Domestic violence prevention program seems to help

LOUISBURG -- Four months after law enforcement and anti-domestic violence advocates launched a plan to aid abuse victims, they're seeing results.

In February, Safe Space and the county's law enforcement officers installed the Lethality Assessment Program (LAP) -- a protocol-based plan to prevent domestic violence homicides and serious injury.

As LAP is designed, when an officer responds to a domestic-related disturbance, they screen victims and assess the threat of violence or death.

A victim's response can prompt a referral to Safe Space, which can provide emergency shelter, therapy and other support services.

In the roughly four months that the program has been active, said Safe Space Executive Director Monica Kearney, nearly 90 victims of domestic violence have opted to seek Safe Space's assistance.

"I was just happy to know that we touched this many people in some way, shape, form or fashion," Kearney said during the most recent meeting of the county's Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Task Force -- made up of officers, Safe Space members, county government and courthouse staff.

"That's because, my biggest issue is, there are pockets of our community that don't know about Safe Space; there might be victims who don't know that there are services.

"So, I'm excited about the fact that people know about us now and, through this LAP process, more people will know and will get the services they need."

That's because Kearney said her biggest fear is that someone who needs Safe Space may not get help because they don't know and the results could be deadly.

"... My biggest fear is to hear a homicide happened and [the victim] didn't know anything about our system and services," she said. "So, I'm glad LAP is in place."

While law enforcement, Safe Space staff and victims are all doing their part through LAP and other means, Kearney said one of her long-range goals is to make sure that abusers are being held accountable in the court system.

To that end, she plans to use an intern later this summer to track domestic violence cases that have come through the court system to determine their outcomes.

"... It's one of the things that concerns me because, if no one is being held responsible, what happens?

"If your kid doesn't clean up their room every day and you keep saying, 'clean up your room or A, B, C and D will happen, but nothing happens, what is that child going to do?' [Not clean up their room.]

"Well, it's the same thing here."

One of the issues, narratively, officers said, is that in some cases, victims don't show up in court.

And, since prosecutors are reluctant to pursue victimless prosecutions without overwhelming evidence, those cases are often dropped, officers said.

Kearney and other anti-domestic violence advocates suggested that it might be important to let court staff and prosecutors know about the roadblocks victims face in showing up to court, whether it's the practical, not having transportation; or the rational, not wanting to face their abuser in court; to the pragmatic, not being able to miss a day from work.

Beyond that, though, in order to make sure that abusers are being held accountable in the court system -- and to rally allies -- Kearney said she wants to gather data about domestic violence case dispositions.

"... I want to have some real numbers to look at, then we can say, 'hey, criminal court system, this is what we're seeing. What can we do?'

"... We still heavily rely on the victim to do A, B, C and D and if they do not, it fails for that person," Kearney.

"I want us to really be able to take a look at that and make some change."