Domestic Violence Psychology Expert Witness Services

Dr. Heller can assist the court, the jury and attorneys in cases that involve intimate partner violence in the following ways:

• Provide the jury and the judge with both an understanding of general principles of domestic violence and a framework within which to analyze the unique facts of the particular case being heard before the court.
• Help a jury understand why the battered woman perceived herself to be in danger or why she believed it was immediately necessary to protect herself.
• Help the jury understand that a battered woman’s anger is a normal feeling after having been battered.
• Help the jury understand why the battered woman fought back on this occasion, and not on previous ones.
• Show the jury (using research) how the risk of serious or lethal violence against the victim often increases if the woman leaves the batterer-and she is acutely aware of this.
• Educate the jury in order to facilitate recognition of physical and mental health effects of domestic violence combined with the effects of culture may have influence the battered women’s responses to abuse.
• Instruct a jury about the many psychological injuries that occur to women from intimate partner violence that are not readily apparent.

Dr. Charles Heller’s qualifications to testify in a case involving Intimate Partner Violence or Battered Woman Syndrome:

• Dr. Heller has testified in over one hundred trials that involved varying aspects of domestic violence.
• Dr. Heller is on staff at Rutgers University, Biomedical and Health Services (RBHS), University Behavioral Healthcare assigned as a Forensic Psychologist at State of New Jersey correctional facilities where he has evaluated criminals adjudicated as batterers and who have murdered, assaulted and mentally abused their domestic partners.
• Dr. Heller presented to colleagues a workshop entitled: A Child’s preference for the batterer in child custody cases: An assessment protocol” at the 49 th Annual Conference of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC).
• Dr. Heller has provided consultation for attorneys in murder cases and other violent crimes that involve Intimate Partner Violence and its effects on the defendant.
• Dr. Heller has instructed attorneys and provided legal continuing education about the psychological aspects of Battered Woman Syndrome as a Legal Defense.
• Dr. Heller has extensive experience working with battered women as a therapist and as a supervisor of counselors in a domestic violence clinic in New York, having received a Certificate of Appreciation, for his service.
• Dr. Heller has served as the Director of Behavioral Health Services for the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, where he provided supervision of staff, direct services for victims and training about intimate partner violence.

A recent case illustrates how Dr. Heller was able to educate a jury about Intimate Partner Violence/Battered Woman Syndrome and help the jury understand exactly what contributed to the woman killing her husband:

Candace Cummings, 36, was arrested in November 2016 and charged with first-degree murder of her husband.  After initially claiming the shooting was an accident, she later confessed to standing over her husband while he was asleep and shooting him in the head.   Candace told police that the “stress” of the relationship became too much for her, and that’s why she shot her husband. Candace was facing a mandatory sentence of life without parole if she was convicted of first-degree murder, a sentence of 25 years to life if convicted of second-degree murder and a sentence of not more than 10 years if convicted of voluntary manslaughter. The judge included all three charges for the jury to deliberate on.

The defense team found strong evidence of physical abuse many years earlier in the marital relationship and former employees of the deceased husband also described his temper. There were holes in the wall of the house attributed to his temper. However, psychological injuries commonly observed in victims of intimate partner violence needed to be described to the jury. Dr. Heller testified about the psychological signs and symptoms that the average person who had never been exposed to these situations would not understand. Dr. Heller explained to the jury that there are no physical signs like a black eye or bruise that are seen when a woman suffers psychological abuse. He testified that blaming, using male privilege, intimidation and isolation as well as using children are all signs of an abusive relationship, explaining the elements of the above diagram called “The Power and Control Wheel.” He also testified about the three phases of the “cycle of abuse,” which start with phase one, comprised of small events and intimidation (tension building), progressing to the second phase which involves an acute episode of abuse and finally to a third phase called contrition, in which the perpetrator apologizes and promises never to do it again. Dr. Heller told jurors that abuse victims often suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and numerous other psychological injuries that contribute to these victims not feeling safe even after the abuser is gone. He also explained that sometimes just leaving or calling the police can put the victim in even more danger, that the most dangerous time for the woman is when she takes out a protective order or tries to leave. He also described the concept of learned helplessness, which makes it virtually impossible for the woman to leave-making her feel like she is in a state of siege. The myths and misconceptions about victims were also explained by Dr. Heller.  He concluded that when an attack has physically ended, a victim of long-term abuse does not perceive the attack as being done as soon as it is over. After two days of deliberations in June 2017, the jury found Candace guilty of the lesser charge and returned a conviction of voluntary manslaughter.

Dr. Heller’s expert testimony about IPV/Battered Women Syndrome, can differ in criminal cases depending on whether he is testifying for the prosecution, or the defense as illustrated below. All of the items below can be used for either Prosecution of the abuser or in the Defense of the victim.