Domestic violence victims' personal details should stay secret, says Labour
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Version 0 of 1. Domestic violence victims should not routinely have to disclose their addresses in court because of the risk they will be attacked again, Labour said on Tuesday. Dan Jarvis, a shadow justice minister, called on the government to bring in "Eve's law" – proposed changes named after Eve Thomas, a victim of domestic violence who refused to disclose her personal details and was held in contempt of court. Under the proposals, there would be a red flag against the personal information of a victim of domestic abuse, highlighting this as confidential and highly sensitive. The marker would ensure that the data would never be disclosed unless exceptional circumstances demanded it. On Tuesday, Jarvis brought up the case in the House of Commons and signalled that Labour would try to amend the law unless the government acted to protect domestic violence victims in this way. Jarvis said it is "unacceptable to place victims of domestic violence and abuse at risk by forcing them to disclose their address and contact details in open court". "This could deter thousands of victims of domestic violence from coming forward and reporting the crimes against them," he said. "It's already the case that fewer domestic abuse cases are being referred to the Crown Prosecution Service on this government's watch, and experiences like that of Eve Thomas risk further undermining confidence in our legal system. "By adopting Eve's law the government can help address a small legal anomaly which will have a huge effect on the lives of people who have suffered from this horrific crime." Thomas, who was subjected to more than two decades of domestic violence at the hands of her husband, has been campaigning to change the law with the help of the human rights lawyer David Malone. She was the defendant in a small claims case and was asked to provide her personal contact details in open court, but refused to do so in case it alerted her husband to her new safe address after he was convicted of battery and put under a restraining order. Because of her refusal Thomas was held in contempt of court, and since then she has sought to highlight the legal loophole which could places victims of violence at risk. "My case is over now but I wanted to ensure that this never happened to another victim again," she said. "This year has been hell for my girls and me, and there were times when I wanted to give up because the distress and anxiety was just too much. Every visit to court came with threats of imprisonment because all I wanted to do was protect my family. "I fought back once before and I have now done it again and so I will continue this fight and hope that the powers that be will see that it is time that common sense prevailed. I want to thank Dan Jarvis for his support and I pray that our prime minister will see that it is time to initiate change. Our victims need to feel safe. It's their right." Responding in the House of Commons, Damian Green, the minister for policing, criminal justice and victims, said he would consider the proposals. "It's not for people at this despatch box to decide what judges do in each in case, but obviously there are a range of steps we are already taking to protect victims of domestic violence and we are always happy to look at others." Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |