A Case Study on Domestic Violence: Anne M.
Modified from Real Cases: Integrating Child Welfare Practice Across the Social Work Curriculum
Family Background: Anne M. is 32 years old woman who is unemployed but has a degree in
hospitality services. She has been married to Peter M. for 7 years. They have two children,
Thomas, aged 6, and Megan, aged 3. Peter is an insurance agent who earns approximately
$70,000 a year. Peter and the 2 children are all U.S. citizens. Anne, who was born in Jamaica, is
a permanent resident of the US. Peter’s family is also from Jamaica, but he was born in the New
York City. They are both Episcopalians. Since the DV incident and subsequent return to the
States, Mr. M. has been living in an apartment he co-owns with his mother in Brooklyn. There
was no prior ACS contact with this family, but a search of Domestic Incident Reports at the
Police department revealed two prior domestic violence incidents in which Mr. M. was named as
the suspect in 12/2012 and 10/2013.
Presenting Problem: Ms M. said her husband inflicted bruises on her in the presence of the
children during their vacation in Jamaica. When CPS asked what was going on between her and
her husband when this incident occurred, Ms M. explained that an old friend of hers called the
week after they arrived and offered to show the family around. Her husband gave the friend
directions to the house where they were staying, but when he arrived, Mr. M. said he didn’t want
to go and offered to stay home with the children. They were gone for about 3 hours, but when
they returned her husband pulled the friend out of the car and assaulted him. He was then
arrested and stayed one night in jail.
Several days later they got into an argument because he left no money for her when he went out
alone, although he knew she needed to buy food for the dish she was cooking, and she was
counting on his taking the children with him. When he came back, she yelled at him; he then
came at her with a closed fist, saying he saw her friend’s car waiting outside. He punched her
repeatedly in the face, neck, shoulders and arms as he was shouting, “You’re making a fool out of
me” and “You ruin my vacation.” She realized she was bleeding all over and there was blood on
the walls and the floor. When she went into the shower, he continued punching her. He finally
left, saying he was going to kill her friend.
Initial Home Visit: At the home visit, it was clear that this 2-bedroom apartment was clean,
well-organized and furnished, with plenty of food in the refrigerator, locks and guards on the
windows, and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Ms M. was able to show the worker the
children’s vaccination records and said the children have no special medical or mental health
needs. Since the children share a twin bed in the 2nd bedroom, the worker explained why this
was not a good idea and said she would help Ms M. get a set of bunk beds for the children.
The CPS worker observed the children for marks and bruises. Both of the children had visible
welts on their backs and arms. Thomas reported that “daddy hit me hard there, and it still hurts.
Megan said, “daddy hit me right there,” pointing to the welts on her Real Cases Project: The
Anne M. Case Study 30 arm, “daddy did it.” When the CPS asked her if she could tell her what
happened, Megan put her hands over her ears and said, “don’t talk, don’t talk.”
As a result of the concerns in this case, the family was referred for supportive services to the
Family Center of New York. They were assigned to a family social worker (Maria) who met
with the family to complete an assessment and intervention plan. In addition, a safety plan was
created in connection with CPS. Maria and the CPS worker recommended that Ms. M. gather all
vital documents in one safe place, pack a change of clothes for her and the children, have
sufficient cash available in case she has to move in a hurry, and identify a place she can go
unknown to her husband. Ms. M. agreed to these suggestions, saying she will request the
assistance of a friend she has known for many years and will arrange a code word so others will
know to call the police immediately if she calls and is in danger. Ms. M. had already obtained an
Order of Protection, but since she had difficulty serving him.
Family Intervention: Over the course of 6 weeks the family social worker, Maria, met with Ms.
M weekly and her children bi weekly. The goals that were being addressed with Ms. M involved
getting counseling to address the DV, helping her get linked with community supports, assisting
Ms. M with finding a job and a new apartment, and maintaining the safety plan put into place.
Ms. M rejected the idea of doing marital counseling but was open to family counseling with her
children.
By the end of the 6 weeks Ms. M had identified a new apartment she would like to move into
that was closer to her aunt (one of her identified supports). She had also secured some part-time
employment at a restaurant that is close by her aunt’s home. The children were still having bad
dreams and seemed a bit anxious due to the DV incident and their own physical abuse, per their
teacher and mother’s reports. Ms. M reported that she has continued with having no face-to-face
contact with her husband but they had talked on the phone several times about the children. She
believes he really feels bad about his actions and is considering letting him see the children in
public settings. Ms. M had been referred for individual counseling but family counseling had not
be set up yet. Ms. M has verbalized that she believes her family has all of the tools needed to get
back to “our life as we knew it,” and has asked Maria if they could terminate with her in the next
few weeks.
Consider the following questions as if you were Maria:
What are the cultural issues that the family social worker must consider in this case?
What aspects of this case would support termination at this point?
What aspects of this case would discourage termination at this point?
What activities would you ask Ms. M and her children to complete if you were going to
work towards termination in the coming weeks?
What additional information would you need before making a decision on termination at
this point?
If you were Maria, what would you tell Ms. M about termination considering your
responses to the prior question?