|
|
1) Many people believe that non English-speaking persons
in the United States shouldn't have the same rights
to receive public services as English-speaking persons
born here. Do Antonio's actions in this story help you
argue for or against that view? Why? |
|
2) What do you think you would have done if you had
come on the same scene as Antonio? |
|
3) Which of the following best describes how you felt
when you first read that Cloverdale refused to respond
to the man strangling the woman?
a. If the incident was outside the police jurisdiction,
then the police decision to refuse to respond was
their business.
b. Morally, the police had an obligation to protect
and serve, regardless of jurisdiction, especially
when they were so close to a life and death situation.
c. Once a person is sworn in as a police officer,
we should trust and respect any decision the officer
makes within the law.
d. other
|
|
4) Why do you think the Press Democrat gave so
little coverage to the story of Haille's murder? |
|
5) Do you agree with the author's statement that the
Press Democrat's failure to cover Haille's murder
contributes to the next girl's murder? |
|
|
|
1) If you were standing beside a friend who suffered
a profound loss like Sandra, name two or three things
you would do or say to console your friend. |
|
2) When you read the descriptions of Haille's bohemian
spirit and lifestyle, did you feel like that gave you
a clue as to why Haille was the victim of a murder?
|
|
3) Do you think Haille's friends were doing the right
thing by repeatedly warning Haille about Atticus? |
|
4) When Haille responded to her friends concerns by
saying, "I can handle Atticus," did you feel
that gave you a clue as to why Haille was a victim of
a murder? |
|
5) According to everyone we talked with, Haille thought
she could help Atticus with his emotional problems.
Do you think this shows a flaw in Haille's character? |
|
6) Are there personality characteristics that serve
as warning signs that someone may be a domestic violence
abuser? |
|
7) Why do you think Haille and her friends tolerated
a criminal like Atticus? |
|
|
|
1) Did the birthday card Haille wrote to her father
give you any insight into why Haille was the victim
of a murder? |
|
2) Why do you think that despite Atticus' long criminal
history, the Sheriff's deputy viewed Atticus in terms
of a drug case? |
|
|
|
1) What are some of the realities of young women's lives
that are invisible to the society at large? |
|
2) Do you think the restaurant owner did enough for
Haille? What else could he have done? |
|
3) Why do you think the police officer "shooed
Atticus away" instead of arresting him? |
|
4) What kinds of things can communities do to make sure
that police officers respond properly to victims of
violence against women? |
|
5) Many people advise victims of violence against women
to go to police? Is that advise sufficient? |
|
6) What does Haille's phone call to her friend Barbara
tell you about Haille? |
|
7) When the Cloverdale officer still didn't help Haille,
what could Haille's friend and Haille herself have done
to make sure Haille got the protection she needed and
deserved? |
|
8) Can you describe in detail exactly what a police
officer should have done in response to Haille's pleas
for help that day? If you don't know the answer to this
question, where could you go to find out the answer? |
|
9) Do you think the police officer should be held responsible
for refusing to help Haille? If you were the Cloverdale
Police Chief, how would you respond to this officer?
Do the people of the community have any responsibility
or obligations in regard to this police officer? |
|
10) Do you agree with the author that sexism was at
the core of the officer's refusal to help Haille? |
|
|
|
1) When you read that Atticus had walked out of jail
just hours before stalking Haille at the restaurant,
what does that tell you about Atticus? |
|
2) What is the probation officer's role in the criminal
justice system? |
|
3) What is the definition of a bureaucracy? What are
some of the characteristics of bureaucracies that tend
to make them insensitive to human needs and human suffering?
Are police, district attorney's offices, and probation
departments bureaucracies? |
|
4) What can you as a community member do to counteract
a bureaucracy's tendency to insensibility to people's
needs? Do the people who live in Sonoma County have
any responsibilities or obligations regarding the dismantling
of the probation department's cite/release program? |
|
5) Do you see any similarities in the probation Department's
failures in regard to Haille and FEMA's failures in
regard to the citizens of New Orleans following hurricane
Katrina? |
|
6) Many probation officers in the Sonoma County Probation
Department have been very upset that the probation cite/release
program was disbanded. Did these probation officers
have a responsibility to speak publicly to warn the
public? Why do you think these officers did not speak
out when the cite/release program was disbanded? What
are 'whistleblower laws' and why do we need them? The
state of California has whistleblower laws in effect
and still probation officers did not speak out. What
else is needed for public officials to speak freely
about public abuses they become aware of in the course
of their work? |
|
7) Why do you think Probation Chief Cora Guy disbanded
the probation department cite/release program? |
|
|
|
1) Why do you think Haille went to her friend Ron? What
do you think she wanted him to do? |
|
2) Do you think that if Ron had gone with Haille to
the police that it would have saved Haille's life? |
|
3) What do you think Ron meant when he asked Haille
if she wanted him to talk to Atticus? |
|
4) Do you think it would have helped Haille if Ron and
his friends had physically beat up Atticus? |
|
5) Why do you think so many men's first reaction to
a problem is to resort to violence? |
|
6) If you believe someone is at risk of domestic violence
homicide, should you do something even if the victim
doesn't want you to? What should or shouldn't you do? |
|
7) Do you think there is anything Haille's friends could
have done directly with Atticus to have deterred Atticus
from murdering Haille? |
|
*****
|
|
8) Do you think the decision by the Sheriff's dispatcher
not to send a deputy to take the report was just an
unfortunate slip, or was it an indication of a deeper
problem? Describe the problem. |
|
9) Could the Sheriff's dispatcher have saved Haille's
life? |
|
10) Do you agree with the author's view that the actions
of the system seem more to "protect the system
from Atticus' victims, than to protect the people
from Atticus"?
|
|
|
|
1) What is the role of the district attorney in the
criminal justice system? Why is the District Attorney
considered the chief law enforcement officer of a county?
