Urge the US government to take action against domestic violence

[calebforaction]

In 1999 the US Government failed to enforce a restraining order
against an estranged and abusive husband. Subsequently, the couple's
daughters were found dead with gunshot wounds in the back of the
husband's truck. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has
ruled that the United States violated international obligations on
domestic violence.
“The commission’s decision affirms that
the government’s responsibility to protect
families from abuse amounts to more than
issuing a piece of paper,” said Meghan
Rhoad, women’s rights researcher at
Human Rights Watch. “A restraining
order to prevent this kind of horrific
violence is meaningless if a woman calls
the police seven times and her calls go
unheeded.”
Jessica Lenahan called the police 7 times over 7 hours after her
estranged husband abducted the couple's 3 daughters. Despite the fact
that Lenahan had a restraining order against him the police took no
action to enforce it. Early the following
morning, Simon Gonzales drove up to the
police station in his pickup truck and
began shooting. The police shot back,
killing him. Police then found the slain
bodies of the three girls in the back of the
truck.
After reviewing the case, the Inter-America commission found that the
US failed to act with due diligence to protect Lenahan and her
daughters from domestic violence,
violating the American Declaration of the
Rights and Duties of Man, which provides
protections against gender discrimination
and equal protection before the law. The
government’s failures also violated the
daughters’ right to life and Lenahan’s
right to judicial protection, the
commission said.
In addition to recommending a thorough
investigation of the Colorado case and
reparations for Lenahan, the commission
outlined specific steps the government
should take to meet its human rights
obligations including making
enforcement of protection orders
mandatory, adopting legislation with
protection measures for children in
domestic violence situations, and
undertaking training programs for public
officials on domestic violence prevention
and response.
Before it was heard by the commission,
the case was presented before the US Supreme Court, which ruled in
June 2005 that Lenahan did not have a constitutional
right to the enforcement of the restraining order.
You can help. Take a stand. Just go to:
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-us-government-adopt-recommendations-for-domestic-violence?share_id=kNIOdOgdtf&pe=pce
Thank you
Caleb