The following are a sampling of DC LEAP cases:
Ba v. United States
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2002
The case that “launched” DV LEAP concerned an abuser who argued that, since he had lived for a few months with the victim after she received her protection order, he could not subsequently be prosecuted for violating that order after they broke up. -more
J v. N
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2004
DV LEAP represented a professional woman who had suffered extended stalking and threats from a former dating partner, had successfully taken criminal and civil legal actions against him, and was now being harassed through his litigation appeals. -more
C.W. v. E.F.
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2007
DV LEAP won a resounding victory in this case, establishing a powerful precedent requiring courts to place safety first and to give due weight to a history of battering when considering child abuse allegations in the context of custody. -more
Murphy v. Okeke
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2008
DV LEAP helped another victim of domestic violence achieve justice in the D.C. Court of Appeals in the Summer of 2008. This case presented the problem of a victim being revictimized by the court's issuance of orders against her and express statements that she was responsible for the abuser's violence. -more
In re Robertson
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2008
DV LEAP submitted an amicus brief on behalf of numerous local domestic violence organizations to urge the Court of Appeals not to eliminate the private enforcement of civil protection orders by the private victim through criminal contempt.-more
P.F.v. N.C.
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2008
DV LEAP won another favorable decision in a custody and abuse case in the Summer of 2008. In this case DV LEAP submitted an amicus brief on behalf of several local domestic violence organizations in support of the mother, who appealed the trial court’s award of custody to the children’s father who had violently beaten her and also abused the children. DV LEAP partnered with the Legal Aid Society of D.C., which represented the mother. -more
E.J. v. D.J.
D.C. Court of Appeals - 2010
This 2010 case provides an opportunity for the D.C. Court of Appeals to further strengthen its pronouncements in Wilkins v. Ferguson and P.F. v. N.C. that trial judges must apply the child safety provisions of D.C. Code Section 16-914 (a-1) to all custody and visitation cases. This is also the first D.C. case DV LEAP has seen in which the theory of "parental alienation" or the "alienated child" has been used explicitly to rebut the statutory presumption against joint legal custody in domestic violence cases. -more