Focal Point: Paper-Thin Promise

Original Air Date: June 14, 2006

Domestic violence protective orders are designed to keep abusers away from their victims. They work most of the time, but advocates for the victims of domestic violence estimate that close to 30 percent of abusers violate the order and that many times, the issuance of the order itself prompts the abusers to commit violence against the victims.

WRAL’s Focal Point documentary, "Paper-Thin Promise," looks at why protective orders often fail to protect victims of domestic violence and what can be done to make them more effective.

Watch the Documentary

Part 1: To learn more about the nature of domestic violence, we examine one of the most notable cases of domestic violence in our state’s recent history: the slaying of 20-year-old Anitra Coburn by her boyfriend, Doug Carter, in Franklin County in August 1996.

Part 2: Abusers often have common traits that may help explain why domestic violence protective orders fail to protect victims.

Part 3: From technical innovations to tougher laws, many things are being tried to make protective orders more effective, but ultimately stopping domestic violence problem may mean a systemic change in the way we look at the problem.

Part 4: What can Doug Carter tell us that may shed some insight into the domestic violence problem? What impact has Anitra Coburn’s death had?

Online Resources

• North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• Women's Law
• Do Something Now

Web links are provided for informational purposes only. Views and opinions expressed on the Web sites of these organizations do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of WRAL-TV and its parent company, Capitol Broadcasting Co.