Prosecuting Domestic Violence : A Philosophical Analysis

This book provides the first serious, sustained philosophical investigation of the criminal prosecution of domestic violence. It provides a theoretical framework for understanding ongoing debates regarding the criminal justice system's response to domestic violence.

What should public prosecutors do when victims withdraw support for domestic violence prosecutions? The answer to this question that motivates the investigation undertaken in this book defends the claim that (other things being equal) domestic violence prosecutors should respond as feminists.This claim is intended as a provocative formulation of the proposition that domestic violence prosecutors should act for reasons generated by the value of reconstituting communities as less patriarchal. This thesis is defended first by developing a general theory of prosecutorial practical reasoning, and then by considering the prosecution of domestic violence offences in particular. Along the way, this book provides an original account of the nature of prosecutorial action, the values that can be realised through such action, and the relationship between these values and the practical reasoning of criminal prosecutors. Moreover, it provides original analyses of two key concepts, domestic violence and patriarchy, and explains the relevance of the latter to a proper understanding of the former. These insights are put to work in answering the motivating question stated above, and provide answers both in terms of what prosecutors would be justified in doing, and what prosecutors should do in order to be effective