DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LEGISLATION AND THE POLICE - THE ROLE OF SOCIOECONOMIC INDICATORS, POLITICAL FACTORS AND WOMENS POLITICAL ACTIVISM ON STATE POLICY ADOPTION

In response to complaints by the battered women's movement, many state s passed legislation requiring the police to assist battered women and expanding the arrest powers of the police. By 1983 many states had ad opted some of these reforms. This research examines the variability of the adoption of state level police reform legislation. A model is cre ated that looks at the relative influence of socio-economic, political , and feminist indicators on the legislative adoption. The strongest p redictor of state adoption of police reform legislation was the percen tage of women in the state legislatures. The findings suggest that ele cting more women to political office will positively influence the ado ption of legislation addressing women's issues.