Domestic Violence affects every aspect of victims and their families’ lives.  Not only are families’ emotional, psychological and physical well being tremendously impacted by domestic violence, but the most basic needs, i.e. housing, employment, immigration are also subject to the negative effects of such circumstances.  Since the ubiquity of publiic awareness campaigns, which promulgated federal and state laws addressing these vital concerns, issues of housing, immigration, employment and public benefits should no longer serve as preventive measures for seeking assistance.  Although most states, including New York, have enacted important legislation to address some of the most basic needs of domestic violence victims there is much more that needs to be done.  In addition, sometimes implementing and facilitating programs, resources, etc. that adhere to these laws raises other challenges.  New York has enacted specific legislation to address some of the most important basic needs of its residents.   Some of the most important concerns are:

Domestic Violence & Immigration:
           Many domestic violence victims are foreign-born, oftentimes outnumbering U.S. citizens.  This particular group frequently do not report domestic violence for cultural reasons (domestic violence is accepted in many cultures), fear of deportation, language barriers or mere lack of awareness. Illegal immigrants are protected by state laws and local procedures, and are therefore entitled to the same treatment as U.S. citizens. 

          Police-Illegal immigrants can call the police to report domestic violence and are not subject to being questioned about immigration status.  In fact, under the Equal Protection laws, illegal immigrants are entitled to a language interpreter when they call the police and the police respond to their home. 

          Order of Protection-Illegal immigrants are also permitted to go to Family or Criminal Court to seek an Order of Protection regardless of immigration status. 

          Legal Residency-Under the federal legislation, Violence Against Women Act (”VAWA”), a woman married to a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident may be eligible for permanenct lawful residency or legal status.  Under VAWA a waamn no longer has to rely on her husband for “family sponsorship” to become a permanent lawful resident.  She may “self petition” for permanent residency by applying with INS and showing that she was “phsyically battered” or subject to “extreme cruelty” by the hands of her spouse.  Or if is she is in deportation proceeding or can be placed in such proceedings, the court can waive deportation and grant residency upon a showing of either.  Alternatively, the domestic violence victim can apply for a special visa, called the U-visa, which was created by Congress in 2000.  This visa permits victims of “serious crimes” to work in the United States and after three years, apply for permanent residency if they can show “hardship”.
Domestic Violence & Child Custody/Visitation:
           Child custody is not presumed to be with either parent.  Although one parent may have physical custody, legal custody must be determined by the court.  The courts use “the best interests of the child” standard to determine whether sole custody or joint custody should be awarded.  One factor the courts routinely consider is whether there is domestic violence or was a history of domestic violence between the parties.  Domestic violence in the home or between the parties prohibits the court from awarding joint custody since the parties have to communicate and interact regularly in such situations.  Sole custody is awarded with child visitation to the non-custodial parent.  The court can award unsupervised visits with third party transfer, supervised visits (where the visits are supervised by a relative, close family friend or licensed agency) or therapeutic visits ( where  a licensed professional interacts with the parent and child during the visit to improve the parent-child bond).   Only in extreme cases will visitations be suspended altogether.

Domestic Violence & Public (Government) Benefits:
           Most domestic violence victims wind up being recipients of public benefits since many of them depended on their abusers for financial support.  Financial assistance, food stamps, Medicaid and housing benefits are the most common programs domestic violence victims seek. 
          Housing-Domestic violence victims may be referred to shelters based on family size/structure.  The shelters are comprised of three groups: families, pregnant families (where a single or married victim is pregnant or parents of a pregnant person over 21 years) and single adults.  other government housing programs include Section 8 Housing, New York City Housing Authority (”NYCHA”) housing and rental assistance programs.  Section 8 and NYCHA requires the victim meet “emergency” criteria.  While rental assistance programs are designed for shelter occupants who work individuals and meet income requirements. 
          Food Stamps-Domestic violence victims may be eligible for Expedited Processing, if you are eligible for Food Stamp Benefits and Your household has less than $100 in cash and other available resources and will have less than $150 in gross income during the month that you apply or your income and available resources are less than your rent or mortgage plus heat, utilities and phone.
          Financial Assistance-The Family Violence Option (passed in 1997 to address the safety needs of domestic violence victims and their children) protects victims from being sanctioned for their failure to meet the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (”TANF”) requirement, specifically regarding workk and child support.  The requirements may be waived if meeting these requirements may pose a risk of harm to the victim and their children.

Domestic Violence & Employment:
           Incidents of domestic violence costs employers millions of dollars as a result of unproductivity.  Many employers are directly affected by incidents of domestic violence by absenteeism, work performance and/or implementing safey measures.  However, employees who are victims of domestic violence are protected by state ( and federal) laws that address employment related issues. 
          Discrimination-Domestic violence victims may not be discrimated against, refused hiring or discharged based on history or presence of domestic violence.
          Job security-An employee may not be penalized for taking time off to appear in court, to speak with the District Attorney’s office or otherwise pursuing legal actions or legal rights related to domestic violence.
          Unemployment Benefits-If an employee voluntarily quits a job because of domestic violence related incidents or is discharged because of “misconduct” resulting from absenteeism or lateness as a result of domestic violence, he/she can not be denied unemployment benefits based on either.
          Job Benefits-An employee who is a victim of domestic violence may make reasonable changes to employment benefits at any time during the calendar year if they are separated from their domestic partner/spouse as a result of domestic violence.
          Order of Protection-Employers must enforce and adhere to restrictions directed in an Order of Protection, where those restrictions relate to the victim’s place of employment.

           Domestic violence can adversely affect every aspect of the victim’s life, from what they eat to where they live.  More often than not, victims are forced to face these issues with no guidance. Although a few are mentioned here, there is a plethora of day to day activities that are impacted, directly and indirectly.  There are many resources on the state and local level, geared toward addressing the extensive number of issues and therefore, should never serve as a deterrent to leaving a volatile situation.

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW IS A VICTIM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT THE NEW YORK STATE HOTLINE AT 800-942-6906.