176 Battered in the Media: The Legacy of Women’s Legal Defenses in Cases of Intimate Partner Homicide

Faculty Mentor: Heather Melton (Sociology, University of Utah)

This study is a content analysis of media reports exploring how women who kill their abusive partners are portrayed in the media. Public opinion on this issue has changed over the years. Historically, intimate partner abuse was hidden within homes and viewed as a strictly domestic issue not to be dealt with by law enforcement. Now there seems to be a better understanding of how serious it is–this study seeks to discover how a changing public opinion might impact case outcomes. News articles throughout the 2000s were selected and the following themes were identified and coded: a history of violence in the life of the woman, battered woman syndrome, the women as mothers, negative portrayals of the women, and their racial/ethnic background. Using the lens of these themes, the cases were reviewed and sorted based on their eventual outcomes: no charges filed, the charges being dropped, or a prison sentence for the women being discussed.Exploring this topic is crucial in addressing the problem of criminalizing survivors of abuse. Each of these cases involves women with various identities that affect the way they are treated in the legal system, and an intersectional approach is necessary to properly view their circumstances. There is a lack of understanding from law enforcement on how to handle intimate partner abuse situations, as well as large discrepancies in the outcomes of the survivors—some spend years in prison for firing a shot in the direction of their partner, while others never have charges brought against them. Ultimately, there should be a unified understanding across the country on how to respond to these situations: the aggressive, traumatizing approach of the criminal justice system against survivors must change.

Introduction

It was a late September day in 2017 when Nicole Addimando told police that she had shot her husband. Rattled, and not wearing any shoes, she gradually explained her situation: the abuse that had been going on for years–including burns, beatings, and sexual assaults that were uploaded to PornHub with titles like “Break a Bitch” (Synder, 2019). As Addimando’s trial began to unfold, prosecutors argued that her frequent medical visits documenting the abuse were calculated–rather than a survivor, Addimando was a mastermind of her husband’s ruin. This strategy proved successful, as she was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison before successfully having her sentence reduced. Addimando was released from prison in early January 2024, after serving seven and a half years.When faced with the reality of intimate partner abuse, Americans have too often turned a blind eye and the response has been at best: lackluster and at worst: suspicious of survivors. When Dr. Lenore Walker sought to discuss institutional gender disparities with a reporter in the late 1970s, she was shut down with a brisk statement that sums up American society’s response to intimate partner abuse– “we don’t have time for social change” (Rothenberg, 2003). While this perception has evolved over the past decade, there is still a way to go for American society and the United States legal system to understand and empathize with survivors of intimate partner abuse. A particularly controversial subgroup of survivors are individuals labeled with Battered Woman Syndrome, a term first coined by Dr. Walker in the 1970s that is defined as a psychological classification under the umbrella of post- traumatic stress disorder. Through Walker’s publications, Battered Woman Syndrome (BWS) became a legitimate term that is mainly utilized as a defense in intimate partner murder cases, where the defendant asserts their actions were in self-defense and a response to their reoccurring abuse. This defense is one classification for women who kill their abusers, but there are many ways that they are presented to the public. This paper explores how women who kill their abusive partners are portrayed in the media.

Media Depictions of Women Who Kill Their  Partners

Portrayals of these women have been studied before from various angles, the most pertinent example linked to the current study examined whether news portrayals highlighted a feminist lens or viewed cases of women killing their abusive intimate partners as a medical problem (Noh et al., 2010). This longitudinal study examined media depictions from the late 1970s into 2002, analyzed how the women’s actions were presented, and if any explanations were given for the women’s actions. These explanations were sorted into four different typification models. First, there is the most socially excusable defense of mental illness which the authors refer to as the “mad” portrayal—these women can either be excused or acquitted based on mental instability. Next, there is the rational, premeditated depiction which labels the women as guilty and “bad”. Lastly, there is the feminist perspective which argues that the women’s actions are reasonable given the circumstances of their abuse and can be separated into two subtypes: feminists that argue that the women’s actions are justifiable and reasonable self-defense, and feminists that argue their actions can be reasonable when one takes the psychological disorder of Battered Woman Syndrome into account (Noh et al., 2010). According to the authors, Dr. Lenore Walker’s Battered Woman Syndrome is an example of early legal feminism which connected the medical and feminist models by arguing that any reasonable person would defend themselves against their abuser, and go to the same lengths as a battered woman. The term “battered woman” refers to a woman who is being repeatedly abused by their partner, and as one article chronicling a woman’s case describes Battered Woman Syndrome, it describes the psychological effect of repeated abuse which leads victims to believe that they can only “use violence to be free” (Sandlin, 2023). In other words, Battered Woman Syndrome refers to the psychological state of women experiencing intimate partner abuse so much that they feel they must act in self-defense to protect their own lives and often the lives of their families. Rather than pleading mental insanity during trial, intimate partner abuse survivors might argue BWS—which means that due to abuse, their actions were reasonable and qualify as self-defense.

