MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) unveiled its plans Thursday to address violent crime in the city. This comes after a record year in overall murders and a concerning spike in domestic violence-related homicides.
"Domestic violence is the root cause of a significant amount of violence in our city,” MPD Chief Jeff Norman said.
Chief Norman says the crisis calls for an urgent response. That’s why he says he redeployed several officers to focus on the most dangerous domestic violence cases.
The Milwaukee Police Department has partnered with the Sojourner Family Peace Center for decades to address domestic violence. A record year of intimate partner homicides has MPD elevating its efforts.
"I've been asking for this for years,” said Sojourner President Carmen Pitre.
Pitre says domestic violence in Milwaukee is the worst she’s seen in her 38 years at Sojourner.
"We've got a problem on our hands,” she said.
New Milwaukee Police data shows 23 people were killed in domestic violence homicides in 2022, up from 17 in 2021.
The same trend is seen in statewide data. An organization called End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin says a record 85 lives were lost to domestic violence last year in Wisconsin.
"It is going to take our city down if we don't collectively figure out what to do,” Pitre said.
Chief Norman says a pillar of his 2023 violent crime plan is dedicating resources to reduce domestic violence recidivism and victimization. A couple weeks ago, the department put seven officers on what’s called the ‘Domestic Violence High-Risk Team’.
Pitre says the specialized roles will allow the officers to expand the department’s work on domestic violence cases deemed to be at the highest risk of homicide.
"There might be more investigation, maybe they didn't talk to a witness, maybe they left some evidence behind,” she said.
Nancy Yarbrough is a domestic violence survivor who now advocates for others in the same situation.
"I think a lot of us as women think of the good times versus the times that are super bad and trying to break out of that cycle,” she said.
Sojourner says domestic violence victims who speak to someone about their situation have a 94 percent chance of survival. Yarbrough says that someone can be anyone.
"Call, get help, talk to somebody,” she said. “It will be alright and you can heal and you can have a fresh start."
Pitre says the seven officers on the Domestic Violence High-Risk Team are expected to analyze and follow up on 30 cases each week.
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