Implementing the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights' Domestic Violence Ruling

Abstract

In August 2011, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights found the U.S.government responsible for human rights violations against Jessica Lenahan and her three deceased children after the U.S. Supreme Court had denied her a remedy. Three months later, the Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute, the University of Miami Law School Human Rights Clinic, the City University of New York School of Law, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Cutler Institute of the Muskie School of Public Service convened a group of advocates to celebrate the decision and discuss its implications. The commission’s ruling is its first in a women’s rights case against the United States, and the decision sets forth comprehensive recommendations for changes in U.S. domestic-violence law and policy.

This article discusses several possible strategies for using the decision in domestic violence advocacy in the U.S., including federal litigation, state litigation, community organizing, federal agency advocacy, family law litigation and advocacy, and fatality reviews, court watching, and safety audits.

Keywords: domestic violence, human rights, women's rights