Think about it this way: When a Person is Arrested for Allegedly Committing Domestic Violence; it is a Temporary Suspension of his or her Rights. And the Allegation is that he or she has violated the Rights of his or her partner. It's as simple as that.
We ALL Have Rights:
Everyone in the United States of American has Rights.
But this brings up two important questions:
1. Are my Rights Always Respected? and,
2. Do I Always have to Respect the Rights of Everyone Else?
But what are Rights anyway? Now that I know I have some Rights, I might as well learn about what they are.
One definition of Rights is as follows
"Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory."
When The United States of America was founded, the founders gave all of it's people certain Rights. (Note: However, all people in the U.S.A. did not their Rights respected for almost 100 years. For examples, The Slaves did not have their Rights respected equally. And even in 1960's, the decendents of Slaves and other African Americans were still asking that their Rights be respected because they were not always respected. Further, Women in the U.S.A. did not have their Rights broadly respected for decades either. For the most part. In the beginning of the U.S.A., it was the Rights of wealthy Land Owners who's Rights were respected.
Nonetheless, in 1776:
The U.S. Declaration of Independence stated the following,
- "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men (and including Women) are created equal, that they are endowed (for given) by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights (unalienable means, these Rights can never be taken away by another human being), that among these (Rights) are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness….” US Declaration of Independence.
The Declaration of Independence was penned by Thomas Jefferson (a Virginian) with the learned direction of Benjamin Franklin (of Pennsylvania), and John Adams (of Massachusetts). Each of these people -- along with a diverse group of many other Colonists -- made tremendous contributions to the founding of the United States of America.
The Long Road to Truly Inclusive Independence:
As mentioned above, the road to truly Independence required a few more steps -- such as those that explicitly recognized the Rights of People of Color and of Women.
Almost 200 years later, it was reported that a learned Advocate for millions of oppressed people of color in the USA had informed the President of the United States of America that this Advocate (Dr. Martin Luther king) and the people he represented truly needed their Dignity and that they were hoping that this President could somehow help them attain it.
This President did his best with Laws to help these people find their Dignity; however, there came a point where the Laws could only be as effective as the people themselves would allow them to be. In other words, there came a point where these people needed to accept the Dignity that they already had and to make choices to do what they saw fit in order to pursue the happiness of which they had long dreamed. The Road to Justice is often a very long journey.
What is so Important about Dignity?
One definition is that "Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. This is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable rights" (Wikipedia).
Others have argued that in the U.S.A., dignity does not need to be given out -- nor is it able to be handed out from one person -- or a government -- to a given person. However, a bad Government clearly can try to take away the dignity of the people. We gave seen that over and over again throughout history.
The Fact is that dignity is essentially covered by the above phrase of the Declaration of Independence. And further, Dignity -- per the Declaration -- is such that every person is "created equal" and that every person is "are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights"; meaning that Dignity is something that is given to every person by their Creator (Whoever they view thier Creator or God to be) when they are created.
The Fact is that dignity is essentially covered by the above phrase of the Declaration of Independence. And further, Dignity -- per the Declaration -- is such that every person is "created equal" and that every person is "are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights"; meaning that Dignity is something that is given to every person by their Creator (Whoever they view thier Creator or God to be) when they are created.
Further, it notes that these Rights (Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness) are unalienable -- meaning no one person or Government can take them away permanently without the proper legal process.
Each person in the U.S.A. has a Right to live and to choose the path that she or he wants, and to pursue the happiness that she or he feels is on that path, as long has their journey does not in some way deprive another person of Life, Liberty or the Pursuit of Happiness.
Now, What do Rights Have To do With Domestic Violence?
When it comes to trying to understand how one gets charged with Domestic Violence, it is very important to understand and accept that if we violate another person's Rights, we might be Charged and consequently arrested because of the possibility that We Have Violated that person's Rights.
Also to be considered are the manner in which we Violated their Rights, as well as Who's Right was Violated.
Theoretically, when ever someone is arrested, it should be because they have violated the Rights of someone else.
Think about it:
Additionally consider that one might get a separate Charge for each Right that one Violates as well as each time one Violates another person's particular Rights.
- What was your Charge?
- How does this relate to anyone's Rights?
