Batterers Intervention Programs
**MCADSV is excited to present Batterers Intervention training featuring nationally-known presenters from Emerge.**The conference will be held at the Wingate Inn in Bozeman, October 27-28, 2005.
Click here to visit the presenters' website.
Click here to download the conference brochure (Publisher document).
Click here to download the registration form (Word document).
Although domestic violence is a crime, battering behavior is often condoned rather than criminalized. Montana statute requires that any individual convicted of partner or family member assault (Montana's domestic violence crime), shall complete at least 40 hours of counseling "directed toward their violent and controlling behavior." (MCA 45-5-206)
Unfortunately, Montana does not have an established mechanism to make sure that batterers actually complete their required hours and receive consistent treatment. Until the third conviction, domestic violence remains a misdemeanor and, in Montana, misdemeanor probation officers are rare. In addition, batterers intervention is not readily available in many areas. And, those are just the logistical problems.
In our state, Counseling must be considered as a disposition of the court, and while it is mandated, it is only one of several options available to the court during sentencing. And yet, batterers' intervention programs (BIPs) have become the primary way batterers are being held accountable for their crimes in Montana. As yet, the verdict is out on the inherent usefulness of Batterers Intervention Programs. One thing, however, is clear: For positive changes in behavior, it is pivotal that batterers be held accountable not only by the criminal justice system but by their friends and neighbors as well.
Click on the two links below for more information and a discussion on the various issues and challenges surrounding Batterers Intervention Programs.
Discussion of BIP from New York State's Office on Domestic Violence
National Institute of Justice 2003 Report on BIPs