In The News

Romney plan for immigrants called threat to abuse victims
C ritic says battered women won’t ask police for help
By John J. Monahan TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

BOSTON— The leader of the state’s coalition against domestic violence yesterday called on Gov.-elect Deval L. Patrick to rescind Gov. Mitt Romney’s recent initiative to authorize state police to investigate immigration status and make arrests of illegal immigrants, saying it would discourage immigrant victims of domestic violence from seeking police protection.

Mary R. Lauby, executive director of Jane Doe Inc., called the governor’s initiative “outrageous,” and said if it is implemented it would set back the group’s efforts to curb domestic violence.

The administration is expected to announce further details of the program this month and has laid out plans to have state police specially trained in investigation of illegal immigration conduct investigations of the immigration status of individuals and make arrests of violators during routine contacts, including traffic stops.

“Providing state police with the authority to check on illegal immigration status during traffic stops frankly hurts our cause,” Ms. Lauby said as the organization focused on a study of 17 domestic violence deaths across the state in 2003 as part of its annual report on trends in domestic violence.

She said victims of domestic violence are normally afraid to “reach out for help” and the barriers to seeking help from police grow far greater with immigrant victims who may worry that contacting police could risk enforcement action regarding their immigration status.

With the new state police program, she said, “We have already created a double bind for immigrant victims of domestic violence.”

While federal immigration law provides unique protection for immigrants facing domestic violence, she said, “Massachusetts leadership has chosen to ignore” how the new state police program may frighten victims from seeking help from police.

In the report, the group pointed to a study in New York City that found more than half of that city’s domestic violence homicide victims were foreign-born and a Washington, D.C., study that found two-thirds of immigrant women were subject to weekly physical or emotional abuse.

Battered immigrant women, the report said, face unique problems. Language barriers can limit a victim’s access to legal and domestic violence services, and immigrant victims may not seek help because they do not understand the legal system. Those with problems involving their immigration status, the group said, are more vulnerable because they may be threatened by their batterers with “deportation, with not filing immigration papers, or with withdrawal of immigration papers.” When those fears are coupled with the language barrier and social seclusion of immigrants, the report stated, “victims can become trapped in their violent situations.”

Patrick transition officials have said the governor-elect plans to scrutinize Mr. Romney’s new program, which is being coordinated with federal immigration officials, while Mr. Romney’s office has defended the plans, arguing state police should be authorized to enforce immigration laws.

Worcester Police Chief Gary J. Gemme, who also spoke at a Statehouse meeting about the annual report, said he hopes to lead efforts to put a “renewed focus” on domestic violence in the city, and would call a meeting of partners in the city’s domestic violence response network that includes police, domestic violence protection agencies and the YMCA Daybreak program for battered women.

Chief Gemme said improvements need to be made in training both police recruits and current police officers to improve intervention approaches by police.

He also said police chiefs need to be more aggressive in taking guns away from suspected domestic abusers or those suspected of being potentially violent.

“As the firearms licensing authority, we need to develop policies that deny a license to carry a firearm where domestic violence exists in the applicant’s background,” Chief Gemme said. “We need to look beyond court dispositions and dropped restraining orders. We do not need a conviction,” to deny or revoke a license, he said.