More services but crime rate not dropping

There have been many changes in the Abbie Shelter’s approach to domestic violence since Hilary Shaw took the helm as executive director six years ago.

The shelter has become more sensitive to the needs of domestic violence survivors, allowing them personal space and privacy. A full-time counselor is available to women to cope with the emotional issues surrounding domestic violence. Shelter residents participate in a support group and case management on a regular basis.

More people are also taking advantage of the crisis hotline, and getting help with orders of protection and safety plans before, during and after escaping a violent partnership, Shaw said.

The shelter has connections to outside resources, including community partnerships with law enforcement, legal advocates, social services and more.

But there’s still one big problem.

“While there are more services and support for victims of domestic violence, the rates are not changing,” Shaw said.

The reason, local officials say, is because there has not been a shift in general public awareness or a community that holds offenders accountable.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE is an issue that can be difficult to grasp.

“It’s hard for people to understand how someone who proclaims to love their partner is abusive to them,” Shaw said.

The public might paint a picture of a domestic violence offender as a big scary person, or drug dealer, so they can convince themselves it could never happen to them, Shaw said.

The reality of domestic violence is quite different.

“Most abusers are not very frightening people. They typically don’t have other criminal records,” she said.

Domestic violence is also a lot more common than most people want to admit.

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence reports 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been physically abused by a partner. Domestic violence is prevalent in every community, impacting people of every age, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, gender, race, religion and nationality.

In spite of the prevalence of the problem, little is being done to hold offenders accountable, Shaw said.

“We have shamefully low rates of domestic violence prosecution in the Flathead Valley,” she said.

Because of the emotional and psychological nature of the crime, victims can be reluctant to testify.

“If you don’t have prosecuting attorneys who will to put in the time to work with the victim, it becomes a stalemate,” Shaw said. “Luckily our law enforcement officials still take the time to collect evidence about the cases.”

Kalispell Police Department Detective Sgt. Brett Corbett is all too familiar with domestic violence cases.

“It’s definitely a problem and it’s something our officers respond to quite often,” he said.

As with all situations, Corbett said law enforcement officers’ main objective responding to domestic disturbances is the safety of everyone involved.

Evidence is gathered from officers’ observations when they arrive, interviews with witnesses and those involved in the dispute and evidence taken at the scene to determine whether or not a crime has been committed.

“Montana State law says that if it’s determined that there has been physical abuse, arrest is the preferred option,” Corbett explained.

Domestic disputes can be sticky because of the emotion involved. Victims do not always want to press charges or cooperate with the investigation, even if a crime has occurred.

However, if there is enough evidence to determine a crime has been committed, officers can still make an arrest, Corbett said.

When an arrest is made, victims of domestic violence are given a referral to the Abbie Shelter’s crisis line so they can get resources about how to best move forward from the situation, Corbett said.

The police department keeps in touch with victim advocates and staff at the Abbie Shelter to provide a more well-rounded approach to the problem.

“Our involvement is a specific and important role. But for ongoing, longer-term help the crisis line and other services are very important,” Corbett said.

BOTH CORBETT and Shaw agree, domestic violence perpetrators must be held accountable for their actions. Community members let these people off the hook too often, Shaw said.

“It is not OK for us as a community not make more of an effort to learn what domestic violence really looks like,” Shaw said.

If you know someone who is abusing their partner and you continue to be friends with them, you are contributing to the problem, she said.

Corbett said he’s been involved with self-defense classes in the past. He said it’s nice to be able offer those services, but it shouldn’t be necessary.

“It’s not someone’s responsibility or fault if they were not able to defend themselves [from a violent partner]. The responsibility for what happened lies solely on the offender,” he said.

It doesn’t matter what the victim might have been wearing, or if they were drinking at the time, it is not the victim’s fault if they were the target of violence, he said.

“It doesn’t matter what the circumstances. No one deserves to be treated that way,” Corbett said. “The blame needs to rest with the offender and not with the person who is victimized.”

The phone number for the Abbie Shelter’s crisis line is 406-752-7273. For more resources or information, visit https://www.abbieshelter.org.

Reporter Breeana Laughlin can be reached at 758-4441 or blaughlin@dailyinterlake.com.

The Abbie Shelter reports 1,200 calls to their domestic violence and sexual assault crisis line per year.

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence reports an average of 20 people are physical abused by intimate partners every minute in the United States. This equates to more than 10 million abuse victims annually.

More stats from the U.S. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence:

1 in 3 women have been physically abused by an intimate partner.

1 in 7 women have been stalked.

1 in 5 women are raped during their lifetime.

1 in 3 female murder victims are killed by intimate partners.