Turning back to the Noh et al. study, researchers differentiated between feminist lenses by their stances on BWS; researchers state that the “feminist jurisprudence” model views BWS as creating a narrow view of victimhood that relies on medicalizing survivors to defend them, and therefore this model rejects BWS as a defense, arguing instead that battered women are reasonable in their actions of self-defense. This point of view differs from “early legal feminism” which the researchers indicate is the current model being portrayed in the U.S. legal system (Noh et al., 2010).Another study centered around newspaper reports of both female-perpetrated and male- perpetrated intimate partner violence homicides and hypothesized that few newspapers would discuss intimate partner violence within a broader context—and instead would paint the cases as isolated events. After reviewing one hundred news reports, the authors’ findings supported this hypothesis. The study also hypothesized that marginalized groups would be overrepresented, though it was determined that they could not accurately test this due to a lack of demographic information provided in the news articles. Lastly, the authors hypothesized that female perpetrators would receive more news coverage and that the female victims would be portrayed negatively by the media. Both assertions were not supported in the findings of the study, and instead, the news articles were relatively unbiased. The articles were published in the early 2000s, and the authors note that these findings illustrate that progress has been made in understanding the gender dynamics of intimate partner abuse, though the topic itself must be discussed in a broader sense, rather than focusing on individual cases (Wozniak & McCloskey, 2010).

Critiques of Battered Woman Syndrome

As mentioned previously, analyzing the reaction to Battered Woman Syndrome is key to understanding the societal perception of individuals who have dealt with intimate partner abuse. While there are certainly those who feel that Battered Woman Syndrome goes too far in empathizing with individuals who have allegedly taken the lives of their loved ones, there are many others who argue that Battered Woman Syndrome does not go far enough. One of these critics is Sharon Angella Allard, who published her piece “Rethinking Battered Woman: A Black Feminist Perspective” in various law journals. In this article, Allard argues that although BWS has helped the public have a more nuanced perspective on survivors of intimate partner abuse, it also relies and upholds on stereotypes regarding how women deal with their abuse (Allard, 1991). In hopes of being sympathetic to jurors, women using a BWS defense try to highlight the qualities about themselves that jurors empathize with– according to Allard this means appearing “weak, passive, and fearful” (1991, p. 194). For many marginalized groups in the United States, this can be quite a feat, when they are more likely to be viewed as dangerous or more likely to recidivate. In her article, Allard specifically focuses on black women, and she asserts that their portrayal by the media already deviates from the passive mold so appealing to juries is even more complicated. To deal with this situation, Allard argues that an “intersectional approach” (1991, p. 195) that takes an individual’s identities into accord is necessary.

Bess Rothenberg’s essay “‘We Don’t Have Time for Social Change’: Cultural Compromise and the Battered Woman Syndrome” illustrates similar points to Allard, arguing that the title of BWS only provides an exclusive definition of who can fit the label of intimate partner abuse victim (Rothenberg, 2003). One aspect that differentiates Rothenberg’s work from others is that she uses discourse on BWS as an example of cultural compromise–meaning that various groups with opposing interests are all struggling for cultural control over a given issue. The compromise here is the interests of survivors of intimate partner abuse, who are often forced into a narrow image of victimhood to make themselves palatable to jurors and the general public.The current study seeks to discover how today’s media portrays women who kill their abusive partners by categorizing themes that appear across various cases and news outlets. These portrayals are important because they illustrate whether societal understanding of intimate partner abuse is moving forward–and beyond ideas formed during the widespread beginning of the discourse on IPA in the 1970s.

