Domestic abuse victim now helps others

By CINDY UKEN cuken@billingsgazette.com | Posted: Friday, March 16, 2012 12:15 am

This was introduced as evidence in Maria Martin's domestic abuse case. It was taken after Martin was abused. Today, Martin speaks to other women of domestic violence and is an advocate for the Violence Against Women Act, which is pending reauthorization.

An impromptu call from a male acquaintance, wishing Maria Martin a "happy Easter," would send the man she had just begun dating into a jealous rage.

The witty and intelligent man she considered her "Prince Charming" was the same man who yanked her into his apartment, locked the door, and threatened her life and the lives of her three children.

James Archie Patrick III made good on his threat.

"He exploded into a fireball of irrational anger and jealousy," Martin said of that day in 2005. "I was confused. I didn't understand what was happening."

He punched her, alternating between her head and stomach, while cursing and calling her names. He shredded her new linen dress and leather jacket with a kitchen knife. He grabbed fists of hair and pulled. He broke her cellphone. He took a pistol from inside his Heights apartment and told her the bullets were "special" and would explode in her head. He pushed the barrel into her forehead with such force that it left a mark.

She is one of the reasons Montana's Democratic Sens. Jon Tester and Max Baucus are co-sponsoring bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which provides more than $4 million for 50 programs throughout Montana. The legislation strengthens the ability of states, law enforcement and service providers to combat domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking.

During hours of torture, Patrick held a knife to Martin's throat and asked if she would rather be shot in the head or have her throat slit. Patrick also threatened to kill Martin's three daughters, explaining that he would shoot the older girls and "gut like an animal" Martin's youngest, who was 6.

A passer-by heard Martin's screams and summoned police.

This was the same "charming" man who caught her attention four months earlier. It was a Sunday. Martin and her daughters were Christmas shopping and took a break at a popular coffee shop. They scoured the shop for a Sunday newspaper. Patrick would later offer them his copy, laying the groundwork for an intense but short-lived romance.

It was the first date that Martin, a vulnerable and naïve divorcée, had had in 20 years. She was smitten with Patrick, who had a promising career. He had degrees in both English and law and had practiced as an attorney in South Carolina before moving to Billings. As the pair began dating, he called and visited frequently. He regularly sent email and text messages. He was "intensely passionate," she said.

"I thought it was wonderful to receive all this new attention," Martin said. "I was starved for it."

What she thought were love, devotion and attention were really red flags, telltale signs of a possible abuser. He stopped by her house every night and called multiple times throughout the day. He did not want her to go back to school. He grew jealous over the smallest things. He wanted to be alone with her, away from family and friends.

"I thought it was flattering. However, it turns out this was isolation," Martin said.

Nearly three years after Patrick beat and threatened to kill Martin, Patrick was sentenced to 61 years in Montana State Prison. He was found guilty of several charges, including two counts of felony assault with a weapon.

"I just can't even really believe it," Martin said during a recent interview. "I can't believe it really happened to me."

Martin went on to earn her master's degree in rehabilitation and mental health counseling. She is active in the Billings Area Family Violence Task Force, the Montana State Coalition of Domestic and Sexual Violence, Carbon County Domestic and Sexual Violence Services and many similar organizations.

She is also an ardent supporter of VAWA, which played a huge role in her survival. Programs to help victims are crucial to surviving assault and the associated repercussions, Martin said.

VAWA consolidates 13 existing programs into four. Since VAWA was passed in 1994, there has been a 51 percent increase in women who report domestic abuse and a 37 percent increase in reporting among men.

Between 2000 and 2010, there were 98 deaths in Montana attributed to domestic violence.

"I am alive today because I am a strong, intelligent woman," Martin said. "I need to stand up, step out and be in front of this issue for others who can't or are not able to -- yet. No one deserves to be treated with disrespect and violence."

That is why she is supporting VAWA, which expands the definition of sexual assault to include "any non-consensual sexual" acts, including when the victim "lacks capacity to consent."

The legislation also specifically addresses needs in Indian Country, where violence rates are highest in the state. The bill recognizes and strengthens tribal criminal jurisdiction to investigate, prosecute, convict and sentence both Indians and non-Indians. It allows prosecution to happen in either tribal or federal court, with the right of appeal to federal courts.

The legislation is currently pending before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

"This bill protects and empowers women by giving law enforcement, our courts and service providers the tools they need," Tester said. "I expect Congress to stand up for women and approve this measure in short order."

Original Article

T. Thomas Ackerman Releases 'The Safehouse' to Critic Acclaim: Novel Called a Call-To-Arms Against Domestic Violence

Saturday, March 3, 2012

T. Thomas Ackerman and Outskirts Press are pleased to announce the release of 'The Safehouse' to critical acclaim by readers of this page-turning thriller that has been called a call-to-arms against domestic violence.

Veteran author T. Thomas Ackerman is pleased to announce the release of his highly-praised thriller titled 'The Safehouse'. Evolving around the grave challenges of domestic violence, readers are jettisoned into the world of Ackerman's Detective Jessica Warren, and her life mission of protecting innocent women from predators.

'The Safehouse' is published by Outskirts Press, and is the second novel Outskirts has published by T. Thomas Ackerman. The Safehouse. Abusive husbands will wish they had never made contact with Detective Jessica Warren, Ackerman's new police detective heroine who makes saving battered women her life's mission - regardless of inadequate laws and dangerously violent, but basically cowardly men.

