Domestic violence and guns can be a deadly combination. More than half of all intimate partner homicides are committed with a gun, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Nearly half of all women murdered in the United States are killed by a current or former intimate partner, and 50% of these homicides are by firearms.
Read MoreCLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - October marks Domestic Violence awareness month, and one organization in Cleveland is aiming to help a group of women who need it the most.
Journey Center for Safety and Healing, is offering a Latina Domestic Violence Program to help latina women in the community.
They hope that by creating this program, they can give assistance to some of the women who need it the most.
Read MoreCLEVELAND — Domestic violence experts say rates remain high three years after a pandemic spike, including in Northeast Ohio.
Melissa Graves, CEO of Journey Center for Safety and Healing, which provides counseling, shelter, and several other supports and services for domestic violence victims, said, "It has stayed there since COVID. It hasn't gone back down."
Read MoreData shared by the Ohio Domestic Violence Network shows there were 27 murder-suicides among the Ohio homicide cases they identified as being connected to domestic violence between July 1, 2021 and June 20, 2022.
ODVN identified a total of 73 domestic violence homicides in Ohio during the same time period, where the perpetrator killed their former or current intimate partner or spouse.
Read MoreCLEVELAND — Authorities have released new information about what happened inside a Brooklyn Centre home last Friday where a man is accused of killing his father, sister and nephew.
“Domestic violence is a very under-reported crime because of the shame and the fear factor,” Grant said.
Grant says survivors may not recognize the signs early on and abusers have a way of manipulating their own behaviors.
Read MoreOHIO — Ohio was the only state that didn't have what’s called a “strangulation law,” according to State Senator Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood).
But Gov. Mike DeWine's signature on Senate Bill 288 changed that.
“I really believe once this legislation goes into law, we’re going to save lives," Antonio said.
Read MoreRight now is a stressful time for many as some are dealing with financial worries and others are isolated at home with their abusers, who may even be heavily monitoring them in person and on social media.
“The holidays tend to be a disruptive time where an abuser may try to exert more power and control through abuse — financial, verbal, physical, emotional, sexual, every kind of, any kind of abuse,” said Melissa Graves, Chief Executive Officer at the Journey Center for Safety and Healing. “Over the holidays, we do tend to see an increase in alcohol consumption for some people. So, all of those things contribute to a stressful environment.”
Senate Bill 90 makes strangulation a felony, as opposed to a misdemeanor, what it is now.
Read MoreMEDINA, Ohio — As Ohio lawmakers enter the lame duck session, ready to push through bills that haven’t yet passed before the general assembly ends at the end of the year, domestic violence advocates and survivors are hopeful that Senate Bill 90 will be one of them.
Senate Bill 90 makes strangulation a felony, as opposed to a misdemeanor, what it is now.
Read MoreOctober marks Domestic Violence Awareness Month. On this week's Mom Squad, Maureen Kyle talks to experts about recognizing signs of abusive relationships.
Read MoreOctober is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
In Ohio, nearly 40% of women and 30% of men experience some form of domestic violence, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence,
The Journey Center for Safety and Healing in Cleveland is focused on offering services that empower, educate and advocate for individuals in order to end domestic violence and child abuse.
Read MoreCLEVELAND — New legislation is being proposed in Cleveland to assist victims of domestic violence in the city's workforce.
“Among the thousands of city employees there are people going through struggles, there are people who need help,” said councilman Charles Slife.
“It’s because of injury, because of an inability to focus, because of needing to take time away from work, that's incredibly disruptive and destabilizing for the family,” said Melissa Graves with the Journey Center for Safety and Healing.
Read MoreBut right now, it’s Graves and other leaders of organizations like hers, that are terrified of not being able to help the people who need it since the reversal of Roe v. Wade.
“It’s a seismic shift in the danger levels for women, in general, but absolutely for people who are living in abusive relationships,” she said. “We hear, all too often, from those we serve that reproductive coercion, birth control sabotage, and marital rape are part of the abuse that they experience in that abusive relationship.”
Read MoreBut right now, it’s Graves and other leaders of organizations like hers, that are terrified of not being able to help the people who need it since the reversal of Roe v. Wade.
“It’s a seismic shift in the danger levels for women, in general, but absolutely for people who are living in abusive relationships,” she said. “We hear, all too often, from those we serve that reproductive coercion, birth control sabotage, and marital rape are part of the abuse that they experience in that abusive relationship.”
Read MoreMelissa Graves with the Journey Center says not only are they seeing more domestic violence cases but more extreme abuse.
“Here in the state of Ohio in 2021, there were actually 131 deaths attributed to domestic violence homicide, that was a 20% increase over the year before,” Graves said.
Read MoreCLEVELAND — Domestic violence is cancer that invades communities across the nation, but the Journey Center for Safety and Healing is helping survivors of all communities.
Alicia Carrizo is one of those survivors.
“He put a knife on my throat and he said he's going leave me dead, in front of my girls,” said Carrizo.
Read MoreBROOK PARK, Ohio — Sarah Carter will tell you herself that her kids are the key to her heart.
“My children saved me, my children are literally my world,” said Carter. “The thought of losing one of them would bring me to tears.”
Sadly, that thought has become a tragic reality for Carter just over two weeks ago.
Read MoreCLEVELAND -- In the wake of the racial justice protests that followed the police killing of George Floyd, there have been mounting calls for programs dedicated to de-escalating encounters between the police and civilians.
Across the country, we are seeing a range of possible enhancements to traditional policing and the training of police. Here in Northeast Ohio, we’re taking a new approach in addressing domestic-violence response by police. This initiative illustrates how enhancements in police training can go a long way in increasing support and safety for victims of domestic violence.
Read MoreCLEVELAND — Across Ohio, officials are seeing a stark increase in domestic violence over the span of two years.
The Ohio Domestic Violence Network reported 131 people died from domestic violence from July 2020 to June of 2021. That’s a 20% increase from the previous year and a 62% increase since 2018-19. All of this is something those at Journey Center for Safety and Healing aren't shocked about, saying at one point during the pandemic, they saw fewer calls.
Read MoreCOLUMBUS, Ohio — On Wednesday, members of the Ohio House of Representatives passed House Bill 3, also known as "Aisha's Law," which would grant additional protections to the state's domestic violence survivors.
The bill is named after Aisha Fraser, a longtime teacher from Shaker Heights who was fatally stabbed in November 2018 by her ex-husband, former Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court judge and State Sen. Lance Mason.
“There are evidence-based indicators that a case is more likely to escalate to a homicide or to a nearly fatal attack. Some of those indicators are if the abuser owns a gun, if there’s ever been strangulation in the relationship, at all, if there’s been a recent job loss, if an abuser has ever threatened suicide,” said Melissa Graves, CEO of Journey Center For Safety and Healing in Cleveland.
Read MoreStrangulation is one of the most lethal forms of domestic violence, according to the Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention. It can result in unconsciousness within seconds and death within minutes. The National Domestic Violence Hotline reported strangulation is also a significant predictor of future lethal violence.
“There are evidence-based indicators that a case is more likely to escalate to a homicide or to a nearly fatal attack. Some of those indicators are if the abuser owns a gun, if there’s ever been strangulation in the relationship, at all, if there’s been a recent job loss, if an abuser has ever threatened suicide,” said Melissa Graves, CEO of Journey Center For Safety and Healing in Cleveland.
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