Methods

This study was a content analysis of media reports on women who kill their intimate partners in the United States, and how they are depicted in the news articles that cover their cases. All the articles were written after the year 2000, in fact only seven of the articles were written before 2020– the earliest of which was written in 2011. This timespan presents various considerations on how societal factors might have changed over the years. All the data sources involved in this media analysis occurred during the digital age, and with widespread access to the internet comes a heightened awareness of cultural diversity, as well as increased polarization across communities. The search for these cases was conducted using both local and national news sources, with no significant limits placed on data collection. When searching through academic databases proved ineffective, data collection was widened to general Google searches. The keywords used to find news articles consisted of variations on “woman kills partner self-defense news”.In the end, nineteen news articles were identified. A content analysis was performed by the researcher and a database with various variables including case outcomes from the articles was created. Case outcomes included whether charges were brought against the women and if these charges led to guilty or not guilty verdicts. Next, the articles were coded based on descriptions of the women to determine which of these descriptors would become themes across various articles. The articles highlighted the following themes: a history of violence in the life of the woman, battered woman syndrome, the women as mothers, negative portrayals of the women, and their racial/ethnic background.

There were two outlying cases in which the intimate partners were not killed. One of which was relatively recent, from 2022, where Queneshia Shields shot her abuser, but it was not lethal (Beach). This article is in a category of its own, as no charges were brought against Shields, and instead, warrants were out against her husband. The other outlier is Marissa Alexander’s case, which many news reports documented. Alexander fired a warning shot in the direction of her husband in response to his attack, and although she did not cause him any physical harm, Alexander spent almost six years in prison and on house arrest (Hauser, 2017). The inclusion of these two outlying cases where the husbands of both women survived was crucial in illustrating how different the outcome of these cases can be, for no apparent reason. Alexander faced years of confinement, while Shields was believed and understood by law enforcement from the start of the investigation.

Findings

As mentioned previously, multiple themes appeared throughout the coding process on how women who kill their abusers are portrayed in the media. These themes illustrate what aspects of the women’s identities are being highlighted in their court cases by either defense teams or prosecution, as well as how the public might be receiving them. Out of the characterizations presented in the articles, five predominant themes emerged: the women’s identities as mothers, a history of violence in the relationship before the events being discussed, battered woman syndrome, negative portrayals of the women, and their racial/ethnic background. Each of these themes will be explored in the following section of this paper.

Motherhood

One theme across multiple articles was the authors’ making note of the fact that the women involved were mothers. Having a child tends to be a large part of people’s identities, and this is even more so the case for mothers, as patriarchal pressures have historically dictated motherhood as the ultimate goal for women. When searching for key terms that appeared throughout the articles on women killing their abusers, it seemed that motherhood might work for or against these women. Highlighting a woman’s role as a mother could make her appear more forgiving to the public (and potential jurors) as she fits into societal and gender norms. On the other hand, a woman’s motherhood could potentially be used against her–this fact becomes a shocking betrayal of a cultural contract that has placed her in a strictly caregiving role, and by turning to extreme, law-breaking measures she has shattered the idea that she exists only as a docile homemaker. Throughout the articles, the women’s identities as mothers were used to the former effect of making them appear more forgiving. Interestingly, this coincided with discussion surrounding “Stand Your Ground” laws–in 38 states these laws decree that individuals are within their rights to not retreat against an attacker. Sabrina Hendley’s case is one that was argued as a “Stand Your Ground” case, and ultimately succeeded in this defense. After reviewing her case, Hendley’s actions were viewed as “legitimate” by a state attorney, and the charges against her were dropped (Gomez, 2022). Motherhood adds a unique layer to “Stand Your Ground” cases–as one of Hendley’s attorneys makes clear in a statement to news outlets, describing Hendley’s actions as “in defense of her family” (Ryan, 2021). This sentiment of protecting the family (particularly children) was echoed throughout articles that drew special attention to the defendant’s motherhood. Not all the women portrayed by the media as mothers received the same treatment as Sabrina Hendley. While the charges against Hendley were dropped, others like Jacqueline Smalls and Nicole Addimando were sentenced to 15 years and 19 years to life, respectively (Law, 2018; Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, 2024). Of the three women that the media specifically highlighted as mothers, only one had their charges dropped, while the others were sentenced to guilty charges.

History of violence

Another important theme that appears in countless stories of intimate partner violence is the persistent presence of abuse in the relationship. Generally, this violence does not appear out of nowhere. Instead, it festers over years–culminating in a tragic conclusion. When coding for themes in the articles, the most common theme was a history of violence, which appeared in nine news stories. The most striking example of this theme appears in the New Yorker’s coverage of Nicole Addimando’s case. As mentioned in the introduction, the substantial amount of evidence pointing to Addimando’s history of abuse from her husband was challenged by prosecution, who argued that she was “self- injuring” in order to build a medical history that would corroborate her story (Snyder, 2019). The videos that her husband uploaded to PornHub were argued to be “partly consensual” by prosecution– and it seemed that no amount of evidence could not be twisted to fit the narrative that Addimando’s actions were calculated (Snyder, 2019).

