// by Donna Andersen// 4 Comments
It's called "Clare's Law," named for a woman who was murdered by her boyfriend, a man that she met on Facebook. Both men and woman in the UK will be able to ask police if their new intimate partners have a history of domestic violence. Read: Women will get right to ask for new boyfriends' police files under controversial Clare's Law initiative, on DailyMail.co.uk. Link supplied by a Lovefraud reader. …
UK law enables people to learn if their new partners are violentRead More
// by Donna Andersen// 46 Comments
One of the good things about the conviction of Jerry Sandusky on almost all counts related to molesting 10 boys was that his lame personality disorder defense did not fly. Histrionic personality disorder? Huh? That was the prevailing reaction when defense attorneys claimed that the former Penn State assistant football coach wrote those "creepy" letters because he suffers from histrionic personality disorder. Read the creepy letters Several experts in personality disorders were quoted in news reports stating that even if Sandusky does have histrionic personality disorder, it would not be an excuse for the molestation. Why not? It's quite simple: Most people with personality …
“Personality disorder” as an excuse for criminal behaviorRead More
// by Donna Andersen// 127 Comments
William Balfour, 31, of Chicago, was found guilty last week of murdering Darnell Donerson, Jason Hudson and Julian King. They were the mother, brother and nephew of singer and actress Jennifer Hudson. In my opinion, this case was a tragedy, but a preventable tragedy. Julia Hudson, Jennifer's older sister, brought Balfour into the family when she married him. If she hadn't married this man, it obviously wouldn't have happened. Jennifer Hudson was the first witness in the murder trial. She testified that the entire family was against Julia's relationship with Balfour. "None of us wanted her to marry him. We did not like how he treated her," she stated in court. Julia secretly married …
// by Donna Andersen// 34 Comments
The federal Violence Against Women Act is up for renewal. This law, originally passed in 1994, provides the following programs and services: Community violence prevention programs Protections for victims who are evicted from their homes because of events related to domestic violence or stalking Funding for victim assistance services, like rape crisis centers and hotlines Programs to meet the needs of immigrant women and women of different races or ethnicities Programs and services for victims with disabilities Legal aid for survivors of violence The law has already been renewed twice, in 2000 and 2005, always without fanfare. This year, however, opponents object to expanding …
// by Donna Andersen// 108 Comments
Last week, the Josh Powell story exploded in the media. Powell, of Graham, Washington, was supposed to have a supervised visit with his two young sons. Instead, he slammed the door in the face of the social worker, hacked the boys with a hatchet, and then blew up his house. Powell and the two sons died. I watched three news shows about the tragedy—Dateline on MSNBC, 20/20 on ABC, and Dr. Drew on HLN (Headline News). All of the programs reflected shock, horror and outrage. Dr. Drew Pinsky did actually call Josh Powell a psychopath. But what struck me about the coverage was that this tragedy was almost predictable. All the warning signs were there, if anyone had a complete picture of what w …
// by Lovefraud Reader// 83 Comments
Editor's note: Resource Perspectives features articles written by members of Lovefraud's Professional Resources Guide. Rebecca Potter works as a licensed mental health counselor in West Palm Beach, Florida. She can be reached at: tlc211@gmail.com. Judge William Adams shown beating his daughter with a belt on YouTube By Rebecca Potter Rebecca Potter profile in the Lovefraud Professional Resources Guide As I saw the following video and commentary on CNN last night, I could not sleep. It appears that the sheriff in the town of Rockport, Texas has received countless calls of concern about Judge William Adams, who was shown beating his daughter with a belt on YouTube. Judge Adams …
RESOURCES PERSPECTIVES: Judges are practicing mental health without a licenseRead More
// by Lovefraud Reader// 60 Comments
Editor's note: Lovefraud received the following email from a reader who we'll call “Juliet.” Juliet negotiated a settlement with her ex, the father of her daughter. Names and locations have been changed. In the final papers, I am moving to Delaware and he gets supervised visits in Delaware (until age eight) for much longer than I would have if I were forced to fight in court and let the judge decide. Plus I am not paying for him to visit in Delaware. He agreed to pay child support of $450 once he gets a job. My daughter won't leave Delaware with him until age 10, and she won't fly alone to California until age 12. And she only can leave for California over spring break and summer vacat …
LETTERS TO LOVEFRAUD: Winning a court battle with a sociopathRead More
// by Donna Andersen// 90 Comments
Lovefraud recently received an email from a woman in Israel. She says that she was involved with a man for almost two years, and had sexual relations with him. He promised that they would marry and have children. The guy seemed to have a wife, but he claimed it was a fake marriage to get a passport. Well, he was, in fact, married and leading a double life—a con man. The woman is trying to get him prosecuted for “rape by deception.” Yes, Israeli law includes the concept that consensual sex based on a false premise is rape. Here's the actual law: RAPE 345. (a) If a person had intercourse with a woman — (1) without her freely given consent; (2) with the woman's consent, which was ob …
// by Donna Andersen// 164 Comments
From time to time, Lovefraud hears from men who complain that we talk about male sociopaths but not female sociopaths. Actually, I was very careful to refer to both men and women in every post on the main website, Lovefraud.com. And here on the Lovefraud Blog, we do have a category devoted to female sociopaths. But the fact it, approximately 80 percent of Lovefraud readers are women who were exploited by sociopathic men. So yes, it does seem that Lovefraud tilts towards male predators. That's why a website called ThePsychoExWife.com is an important resource. I first learned about this website last week from the following story in the Philadelphia Inquirer: Divorce blog's rancor …
// by Liane Leedom, M.D.// 17 Comments
Among the many worries parents like me have is "What will happen to my child if I die?" For that reason, I take no risks with my personal safety. I don't ride motorcycles, always wear my seat belt in the car, and do everything I can to stay safe. What I consider to be my worst nightmare happened to Trista Crews, mother of Miranda Wilkerson. Trista was married to registered sex offender Donald Coleman though Coleman's offence was impregnating Crews when she was 14. In the style of Mary Kay Letourneau he married the girl when he got out of prison and fathered two more children. The news hasn't said much about those two who are also now orphans because Trista died a month after her …