- How was the Arrest itself related to your Rights?
It's like this: At the start of anything; Everyone involved has their Rights in-tact.
But then, say one person hits another person. They they have just violentedly disrespected the Rights of the person that they hit.
Then the Police come along and they Arrest the person who hit the other person. And the person who was Arrested sees his or her own Rights suspented under an Emergency Custody Order (or an Arrest Warrent) until a Judge comes along and decides what to do about each person's Rights --
In Other Words, Think about it this way: What Rights?
Ideally, Everyone -- Every Single Person regardless of her or his Color, Ethnicity, Ability, Wealth, Public Position, Physical Ability, Gender, Employment Status, Self-Identification or their level of Education -- in the U.S.A. has a Right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
- What are our Rights to Life? Think about it:
- What does this include?
- Perhaps it includes Freedom from anything or anyone who physically compromises his or her Life. (This might include freedom Injury (physical or mental))
- What are our Rights to Liberty? Think about it:
- What does this include?
- Perhaps it includes Freedom from anything that physically or mentally holds her or him back. (This might include trying to keep him or her from walking away. Might even include trying to keep her or him from advancing her or his education or training or career.) You have the Right to do what you want to do with your life. Just so in achieving this goal, you do not ever violate another person's Rights.
- What are our Rights to a Pursuit of Happiness? Think about it:
- What does this include?
- Perhaps it includes Freedom from anything or anyone who tries to keep him or her from seeing another person in a Romantic sense. (This might include keeping her or him from doing something that she or he feels could make her or him happy.
- In pursuit of such Rights of the other person; An Officer of the Law could determine that it is a violation of Rights for yet another person to be stalking or threatening this person or her or his new lover.
- This might even include when one's current partner tries to erase other peoples' (like other men's or other women's) names out of his or her phone in order to keep her or him from contacting another person that she or he has decided that he or she now likes (or even loves)).
- (Please Note: There are other explanations or descriptions for these Rights as well as well as other Rights to consider. Please see other listings of Rights below)
And Keep In Mind That:
Whenever a person is arrested, and charged, this is because in the eyes of those who are administering the Law (Police and Prosecutors), the reason for the Arrest and/or Charge is because the person who was arrested (The Subject) was Arrested because he or she allegedly violated the Rights of another person.
The Charge Sheet should list specific Codes from the Law that were allegedly violated. And each one of those Codes in the Law is supposed to be directly tied or at least backed up by or even jive with those Basic Rights as Listed Above -- the Rights to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Rights in the Home:
Also, one should try and remember that you and your partner each have Equal Rights. Neither of you has more or fewer Rights than the other -- regardless of Religion, Sex, Race, Color, Ethnicity, Class, Socioeconomic Status, Gender, Addiction, Education Level, Physical Size, Income Level, or Moral Standing, or any other characteristic.
Finally, many Americans used to think that inside of their homes, they had special Rights. And perhaps we do. However, we still must always respect the Rights of everyone else whether they are inside of our homes or not.
Under What Circumstances May I Violate Someone Else's Rights?
- Truly, probably NEVER, except when it is in an effort to save a life; and that is very rare. Keep in mind that the argument of "Self Defense" really must have with it proof that one person is being attacked in a potentially very harmful way; one has no other way to avoid the situation, and one only uses enough force to stop the attack.
What if My Rights Were also Violated?
The Police (and hence, the Courts) typically separate physically, and on paper, the alleged Offender from the alleged Victim. In other words, if you are an alleged Offender in their eyes; it is difficult to get those same police in that situation to charge the other person with something.
Who Has Rights?
- "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or imunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." (U.S. Constitution).
When someone violates another person's Rights, or there is probable cause to suspect that they have violated another person's Rights; some of the alleged violator's Rights (i.e., Liberty) might be suspended temporarily by Police, a Judge, or a Magistrate. This is what happens when one is arrested.
However, these rights must be reinstated within a certain amount of time; unless the situation is reviewed by a certain type of Judge or Magistrate, who then chooses to extend this suspension (And/or put bail on it).
Or, a person's Rights, (say to Liberty) can be suspended temporarily by a Doctor in an Emergency, who can temporarily suspend Rights in order to save a Life.