Domestic violence against women in the United States and abroad is a severe issue. In T. Thomas Ackerman's 'The Safehouse' readers are given a front row seat as to the magnitude of injustice as they travel with Detective Jessica Warren, a clever defender of aggression who understands all too well how vulnerable women are in abusive relationships. And she's not going to stand by and watch as innocent victims are injured or worse. The Safehouse is the story of Jessie Warren and the closely knit network of powerful women who aren't willing to allow abusive men to hide behind inadequate laws. It's the story of the victims she helps, some of whom learn to break out of the patterns holding them trapped. And it's the story of how Jessie navigates the police system with pragmatism, intelligence, and heart to extend a helping hand to women in need. But with all the time and emotional energy she spends helping others, will she be able to maintain her own life balance? And will she be able to outsmart the one member of the police force who doesn't approve of her unorthodox methods? True to life and riveting, The Safehouse will take you on a compelling journey to justice.

The abusive world of The Safehouse is one made tangibly real by author Ackerman, who is himself no stranger to the sometimes swept-under-the-carpet culture of domestic violence in this country. His father was a severe alcoholic and his mother died when she was only forty-seven, the victim of stress and illness from mental and physical abuse. His wife still suffers from neck pain that is the result of being violently strangled during her first marriage.

A continuing advocate of reform in this area, Ackerman will donate twenty-five percent of all royalties from the book to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

T. Thomas Ackerman lives in Connecticut with his family. He is also the author of For a Reason.

Midwest Book Review comments of The Safehouse, "A fine read that will grip the reader and not let go . . . Justice can sometimes be so hard to find. The Safehouse follows Detective Jessica Warren as she searches for justice as she joins with others in a crusade against domestic violence. But the law is not always on her side, and Jessica finds there are those who are working against her within it. Split between the law, her own goals, and standing against the evil that reeks in the world, The Safehouse is a fine read that will grip the reader and not let go.

Best-selling author Peter Thomas Senese commented, "The Safehouse is a well written, page turner that is equally a highly entertaining novel, but more importantly, it is a call-to-arms against domestic violence. This is a very important novel."

THE Safehouse may be purchased by visiting Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Outskirts Press.

For more information or to contact the author, visit: Outskirt Press.

Original Article

SF mayor suspends sheriff, seeks removal

By PAUL ELIAS Associated Press

Posted:   03/21/2012 12:19:32 AM PDT

SAN FRANCISCO—The San Francisco mayor says he's suspending the city's embattled sheriff and intends to permanently remove him from office following a domestic violence conviction involving the law enforcement official's Venezuelan actress wife.

Mayor Ed Lee said Tuesday that Ross Mirkarimi rejected his suggestion to resign after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor false imprisonment charge. Lee said he will file official misconduct charges Wednesday and the matter will be referred to the city's Ethics Commission.

"He has chosen not to resign, and now I must act," Lee said. "Sheriff Mirkarimi's actions and confession of guilt clearly fall below the below the standards of decency and good faith rightly required of all public officials."

If Lee succeeds in removing Mirkarimi as sheriff, the mayor will need the votes from nine of 11 members of the Board of Supervisors.

Earlier, a defiant Mirkarimi said he would fight to keep his job because he believes he didn't "official misconduct." The New Year's Eve dispute with his wife, Eliana Lopez, at their home in front of their toddler son left her with a bruise on her arm.

Mirkarimi was sworn in as sheriff on Jan. 8.

"I wanted to and have taken full responsibility," a sweat-drenched Mirkarimi told reporters outside his office in City Hall. "At this time, I do not plan to resign."

Mirkarimi said he hasn't spoken to his wife in nine weeks and is allowed to visit his son for about two hours each day because of an order issued by a judge. A separate order also prohibits the sheriff from carrying a gun.

He said his chief aim is reconciling with his family. "It's been cruel. It's been crushing," he said.

Mirkarimi also called a neighbor's accusation that he and his Lopez pressured him to destroy evidence and lie to the police a "complete fabrication." The claims were published Tuesday on the San Francisco Chronicle's opinion page, leading Lopez to cancel an appearance at a press conference to discuss the case.

Lopez' attorney, Paula Canny, said she advised the sheriff's wife to refrain from public comments because lawsuits were threatened.

Attorney Lidia Stiglich told The Associated Press that Mirkarimi will hire another attorney with more City Hall experience to represent him before the city's Ethics Commission and the Board of Supervisors.

Mirkarimi pleaded guilty to misdemeanor false imprisonment in exchange for the dropping of three other misdemeanor charges of domestic violence, child endangerment and dissuading a witness. The plea deal was struck as a jury was being picked for a trial that promised to embarrass the sheriff with testimony about infidelity, his temper and other intimate details.

San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said the false imprisonment charge was a domestic violence plea and the conviction was just as serious as the three charges that were dropped.

On Monday, a judge sentenced Mirkarimi to three years of probation and a year of counseling. Under the plea agreement, Mirkarimi must pay $590 in fines, serve probation, spend a year in a domestic violence intervention program, take parenting classes and do community service.

The district attorney said Mirkarimi will be barred from carrying a gun until a judge lifts a stay-away order that prevents the sheriff from seeing his wife without court permission. Gascon said that order could stay in place for the entire three years of probation.

Mirkarimi said he was undergoing counseling to address "my arrogance and anger management issues" and reiterated his advocacy against domestic violence during his time as a board supervisor.

Meanwhile, Lee has named a retired chief deputy, Vicki Hennessy, to serve as interim sheriff.

Original Article