Animal Cruelty and Family and Interpersonal Violence

Tools and Resources

“My training on the link between trauma and animal cruelty really helped me look at the case in broad terms…. Animal cruelty does not occur in a vacuum, and the failure to fully examine its origins likely leads to…
the continued cycle of abuse and violence…”

~ Honorable H. Lee Chitwood,
Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court, Pulaski, VA

NCJFCJ Board Resolution

Resolution Regarding Animal Cruelty and Its Link to Other Forms of Violence

The NCJFCJ Board of Directors adopted a Resolution Regarding Animal Cruelty and Its Link to Other Forms of Violence, which notes the empirical research demonstrating a direct link between animal cruelty and interpersonal violence, including intimate partner abuse, child abuse, and elder abuse and the need to assist judges in better understanding the issues and implications for juvenile and family court cases.

Resolution Regarding Animal Cruelty and Its Link to Other Forms of Violence

American Bar Association

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The American Bar Association adopted a Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section Family Law Section Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence Resolution, which urges all federal, state, local, territorial and tribal governments to enact legislation and/or support judicial processes that protect individuals by protecting their pets in family law and civil restraining order proceedings and increase access to justice for all persons.

View Resolution

Technical Assistance Bulletin

Animal Cruelty Issues: What Juvenile and Family Court Judges Need to Know

In partnership with the ALDF, the NCJFCJ developed a technical assistance bulletin Animal Cruelty Issues: What Juvenile and Family Court Judges Need to Know, which provides information about the link, its impact on families, and the ways in which judicial officers can respond.

Animal Cruelty Issues: What Juvenile and Family Court Judges Need to Know

In Session Article

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The NCJFCJ featured an article in the Fall 2023 edition of In Session from Dr. Martha-Elin Blomquist and Adriana Arzola titled, Mission Accomplished and Mission Begun: Training juvenile and family court judges to be decision makers, educators, and ambassadors on the human-animal bond and the link between animal cruelty and interpersonal violence.

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NCJFCJ Annual Conference Sessions

View ALDF Annual Conference Sessions

PSA Template

View Guidance on PSAs, Links, and More

NCJFCJ created A PSA Template for Promoting Awareness of the Links Between Animal Cruelty and Family Violence, which offers guidance on the development and promotion of video public service announcements by judges and communities and includes step-by-step resources, links, and information on how to create and distribute PSA videos as well as practical examples of community use of PSAs to promote awareness and action.

View Guidance on PSAs, Links, and More

Judge-to-Judge Letter and Toolkit

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State-Specific Bench Tool Project

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Training and Technical Assistance

Webinars

View Our Webinars

Judicial officers and experts in areas such as domestic violence, child welfare, and animal forensics have co-lead a series of webinars on the link and provided practical guidance for courts and communities on best and promising practices in addressing animal cruelty in the context of the range of cases before family courts that includes juvenile offending, elder abuse, and hoarding.

View Our Webinars

Case-Specific Resources

Child Abuse and Neglect

Animal Hoarding

Juvenile Offending

Domestic Violence

Resources for Elder Abuse

Other

The Denver Department of Public Health and the Environment animal protection and eviction relief program information guide (English and Spanish).

Our Focus Tools & Resources

Judicial Leadership & Coalition Building Webinars

Helpful Links State-Specific Link Bench Tools