Most of the other articles that mentioned a history of violence on the part of the deceased partner noted that there were clear signs that the abuser’s actions were escalating. Jacqueline Smalls, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison for stabbing her abuser, had two protective orders against him before the fatal incident. As of the 2018 The Appeal article covering her case, Smalls’ daughter was fighting for the New York government to grant her mother clemency, which they eventually did in late 2022. Again, Smalls’ motherhood is brought up in her defense, as her daughter publicly speaks to have her mother freed (Law, 2018). A similar set of factors appears in Barbara Sheehan’s case, as the article first makes note of the “nearly 20 years” of abuse she faced at the hands of her husband, then quickly goes on to highlight her role as a “mother of two” before outlining the facts of her case (ABC News, 2011). It seems that the overall tactic from defense is to build on the docile, caregiver portrayal of these women–arguing that they were forced into their actions and were purely acting in self-defense. As mentioned previously, both Addimando and Smalls faced guilty verdicts, and Sheehan served a five-year sentence after being found guilty of “criminal possession of a weapon” (CBS, 2013).In contrast, two of the women whose news coverage highlighted a history of violence in their relationships did not serve time in prison. Queneshia Shields shot her husband during one of his attacks, he survived, and no charges were brought against her—her husband was on probation for aggravated assault charges at the time of the incident, and law enforcement subsequently issued warrants for his arrest (Beach, 2022). Unlike Shields, Rachel Bellesen faced a lengthy legal battle before her case was ultimately dismissed with prejudice, which means that it cannot be tried again in the future. Allison Griner’s article for The Guardian chronicles Bellesen’s life with her ex-husband, which was characterized by isolation, verbal, physical, and sexual abuse before a violent altercation forced Bellesen to shoot her ex-husband (2021). Other than Bellesen and Shields’ cases, the seven other articles depicted women who served time with guilty verdicts.

BWS

The psychological classification that defines these actions is Battered Woman Syndrome, which was discussed in the introduction of this paper. Since this term originated in the 1970s, it was important to observe how, if at all, the term would be mentioned in current cases. Interestingly, Battered Woman Syndrome was the second most-used code, appearing in seven different news articles. It seems that BWS is an acceptable term for defense attorneys, and it is a matter of convincing jurors that the defendant’s actions are “objectively reasonable” based on the abuse they have dealt with (Alexander, 2022). The term is slowly becoming more accepted by prosecutors, who seem increasingly unwilling to bring a case against a survivor of intimate partner abuse. This was the outcome for Sabrina Hendley, whose case was mentioned in the Motherhood section of this paper. All charges against her were dropped by prosecution after learning of the substantial abuse Hendley experienced at the hands of her husband (Gomez, 2022). Hendley’s story offers a hopeful change in how the legal system understands and responds to cases involving intimate partner abuse. If prosecutors view BWS as a reasonable act of self-defense and dismiss charges against survivors, they not only save these women from being re-traumatized by the ordeal of a trial but set a precedent for thoughtfully reviewing these complex cases rather than bringing charges against individuals recklessly.

Many of the news articles that highlight a history of violence also focus on how this pattern of abuse can manifest into battered woman syndrome, and so there are many overlapping cases involving both themes. Barbara Sheehan, whose case was covered in the History of Violence section, was described as a battered woman by her defense attorneys but ended up serving time in prison. Prominent feminist and discrimination attorney Gloria Allred described using a BWS defense as an “uphill climb” in news coverage of Sheehan’s case in 2011 (ABC News). This brings up the question of how, if at all, things have changed since the early 2010s regarding the public’s understanding of intimate partner abuse, as well as how the legal system interprets these issues. While the two articles from 2022 discussed above suggest that attitudes on BWS are changing as society learns more about the effects of intimate partner abuse, only Sabrina Hendley had her charges dropped, while six other cases saw convictions against the women. Two of these women successfully appealed their cases, Nicole Addimando served seven and a half years and Diana Lalchan spent about three years in prison before both women were released. As popular culture gains an understanding of BWS, it seems that there is a growing outcry against criminalizing survivors’ actions––but there is still a long way to go, with many survivors still facing prison time.