Do you think the District Attorney in a county has more
or less power in the county than a mayor? Do you know
the name of the District Attorney in your county? Who
has power over the district attorney in your county?
If you had a complaint about your district attorney's
handling of a case of violence against women, who should
you go to make the complaint? |
|
2) Why do you think the July 13 Press Democrat article
made no mention of public discontent over the years
with DA Vroman's handling of violence against women?
Does the Press Democrat's failure have any responsibility
for Mendocino County's mishandling of violence against
women? Is this a major or minor responsibility? |
|
3) What is libertarianism? Do you agree with the author
that libertarian views and policies subject women and
children to greater risk of violence? Why or why not? |
|
4) Do you agree or disagree that domestic violence should
be a primary responsibility of law enforcement? Why
do you think so many people do not agree that domestic
violence should be a primary responsibility of law enforcement?
Why do you think so many in law enforcement do not agree
that domestic violence should be a primary responsibility
of law enforcement? Do you think this view contributed
to Haille's murder? |
|
5) Do you think the Mendocino DA's office had responsibility
for putting Atticus on a no-bail hold following his
arrests at the end of April, 2005? Why do you think
they did not put Atticus on a no-bail hold? Does DA
Norm Vroman have direct responsibility for this decision
even though it was one of his deputies that went into
court on Atticus' case and not Vroman himself? |
|
6) Could the Mendocino District Attorney's office have
saved Haille's life? |
|
|
|
1) Why do you think Haille went to meet Atticus even
though she knew Atticus was dangerous? |
|
2) Do you agree with the author that if Haille had not
gone to meet Atticus, Atticus would have continued to
look for a way to murder Haille? |
|
3) What kind of help do you think Adam needs after Haille's
murder? If you were Adam's friend, in what ways could
you help Adam? |
|
4) Why is it often so difficult in domestic violence
cases for families and friends to take action on behalf
of the victim? |
|
5) Why do you think Haille didn't go to her parents
for help? If you found yourself in an abusive intimate
relationship, would you go to your parents for help?
Would you want other people to go to your parents for
you? Would you want your parents to be involved in any
way? |
|
6) Can you think of additional reasons, beyond those
mentioned in the story, that the primary age range for
domestic violence victimization is between 16 and 24
years-of-age? |
|
7) Do you think young people can handle domestic violence
on their own? Why or why not? |
|
8) Do you agree with the author that when victim advocates
are paid by the criminal justice system, their ability
to help victims is badly compromised? How so? Do you
think their ability to help victims is still compromised
if their offices are in the police department or district
attorney's office but their paycheck comes from a women's
agency? Give an example of the kind of the conflict
of interest that occurs when victim advocates are embedded
in the criminal justice system, either by having their
paychecks come from the system, their offices located
in the system, or both. |
|
9) Why do you think the perpetrators of domestic violence
almost always escalate their violence against the victim
after the victim decides to leave? |
|
10) What are some advantages and disadvantages of sending
victims of domestic violence to a battered women's shelter? |
|
11) What does the following statement mean to you? Domestic
violence is not domesticated violence. |
|
12) Having discussed the issues to this point, what
would you do now if you felt that a friend of yours
was caught in an abusive relationship? Name five things
you would try to communicate to your friend. Name five
things you could do for your friend. |
|
|
|
1) Why do you think that strong, thorough law enforcement
response to domestic violence is so effective in reducing
the rate of domestic violence homicides? |
|
2) Do you agree with the author that the report of multiple
rapes in which Atticus was the suspect was the most
serious crime report against Atticus? Why do you think
that a history of rape is one of the top five risk indicators
of a perpetrator's likelihood of committing a domestic
violence homicide? |
|
3) Rape is the most poorly handled serious crime by
law enforcement. Rape also has the lowest prosecution
rate of any serious crime. Why do you think this is
so? |
|
4) Law enforcement officials often excuse their poor
record in handling rape cases by saying that rape cases
are especially difficult because so many of these cases
are a 'he said, she said' situation. Do you agree with
this law enforcement assessment of rape cases? |
|
5) Looking back through this text, can you find five
examples of where one criminal justice agency or another
carried out "The Meaningless Processing of Cases"?
Why do you think law enforcement agencies would fall
into this pattern and practice of "The Meaningless
Processing of Cases"? |
|
|
|
1) What is meant by the term "Misdemeanor Murder"?
|
|
2) Now that you have read and discussed Haille's story,
do you feel you have more understanding of why Cloverdale
Police refused to respond to Haille's murder in progress?
Explain. Have you changed your opinion about whether
the police decision not to respond was the correct or
incorrect decision? Explain. |
|
3) Describe what you think would have been the ideal
response from Cloverdale Police to Haille's murder-in-progress. |
|
4) Both the Cloverdale dispatcher and the Cloverdale
Police Sergeant heard Antonio's plea on May 22. Which
one of these police employees should be held more accountable
for the decision that was made that day? Why? |
|
5) Why do you think the author ends this section's analysis
of the police refusal to respond with quotes from Cloverdale
residents expressing their concerns about openly criticizing
the police? |
|
6) Name five things that Cloverdale individuals or groups
can do to make sure that Cloverdale Police would respond
differently to the same situation in the future. |
|
|
|
1) Why does the author say that remembering Haille is
the most important lesson of the story. |
