Domestic Violence Cost 67 Lives in 2006-07

In September 2008, the Wisconsin Coalition Against Domestic Violence (WCADV) published a report detailing the 67 lives claimed by domestic violence in 2006-2007.

This continues the work that began in 2000 by WCADV as a means to make people aware of the seriousness of the domestic violence problems facing victims and their families. Of the 74 counties in Wisconsin, all but 15 reported homicides that related to domestic violence over these past seven years. Fortunately, Door County was one of them. This doesn’t mean that we should become complacent in thinking that such a tragedy could not occur here. In one of the November 2008 issues of the Pulse, it was noted that domestic violence is a problem in Door County, a crime that is greatly under-reported. Statistically speaking, if domestic violence is occurring at rates that we don’t even know about, it is very likely that eventually someone in Door County will be touched by a domestic violence related homicide or suicide.

The WCADV Homicide Report details some startling facts. There were a total of 67 deaths, including 14 children and 7 people over the age of 50. The two categories in between, involving individuals 18-29 and 30-49, were almost evenly spaced with 24 and 22 deaths respectively. Of the perpetrators, 45 were men and seven were women. Thirty-four of the victims killed by a male perpetrator were either a current or estranged partner. The impact on children was astounding: 22 children were reported being present at the scene of an adult homicide; 28 were left motherless; and eight were left fatherless.

A number of the homicides were preceded by stalking the victim. In one study of battered women who were survivors of attempted homicide, every one of them had been stalked prior to the final assault. Perpetrators are twice as likely to have used stalking behaviors, and this behavior often escalates while women are trying to leave an abuser. Some of the homicide cases included information about the abuser having been arrested in the past for domestic violence related offenses – such as violations of restraining orders, stalking, or battering behaviors – but these charges had either been dismissed or reduced to disorderly conduct. Technology is becoming a widely used way of stalking victims of domestic violence. One example is Juan Leon-Nava who made 24 cell phone calls to his girlfriend before stabbing her to death in front of her children in Green Bay. Abusers use GPS devices in cars and cell phones to track and follow their victims.

Finally, a note about one recent case of mass homicide that the media did not report as domestic violence related. In Crandon, Tyler Peterson killed his ex-girlfriend and five of her friends at a party. There was a lot of media blitz about this case as Peterson was an off-duty deputy. He was not someone who “lost it” or was a “rogue cop.” He had sent his ex 20 text messages 24 hours before murdering her and her friends.

In conclusion, perpetrators of domestic violence need to be held accountable for their actions if we are to prevent more victims from being murdered and children becoming orphaned victims.

Domestic violence – it is your problem.

If you or anyone you know is a victim of domestic violence, please contact HELP of Door County, Inc.’s 24-hour crisis hotline at 920.743.8818 or 800.91.HELP.1.

This article is brought to you in part by the Door County Coordinated Community Response to Domestic Violence Team (CCR).