Negative portrayals

While the prosecution in many of these cases used tactics to paint defendants as cruel, a few examples stood out above the rest. First, there is Brittany Baier’s case which a local Milwaukee newspaper reported on in 2018. Baier was sentenced to life in prison for killing her boyfriend, though because her defense team argued that she had battered woman syndrome, the judge allowed her to “seek conditional release” after spending twenty-five years in prison. The jury rejected Baier’s story of self-defense, and instead sided with prosecutors who labeled her actions “particularly cruel and appalling” (Vielmetti, 2018). While the purpose of this study is not to moralize the actions of the women discussed, by reporting case outcomes and analyzing how the women are portrayed, one can recognize broader cultural changes in the way Americans view and understand intimate partner abuse. The question is not whether Baier’s actions were right or wrong, but how news media articulate the information surrounding her case, and the case outcome.

Diana Lalchan, mentioned briefly in the battered woman syndrome section, dealt with the public’s lack of understanding of intimate partner abuse throughout her case, as she was found guilty of killing her husband before the decision was overturned in an appellate court. The reason for this change stemmed from the fact that the initial judge did not instruct jurors as to the effects of intimate partner abuse and how this can lead to actions of self-defense on the part of the victim. Instead of presenting a complete picture of the events, federal prosecutors labeled Lalchan as a “manipulative” woman who concocted her story to start over and “live as a lesbian” (Alexander, 2022). This is a striking story that Lalchan’s defense team argued relies heavily on stereotypes. Lalchan was not a passive white woman fulfilling traditional gender roles of motherhood, and though psychologists testified that her actions aligned with those of a battered woman, prosecution and jurors disagreed, and she was found guilty of manslaughter while armed in her initial trial. This outcome did not hold, and after spending three years in prison, a new trial was ordered, and prosecutors dismissed all charges against her (Alexander, 2022).Negative portrayals are common from the prosecution, as it is their task to convince jurors of the defendant’s guilt—and in doing so, they must tell a compelling story that surpasses the one presented by the defense side. The burden of proof falls on the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed the crime they are being accused of, and so it makes sense that part of this process involves critiquing the defendant’s character. The problem with this tactic is that often, the prosecution relies on outdated, stereotypical beliefs to bolster their claims that the defendant is guilty. This viewpoint succeeds when the public (potential jurors) lacks understanding about intimate partner abuse and refuses more nuanced ideas of guilt and innocence. The key in these cases is “reasonableness” or what is deemed as reasonable given the circumstances, and in cases of extreme abuse, tragic acts of self-defense can be considered reasonable, as the appellate judges articulated in their ruling on Diana Lalchan’s case (Alexander, 2022).

Race/ethnic background

Like other aspects of the criminal legal system in the United States, the race and ethnic background of a defendant can play an unfortunate role in the way their case is carried out. Rachel Bellesen, who is white and relatively middle class, reflected on her case and how racial and class identities worked in her favor for success in her trial. Her family was able to afford a private defense attorney and did not have to run the risk of working with a public defender who might have been overworked and unable to fight as hard in court (Griner, 2021). If women like Nicole Addimando— middle class, white, fulfilling traditional gender roles—are being prosecuted with lengthy, maximum sentences, then what does this mean for people from marginalized communities?No marginalized group is a monolith, and therefore women within these groups face unique challenges and experiences with the legal system—some of which can be positive and helpful, while other times they can be traumatizing and harmful. This was the case for Cyntoia Brown, who was sentenced to life in prison at sixteen years old for killing her boyfriend-turned-pimp. Her case gained national attention for the shockingly harsh sentence she was given as a minor being labeled a “teen prostitute” rather than a survivor of child sex trafficking (Hodal, 2019). The idea that a child could consent to enter into sex work seems outrageous, but this characterization is not necessarily uncommon for women in poverty.As discussed in the critiques of BWS section, Sharon Angella Allard highlighted how difficult it can be for black women to prove their innocence to juries who might already see them as outside the accepted portrayal of a battered woman (Allard, 1991). Some, including Marissa Alexander’s attorneys, have argued that her identity as a black woman shaped her case. Mentioned as an outlier to other cases in this study due to how extreme her sentence was, Marissa Alexander spent around six years in prison and on house arrest for firing a shot in the direction of her husband. She claimed that he was abusing her at the time of the incident, and her goal in firing the shot was to warn him off—and though he was unharmed, she was punished. Alexander’s legal team approached the case with Florida’s Stand Your Ground laws in mind, but she told The New York Times that this was “never considered” and prosecutors instead labeled her actions as stemming from anger (Hauser, 2017). This prosecution relies on an archaic stereotype about black women being more prone to anger to further Alexander from the stereotypical passive idea of a woman experiencing intimate partner abuse.

