works. You might also check out Betts’ interview with the Library Journal (January 2023).

This blog posting is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for legal advice. Please consult with a legal expert for the best guidance.

Lawsuits and Mental Health – Part II by Jonathan Watson

The advent of 2023 means the end of our series on mental health and wellness. To review, our first posting in the series dealt with workplace bullying and hostile work environments. The second focused on how lawsuits affected the mental health of litigants, their attorneys, and even organizations such as law libraries that aim to best serve pro per customers. This final posting will focus on the wellness aspects of dealing with a lawsuit.

How might wellness be defined? The UC Davis Student Health and Counseling Services devised the following “Eight Dimensions of Wellness”: emotional, occupational, intellectual, environmental, financial, physical, social and spiritual. Although you might be put off by the title, if we adapt the model devised by UC Davis, you could say that the 2010 edition of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Lawsuits primarily encourages emotional and physical wellness. Some of the stress-relieving methods that the book proposes include mild exercise, adhering to a sleep schedule, seeking support groups or therapists, and closely communicating with counsel.   

What about wellness for counsel? In her article “How Law Firms Can Help Litigators Foster Mental Wellness”, Ortega (2022) mentions how law firms have adopted work environments that emphasize teamwork and systems in which litigators can communicate their mental health needs. Abella (2022) wrote how the pandemic affected the work life balance of attorneys and paraprofessionals (e.g., older/single attorneys struggling with loneliness, working parents juggling the care of children and elderly family members, etc.). Abella mentions the Lawyers Assistance Program that is available to California attorneys, which offers short-term counseling sessions.

While the above materials address maintaining one’s mental health and wellness during a lawsuit, what about after the case concludes? Returning to Strasburger’s “The Litigant-Patient: Mental Health Consequences of Civil Litigation” (1999), he mentioned that stress can persist even after a case’s conclusion. In his 2008 article “Lessons from Losing…Defeat”, Gwilliam specifically wrestles with what might be feared most: being the defeated party. He addresses how the concepts of justice and ambition can be harmful when neither prevails, and counsel is left unsatisfied. In which case, is losing supposed to teach a person about humility and perseverance as Gwilliam asserts?

Even though Gwilliam is speaking from the perspective of an attorney, his personal lessons might still be worth reading as a layperson. You might have some legal recourse if you lose depending upon the nature of your case, but will that be wise if your mental health and wellness is dwindling?  More so, rather than seeing it as a sign of weakness, could accepting litigious defeat be liberating? This, of course, is something to be decided by the litigant and having a support system (as described by the articles in this posting) could be useful to gain a better standpoint.

As a reminder, be sure to check out Solano County Library’s mental health kits. If you are unable to check out the kits, you can explore similar materials by using Solano County Library’s databases. Whether you are a pro per litigant or a legal expert, be sure to visit Solano County Law Library for your legal reference needs!  

This blog posting is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for legal advice. Please consult with a legal expert for the best guidance.

Lawsuits and Mental Health – Part I by Jonathan Watson

Our last blog posting addressed workplace bullying and hostile work environments. This entry will take a broader approach in tying mental health to law. It is said that a divorce is one of the most stressful life events for a person. What about other types of litigation that fall under, say, civil or criminal law?

Please be aware that this posting is not a substitute for mental health advice or support. Nor is this posting intended to discourage an individual from pursuing justice. Rather, it is intended to highlight how one’s health (especially mental) can be affected due to legal proceedings. As summarized by Strasburger in “The Litigant-Patient: Mental Health Consequences of Civil Litigation” (1999),

“…civil litigation is stressful for plaintiffs and for defendants. There is an inherent irony in the judicial system in that individuals who bring suit may endure injury from the very process through which they seek redress. The legal process itself is often a trauma. Although many hope-and some find-that it is ultimately restorative, no one brings a lawsuit for his or her health…”

It might be thought that the end of a case will prove cathartic. We always see the courtroom erupting in jubilation when the judge rules in favor of the protagonist in films and television. However, Strasburger goes on to state that the feelings of stress for both parties reverberate even after the case’s conclusion. More so, the nature of the case can especially have adverse effects—as a personal injury lawsuit was cited as further affecting the overall health of an ailing party. After all, will the judgment make the ongoing pain and mounting medical costs suddenly vanish?

In the 2017 article “Anticipating and Managing the Psychological Cost of Civil Litigation”, Keet, Heavin and Sparrow discuss the impact of litigation stress and how it can be amplified based on the perceived level of stakes. More so, the stress can prove detrimental for individuals with ongoing mental or emotional vulnerabilities. The authors describe how an individual suffering from PTSD after witnessing a violent event might be further triggered by repeated interviews about the incident. As the litigation stress mounts, the authors describe scenarios in which the litigant might exhaust their support system, or the attorney-client meetings start growing increasingly difficult.  

If represented by an attorney, it might seem like the litigant is experiencing the bulk of the stress—as they are relying on an expert to guide them through the legal process. Yet, as with other professions, attorneys are only human and cope with litigation stress in their own ways. According to a study conducted by Krill, Johnson, and Albert (2016), American attorneys experience their fair share of substance abuse and mental health concerns. Their sample revealed that the surveyed attorneys experienced high degrees of depression and anxiety, and significant rates of alcoholism.

In 2021, the Los Angeles Times reported on a 2020 study that included the participation of the California Lawyers Association and the D.C. Bar. The study entitled “Stress, Drink, Leave: An Examination of Gender-Specific Risk Factors for Mental Health Problems and Attrition Among Licensed Attorneys” included similar findings to the one conducted by Krill, Johnson, and Albert. The 2020 study reaffirmed that female attorneys experienced more mental stress (compounded by work-life balance challenges) than their male counterparts. As a result, the 2020 study showed that 1 in 4 female attorneys contemplated leaving the profession. The ABA Commission on Women in the Profession has produced valuable literature on female attorneys, such as conducting its own study on how women of color fare in the legal field.

While they are neither litigants nor attorneys, law library staff can also experience their fair share of stress as outlined in AALL’s 2018 resource “Legal Ease: Self-Care for Library Staff”. Although it is expected that customers will be distressed, it can be a trying task for employees if there is a demand for legal advice or assistance that goes beyond the scope of a law library’s reference services. As quoted, “The very nature of library work predisposes us to burnout. A normal library workday can be described as a continuous round of interruptions”. Some of the stressors mentioned include unmet needs for pro per litigants that cannot afford an attorney, limited resources and staff, and the increasing costs of legal materials. Other factors addressed in the resource include lack of established boundaries between employees, coworkers, and management. Moreover, although the resource does not mention it, there could be the argument that a toxic work environment and workplace bullying could further contribute to a library worker’s stress and burnout.

For information on mental health services in Solano County, you might start your research by viewing this brochure produced by Solano County Behavioral Health. As a reminder, be sure to check out Solano County Library’s mental health kits. You might also consider checking out the social justice book kits, as they address topics such as Native American rights, disability rights, and immigration. If you are unable to check out the kits, you can explore similar materials by using Solano County Library’s databases.

Whether you are a pro per litigant or a legal expert, be sure to visit Solano County Law Library for your legal reference needs!  This blog posting is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for legal advice. Please consult with a legal expert for the best guidance.