The Skeleton in the Closet: The Battered Woman Syndrome, Self-Defense, and Expert Testimony

This Article will focus on an important and controversial development in the law affecting battered women. An increasing number of courts admit expert testimony on the battered woman syndrome to support a claim of self-defense when a battered woman kills her abuser. Part II of this Article traces the history of wife abuse, the nature of the battering relationship, and the legal system's response to battering. The next section reviews the law of self-defense and analyzes some of the problems a battered woman encounters when pleading self-defense. Part IV presents the standards courts use in admitting expert testimony generally and, more specifically, on the battered woman syndrome. Such testimony can be, of course, a key factor in a battered woman's proof of a self-defense claim to a homicide charge. The conclusion then summarizes the findings and issues discussed in previous sections and makes recommendations designed to mitigate the legal problems this deadly phenomenon presents