Is your accent guilty? The experiences of foreign born domestic violence victims within the English criminal justice system and criminal justice professionals’ perceptions of these victims

This research study has explored the unique experiences of a group of foreign born domestic violence victims (FBDVVs)1 as they encounter the processes and professionals of the English criminal justice system.
These FBDVVs were judged as able to speak English well enough to represent themselves in court without an interpreter by the Witness Care Unit. However, when in the witness box, they faced a number of challenges such as the elevated speech style, the legal language used and the lawyers’ lack of recognition of their language limitations.
Semi-structured interviews with the FBDVVs and key informants such as ex-Magistrates, charity manager, domestic violence case worker, interpreter and charity volunteers, and court case observations were conducted between October 2013 and December 2016. The study used Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis and Thematic Analysis to explore in depth the FBDVV as well as criminal justice professionals’ experiences.
The main findings highlighted that basic rights were not explained to the FBDVVs, such as getting an interpreter, applying for special measures and arranging injunctions. The FBDVVs experiences were frightening and humiliating often as a result of the lawyers’ behaviour. Lawyers regularly got impatient with the FBDVVs who needed multiple explanations whilst in the witness box. When being questioned the FDVVs were often made to feel embarrassed about their language skills and lawyers rarely assisted these vulnerable women by using clearer or simpler wording. The study concluded that there is a lack of awareness of the existing domestic violence law by criminal justice professionals. The possible measures that could be put in place to protect victims are ignored, leaving victims unprotected at each stage of the criminal justice system.