Unravelling the Entrapment Enigma: Reflections on the Role of the Mental Health Expert in the Assessment of Battered Woman Syndrome and Coercive Control Advanced in Support of a Defence of Non-Pathological Criminal Incapacity (2)

Abstract

Abuse within intimate relationships has been a phenomenon since time immemorial. For many centuries men had the right to abuse and beat their wives. Abused women are more commonly referred to as 'battered women' and their psychological reactions to abuse are commonly referred to as the 'battered woman syndrome'. Whenever a battered woman kills her abusive partner, she faces the following challenges within our criminal justice system: the defences available to battered women are very limited; abuse is often assessed only in terms of physical abuse without adequate recognition of the other manifestations of abuse; and the role of mental health experts is frequently underscored and under-estimated. Non-pathological criminal incapacity is one of the defences available to the battered woman who kills her abusive spouse or partner.