The Ray Rice case was fairly typical in one sense: It’s customary to offer first-time offenders an opportunity to choose counseling, and avoid charges. There are a few reasons for this. One is that some abusers really will respond—either because they have so much to lose by risking jail time, or because they feel enough regret to be open to what counselors will tell them. “Most of these programs have about a 21, 22, 23 percent success rate at 12 to 18 months,” says Gelles. “And that has to do a great deal with readiness to change, plus receptiveness to intervention.” Ray Rice by Rob Carr GettyRay Rice -- photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images But precisely because the success rate is relatively low, experts think it’s important that penalties be tough—and consistent. That’s true for the courts. And it’s true for private organizations, like professional sports leagues. “Forcing batterers into treatment works for some, but not for most,” says Tania Tetlow, a former federal prosecutor, a law professor at Tulane, and director of the Domestic Violence Center there. ”We should offer all the treatment in the world in case it helps, but not instead of punishment as we tend to do now." "Swift and serious sentencing is important to decrease the incidents of domestic abuse," says Lisa Smith, a former prosecutor who is now an assistant professor clinical law at Brooklyn Law School. "Severe punishment by the NFL in this case with the attendant publicity will definitely send a message to abusers.