Discussion

Exploring this topic is crucial in addressing the problem of criminalizing survivors of abuse. There is a lack of understanding from law enforcement on how to handle intimate partner abuse situations, too often individuals’ experiences of abuse are thought of as they were historically viewed, as a domestic problem to be dealt with within the home and hidden from society. There are also large discrepancies in the outcomes of the survivors—some spend years in prison for firing a shot in the direction of their partner, while others never have charges brought against them. There should be a unified understanding across the country on how to respond to these situations. These cases require investigation, as the loss of life is a tragic event, but the aggressive, traumatizing approach of law enforcement against survivors must change. At the root of this issue, there is a need to recognize and react accordingly to the intersectionality of intimate partner abuse cases. This means that their various identities affect the way that survivors will react to and be treated by the legal system.The findings of this study add to existing research on the way battered women are treated in the U.S. legal system and aligns with previous research’s findings. Analysis of current media portrayals corroborates claims by existing research that BWS is still being used as women’s defense, though there seems to be a tone change in the way BWS is discussed in the media (Noh et al., 2010). Rather than focusing on the psychological damage that must have led to the women’s actions, some of the articles highlighted in this study reported that the women’s actions could be seen as “objectively reasonable” (Alexander, 2022). BWS appeared in many of the articles, similar to Noh et al. study’s finding that a medicalized understanding appeared most frequently in articles from the late 1970s into the early 2000s (2010). So, are we moving away from the “mad or bad” archetypes presented in the Noh et al. study? Slowly, and with hindsight, articles are painting a different picture of survivors who kill their abusers—one that views them as multifaceted, rather than simply by a tragic experience they had. Many of these articles still rely on what Noh et al. might label as a medicalized view by focusing on the women’s psychological distress or portrayal as dealing with battered women syndrome, but some present the women as complicated, rather than simply relying on stereotypical portrayals as either “cold-blooded or irrational” (Noh et al., 2010). The Guardian, an independent newspaper that covered multiple women’s cases is a strong example of this, as writers chronicled the women’s lives with nuanced, thoughtful approaches.

Exploration of media portrayals of women who kill their abusive partners provides insights at both a micro and broad scale. By tracking the women’s cases, we can measure how successful Battered Woman Syndrome is as a defense on a personal scale. Sentence outcomes today in comparison to when BWS was first coined in the 1970s can illustrate the changes over the past fifty years. On a macro level, these findings add to a host of research calling for change in the U.S. justice system— from law enforcement responses to the way that cases are being handled during trials. There are certainly cases examined in this study, the woman who shot her husband in Georgia for instance, where the criminal legal system responded to survivors by taking their circumstances into account. In this instance, police brought no charges against Queneshia Shields, perhaps because the incident was not fatal, and police focused their attention on bringing charges against her abuser (Beach, 2022). Instances like this stood in sharp contrast with stories of women facing vicious scrutiny from law enforcement, years in prison before being paroled, or life behind bars.

The study’s limitations must be considered. Some groups did not appear when searching for articles on cases, specifically, there was a lack of LGBTQIA+ stories. When researching for news media reports, there was no mention of these cases occurring in the queer community. These cases certainly exist, and so one must consider why they are not gaining media attention in the same way as their cis-gendered, heterosexual counterparts. Another factor to consider is how the data collection process affected results–by searching for women killing their partners/spouses, this limited findings to female-identifying individuals committing the acts.Many of the articles analyzed for this study were written after the outcome of the cases had been decided, and so were reflecting on the women’s stories after they were released from prison, acquitted, or the charges against them were dropped. This means that the portrayals are influenced by case outcomes and public opinion, which might influence authors to reframe survivors in a better light than they might initially. Regardless of these limitations, this study offers important insights into how women who kill their partners are portrayed in the media and the legacy of legal defenses in cases of intimate partner homicide.In conclusion, to address the problem of battered women killing their abusers, it is crucial to recognize that this is the tragic outcome of intimate partner abuse, which must be addressed for change to be possible. Rather than reactionary approaches from law enforcement after these situations result in tragedy, there must be proactive programs to deal with intimate partner abuse, and hopefully stop it from occurring in the first place. This is a lofty goal, but one that must be worked towards by promoting education, equity, and social services.

References

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Snyder, R. L. (2019). When can a woman who kills her abuser claim self-defense? The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/when-can-a-woman-who-kills-her-abuser-claim-self-defense

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