I went tonight, as an observer, to an Impact Panel. This is a monthly get-together of various people who work in DV (police, therapists, etc.), a couple of DV survivors, and a whole bunch of convicted abusers (or as we affectionately call them around here, "the perps".) The agenda for the meeting is for the perps to listen to the experts and maybe actually learn something about how their behavior affects others.
These meetings are mandated by the court for convicted abusers -- those convicted of a misdemeanor and who are on probation.
I took notes at tonight's event, and my summary of the festivities is below the fold. Think of it as time-delayed liveblogging. All names in this diary are changed to protect the innocent, and not-so-innocent.
