Law enforcement makes domestic violence top priority as cases rise - KCRG
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) - Johnson County Sheriff Brad Kunkel is using his position to make domestic violence cases and investigations a priority.
With domestic cases on rise, he says they needed to do something to better protect victims.
“Improving how we respond to domestic violence cases, supporting victims better than we have been, and making sure that we are effectively investigating these cases,” said Sheriff Kunkel.
So far this year, Iowa has seen 17 domestic violence homicides which is as many as 2020 saw for the whole year. Sheriff Kunkel’s efforts to decrease those numbers starts with the initial report.
“Now when we file charges in domestic violence cases, those cases are assigned to an investigator for follow up,” he said.
The effort to do so places even more emphasis on follow up interviews and checking in a victims. Kunkel says by promoting victim safety and security, it provides officers an opportunity to get more details about what happened.
“By assigning it to an investigator, we are ensuring the victims are staying up to date on what’s going on with the case.”
They are also making efforts to work more closely with Domestic Violence Intervention Program(DVIP), a group that provides services to victims and survivors. Alta Medea with DVIP says just getting the word out about any domestic violence case can help survivors.
“No matter what the story is being told to them, there are services and people there to help,” she said.
But as these domestic cases rise, services like DVIP are at risk of losing a lot of federal funding.
“10% this year and 25% we’re facing next year, supporting the work our advocates do through financial contributions is huge,” said Madea.
She says any donations are helpful especially now. To learn how to donate, click here.
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source: https://www.kcrg.com/2021/10/28/domestic-violence-cases-rise-iowa-law-enforcement-enhances-their-priority-related-cases/
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