In order to actually lose a Right; one must either sign it away, and/or a Judge must decide that it is appropriate that this person lose that particular Right.
In order to involuntarily lose a Right (often temporarily); it is usually being temporarily suspended or taken away by Police, Judge, Doctor or other Constitutional Officer. Essentially if there are conditions when one is believed to present an imminent danger to one's self; or to another person; or has just violated another person's Rights, she or he might be subject to Arrest, Investigation, and Prosecution.
Given that Everyone Has Rights.... It's Like One has a Right to Say almost anything they want to say to another person; but the other person has a Right to walk away and not listen.
- So consider this: I have a Right, so does that mean I should always exercise it?
Legal Rights versus Moral Rights:
Finally, Legal Rights and being Morally Right are two different things. The first (Legal Rights) are explicitly covered in the Laws of the Land. However Morality is NOT the same as Law or Legal
Rights, but: “Morality is the set of standards that dictate what is right and
wrong in terms of behavior and beliefs.”
Think about it: How are these two things the same; and how are they different?
FOOTNOTES:
Background and Source Material:
The Most Basic Understanding of U.S. Rights (If you are interested?):
Every American automatically has RIghts that include: Natural rights (or Moral Rights) and legal rights. There are two types of rights.
It is also VERY Important that Every American Understand that he (himself) and/or she (herself) has Rights that are inalienable --
"Inalienable" means: "Inalienable right refers to rights that cannot be surrendered, sold or transferred to someone else, especially a natural right such as the right to own property. However, these rights can be transferred with the consent of the person possessing those rights." (According to this Legal Definition).
""Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase in the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the "unalienable rights" which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their creator, and which governments are created to protect." (According to the related Wikipedia Source here.)
Another way to Look at is is that we each have our Right to the following:
Our Right to self-determination.
Our Right To liberty.
Our Right to due process of law.
Our Right to freedom of movement.
Our Right to privacy.
Our Right to freedom of thought.
Our Right to freedom of religion.
Our Right to freedom of expression.
Read about The Bill of Rights by clicking here.
For children it is slightly different; but essentially the same.
Know Your Rights
Bill of Rights - The Really Brief Version: The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution are summarized below. Basically, there are 10 Constitutional rights that Every American has?
1 Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.
2 Right to keep and bear arms in order to maintain a well regulated militia.
3 No quartering of soldiers.
4. Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
5 Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double jeopardy.
6 Rights of accused persons, e.g., right to a speedy and public trial.
7 Right of trial by jury in civil cases.
8 Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments.
9 Other rights of the people.
10 Powers reserved to the states.
One should also note that there are other Rights not included in the above list.
The Most Basic Understanding of U.S. Rights (If you are interested?):
Every American automatically has RIghts that include: Natural rights (or Moral Rights) and legal rights. There are two types of rights.
- Natural rights are those that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government, and so are universal and inalienable (they cannot be repealed by human laws, though one can forfeit their enjoyment through one's actions, such as by violating someone else's rights).
- Legal rights are those bestowed onto a person by a given legal system (they can be modified, repealed, and restrained by human laws)." (According to this Wikipedia Source).
It is also VERY Important that Every American Understand that he (himself) and/or she (herself) has Rights that are inalienable --
"Inalienable" means: "Inalienable right refers to rights that cannot be surrendered, sold or transferred to someone else, especially a natural right such as the right to own property. However, these rights can be transferred with the consent of the person possessing those rights." (According to this Legal Definition).
""Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase in the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the "unalienable rights" which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their creator, and which governments are created to protect." (According to the related Wikipedia Source here.)
Another way to Look at is is that we each have our Right to the following:
Our Right to self-determination.
Our Right To liberty.
Our Right to due process of law.
Our Right to freedom of movement.
Our Right to privacy.
Our Right to freedom of thought.
Our Right to freedom of religion.
Our Right to freedom of expression.
Read about The Bill of Rights by clicking here.
For children it is slightly different; but essentially the same.
Know Your Rights
(Originally Posted, 6/16/2020.)
(c. 2020, William T. Beverly, Ph.D., LCSW, All information on the Blog (Except where otherwise noted); are the intellectual and/or photographic and/or digital property of Dr. William T. Beverly, L.C.S.W., DVOMB Approved Offender Treatment Provider.).
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