by Sterling George

A recent video showed Jason Kolkema, a licensed attorney in the state of Michigan and nominee for a judicial candidate for the Circuit Court judge in Muskegon County, allegedly whipping his girlfriend with his belt. Whether we believe Mr. Kolkema is guilty or innocent, this case reminds us that if America is serious about investing in solutions for its domestic violence epidemic, brought into starker focus this time every year during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, we might want to start by ensuring that our officers of the court are not abusers.

Soon Mr. Kolkema’s dark past was revealed: numerous calls to local police where his girlfriend admitted to being hit by Mr. Kolkema, and an open investigation with Child Protective Services due to putting his child in danger. In my mind, as a former military police in the United States Air Force, who has seen a lot of DV cases up close, and now a student at UC Berkeley studying intimate partner violence and the law, another open investigation seems in order in any case such as Kolkema’s: one by the State Bar’s Office.

The Bar’s Chief Trial Counsel, who handles complaints lodged against licensed attorneys, should open an investigation on acting attorneys if there are more than two police reports that suggest physical violence has been utilized on a significant other. The textbook definition of physical violence means an assault of other infliction or threat of infliction of death or bodily harm on an individual. Once a possible case begins, it will start with the police reporting or responding to a situation. Drawing back on the case of Mr. Kolkema, his girlfriend reportedly called the Fruitport police to report he slapped her. This would have been the first reporting that could be utilized to open an investigation against Mr. Kolkemas’ bar license.

Almost every attorney’s oath has the words dignity, professionalism, and integrity, which tie into their professional and personal lives. Domestic violence in the form of physical violence thus challenges the idea that a specific attorney is not upholding their oath. Within the judicial system, we make individuals testifying uphold a solemn oath in the courthouse. If they break it, we are allowed to investigate and further charge these individuals. Why are we not holding practicing attorneys just as accountable as testifying individuals?

An issue that might arise is victim recantation, or a victim ‘going back on’ or changing their previous reporting. Even Mr. Kolkema’s girlfriend recanted her story once the police arrived on the scene. When the police talked to Mr. Kolkema, he said, “she gets like this when she is drunk… and makes things up.”  Recantation, in cahoots with the abuser, is almost the norm in DV cases. It routinely involves the minimization by the abuser, as was done by Mr. Kolkema, and eventually the self-minimization by the victim who comes up with a new or alternative story about what ‘really happened.’ Thus, recantation itself should not close the Trial Counsel’s investigation:  the police calls/reports should stand as credible sources, that trained experts, including psychologists, could read to contribute to the investigation.

I still adamantly believe in innocent until proven guilty. I am proposing a more aggressive approach to combating physical domestic violence within our legal professional world, people who swear oaths to uphold the law. This will help create new standards to acknowledge victims earlier and help weed out serial abusers before they also obtain judicial power. Accountability for those who seek to hold others accountable will be the strongest reassurance for the millions of women impacted by domestic violence in our country: including one out of three women who experience domestic violence in Michigan.

Sterling George is a senior at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Political Science major.