The Law and Gay/Lesbians

[kaoss]

I used to live in Darwin for 19 years whilst there I came out. Approximately 5 years ago I had a horrible break up but that is weird because really we were never together, she was just obsessed.

Anyway she stalked me harrassed me damaged my belongings, mostly my brand new car and my buisness, the two things I care most about at the time. She stole money from my bank account send endless text messages and phone messages and harassed my friends.

She used to smash my car windows, stand out side of my buisness telling everyone I was a lesbian, kicked in my front door of my rental property, which caused them to ask me to leave.

:confused: Really confused and lost, with even my parents feeling a little scared of her after all she did for no reason King hit my also Gay brother. I sort legal aid, I went to a lawer who was great but here lies my Question................

She told me for a Gay/ Lesbian Domestic Violence claim I had to prove that we had lived together for a period of 6 months or over. Is this still in play or was it just a Northern Territory law, if so is the NT still using this.?????

When speaking to her she told me that in a hetro's they dont even need to be in a relationship at all it can be put into place on there first meeting.

I was lucky as I said we were never together but we used to be house mates so I used that and lucky she was not smart enough to know to fight that.phew.

Anyway she is still weird she doesnt know where I am now, but be sure if she could contact me she would try.

Kaoss

[GL Rights Lobby]

Unfortunately the research shows that similar rates of domestic violence exist in same-sex relationships as they do in hetereosexual relationships. However, same-sex couples tend to be less likely to seek support for domestic violence and violence may take unique forms, such as threats to 'out' someone. Violence is controlling behaviour and can be physical or psychological.

It is useful to note that in 2003, the Northern Territory amended its laws to include same-sex couples in a whole range of de facto relationship rights. If I calculate things correctly kaoss, this incident happened in 2002. The Northern Territory amended the Domestic Violence Act (NT) to treat same-sex couples equally under the reforms of 2003.

In other states, I would recommend anyone experiencing domestic violence to contact the police if it is an emergency or their local community legal centre to find out about their rights for protective orders, such as Apprehended Violence Orders (AVOs).

If you are in NSW, ACON has a very useful website: http://ssdv.acon.org.au/

[waterrat]

Just for anyone's information:

If anything like this happens to you...please don't hesitate call the Police. If you are concerned about your sexuality when dealing with them you can request that a (they have a few names) Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officer (GLLO) or in Qld (that I know of) a Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender/Intersex (GLBTI) liaison officer attend.

Yes laws do vary from state to state, but I believe there is a fair concensus now that if two people are living in a domestic relationship...it is **their** perception of the relationship that matters, not the whole man/wife defacto thing whatever that is. As far as the law is concerned anyway, I'm unsure how they are interpreted civilly.

As an ex-cop, all I can say is don't put your or anyone else's safety at risk by glossing over or covering up the issue...please get help, the sooner you are able to extract yourself from the situation, the better the result is for all concerned, especially you.

Sadly, almost every time I went to a family violence matter (usually hetero) as soon as hubby was gone for the night, the partner would contact us and try to withdraw the complaint or refuse to attend court or try to get out of things any way they could. Incredibly sad knowing that it might be a month or six, but you would be back there again with everyone screaming and bruises and kids crying and just families in shambles. Please don't get into the cycle of "they've changed" or "it's different this time". If they aren't willing to back up their words with a solid action eg counselling, or mediation don't risk yourself.

Sorry for the "preaching" it's just something I believe is very underreported in the gay community (male and female) and violence is something we are all better off without.

Stay safe :)

Rat