Guest opinion California works to reduce domestic violence

California Attorney General


Guest opinion

California works to

reduce domestic violence

Domestic violence is one of society’s worst crimes because it is committed by someone the victim should be able to trust the most. Intimate partner violence not only results too often in death, it also shatters the lives of children and other family members.


In 2000, California law enforcement received 196,406 domestic violence calls and made more than 51,200 domestic violence arrests. California courts issued 197,360 domestic violence restraining orders. My own Department of Justice denied 253 people permits to purchase firearms because they had restraining orders against them.


Law enforcement provides victims with information about local shelters, community services and legal options, and often works with community organizations to provide life-saving services. But the extraordinary efforts of these agencies alone aren’t enough to solve the problem.


While the task is daunting, I want to make California the first state to eliminate domestic violence. In partnership with local law enforcement, we are working with community and state organizations, educators, medical personnel, victims’ advocates, faith-based leaders and others to implement vigorous prevention strategies.


As a result of legislation enacted in 1995, California counties are authorized to establish Domestic Violence Death Review Teams (DVDRTs) to thoroughly examine intimate partner-related homicides, find solutions to fill any gaps in the system, improve data collection and recommend ways to prevent future tragedies.


Currently, only 20 counties have established these teams.


We want to see them in all 58 counties.


My office recently hosted two regional training sessions during which teams from across the state were able to share knowledge about factors they’ve identified as precursors to domestic violence deaths, and proposals for breaking these patterns.


San Diego County’s team found that most domestic violence homicides they studied in 2001 were committed with firearms, the incidents occurred primarily in the victim’s home, and victims reported abuse to family members but often had no contact with law enforcement.


The Santa Clara County team found that victims often talked about divorce or separation, and the killer exhibited obvious problems, such as job loss and increased drug or alcohol use.


The DVDRTs also recommend ways to prevent future tragedies. Proposals include urging victims to talk about their history of abuse, encouraging family and friends to report domestic violence incidents to law enforcement, educating physicians on how to screen for evidence of domestic violence and expanding services for children exposed to domestic violence.


These all are good suggestions and worthy of sharing. To improve the work of DVDRTs and encourage more counties to form teams, the Department of Justice has partnered with other state agencies to publish and distribute "California’s Domestic Violence Death Review Team Protocol: A Case for Prevention," and will continue to provide training and research.


Copies of this or other publications on domestic violence and crime prevention programs are available by calling my Crime and Violence Prevention Center at (916) 324-7863.


California has pioneered many innovative programs to identify and address domestic violence and its devastating consequences. Working together we will continue to develop effective solutions that further our goal of making California the first state to eliminate domestic violence.





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