WJP Infographic: Domestic Violence, Trauma & Incarceration

WJP is pleased to release our infographic, Incarcerated Women: Domestic Violence, Trauma, and Incarceration, in recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month and the 5th anniversary of the Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act (DVSJA). The DVSJA was enacted in 2019 after a 10-year Coalition for Women Prisoners campaign led by currently and formerly incarcerated women. The Act gives judges discretion to sentence domestic violence survivors convicted of crimes related to abuse to significantly shorter prison terms and, in some cases, community-based alternatives instead of incarceration. It also allows survivors currently in prison to apply to the courts for resentencing and earlier release.

Incarcerated Women: Domestic Violence, Trauma, and Incarceration highlights the inextricable link between interpersonal violence and women’s incarceration, and details how trauma and abuse form direct pathways to criminalization. The infographic also presents progress and challenges associated with the DVSJA. We hope it will be useful as an educational and advocacy tool for a wide range of audiences, including survivors and other advocates, service providers, educators, and attorneys and other court actors.