Thu 14 Oct 2010
Posted by Admin under Clergy & Religious Groups, Community Groups, Public Service Announcements, S.A.F.E. HAPPENINGS NEWSLETTER, United Way, Volunteers
Comments Off
Wed 13 Oct 2010
Posted by Admin under Domestic Violence Laws, Domestic Violence Links, Public Service Announcements
Comments Off
In recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the Purple For Peace Campaign will be happening throughout our community during the month of October.
The Purple for Peace Campaign in memory of Amanda Millsaps has been organized by her mother, Rita Millsaps, to raise public awareness regarding the dangers faced by domestic violence victims and garner support and community commitment to ending the violence.
Amanda Millsaps was murdered last January by her estranged husband. A beautiful young woman, Amanda had graduated with her master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Mississippi State University. Rita Millsaps is conducting the Purple Campaign as a tribute to her daughter and in an effort to save lives and prevent such a reoccurrence of violence in our community.
The purple ribbons displayed throughout the city and across the country during October have become one of the most widely recognized symbols of the battered women’s movement. Throughout America, families and friends of victims have adopted the purple ribbon to remember and honor loved ones, like Amanda, who have lost their lives at the hands of someone they once loved and trusted. Shelters and victims advocacy organizations use the purple ribbon to raise awareness about the crime of domestic violence in their communities.
According to the FBI, domestic violence is a pattern of behavior in which one intimate partner uses physical violence, coercion, threats, intimidation, isolation and emotional, sexual or economic abuse to control the other partner in a relationship. Stalking or other harassing behavior is often an integral part of domestic violence.
Businesses, agencies and individuals are invited to demonstrate their support for domestic violence victims by “going purple” through the use of ribbons, clothing, lights or other means to convey the message that domestic violence is unacceptable in homes, schools, or workplaces throughout our community. When asked about the purple ribbons, supporters are encouraged to share important information concerning domestic violence, such as:
• More than 40 percent of all the people murdered in the city of Corinth over the last 20 years died as a result of domestic violence.
• One out of every four women in America have been beaten or sexually assaulted.
• Domestic violence costs our society over $4 billion each year in health care expenses.
• Domestic violence costs U.S. employers up to $13 billion every year.
• Victims of domestic violence have greater rates of unemployment, health problems, and welfare dependency.
Both the Corinth Police Department and the Alcorn County Sheriff’s Office will be showing their support for the Purple for Peace Campaign in memory of Amanda Millsaps through the display of purple ribbons on the patrol cars and uniforms of officers within each agency.
“We want everyone to understand the seriousness of the problem of domestic violence, the costs to our community, the impact it has on so many people, especially the victims,” said Chief of Police David Lancaster. Added Sheriff Charles Rinehart, “The Alcorn County Sheriff’s Office supports this effort to raise awareness about the crime of domestic violence.”
Mon 4 Oct 2010
Posted by Admin under Domestic Violence Laws, Domestic Violence Links, NEMS360.com, Tupelo Police
Comments Off
Domestic violence is not going away
by Danza Johnson/NEMS Daily Journal
Editor’s note: This overview of domestic violence is the first of four stories taking a look at the situation in Northeast Mississippi for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Daily Journal reporters will explore the victims and abusers and why it happens as well as what can be done to halt the cycle of domestic violence, starting with youth.
By DANZA JOHNSON
Daily Journal
TUPELO – More often than not when a police officer gets called to a home, it’s for domestic violence and often someone has been hurt – sometimes even killed.
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and Lee County Sheriff Jim Johnson encourages everyone to think about the issue locally. The crime makes up more than 70 percent of the calls his deputies go on.
“Domestic violence is a problem that’s larger than most people think,” said Johnson. “Seven out of 10 times my deputies are called out it’s because someone has been in a domestic dispute. Those are the calls that put us in jeopardy. Domestic violence is a very serious crime because those situations can go from calm to tragic in no time.”
The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence defines domestic violence as “the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault and/or other abusive behavior perpetrated by an intimate partner against others.”
According to the Domestic Violence Resource Center, 1 in 4 women will be a victim of domestic violence. Although men can be harmed with domestic violence, women account for 85 percent of intimate partner violence, as opposed to 15 percent for men.
Johnson said domestic violence is far broader than a husband beating his wife and vice versa. He said domestic violence can involve a parent and a child, siblings going against one another and many other various family situations that result in physical confrontation.
On Sept. 20, Lisa Sandlin, 44, was charged with the shooting death of her 36-year-old stepson, Kirk Sandlin, at a house in Saltillo. Johnson said the incident stemmed from a domestic dispute.
Lisa Sandlin is currently in the Lee County Jail under a $250,000 bond on a single count of murder. The case will be presented to a grand jury in March.
“We don’t really know what happened, but we do know it was domestic in nature and that’s what happens in many of these situations,” said Johnson. “An argument turns into something far worse and someone ends up getting hurt.”
Other recent cases include:
- On Sept. 29, 47-year-old Johnny Mathis Bell of Byhalia shot and killed his wife, 47-year-old Connie Yancey Bell, before fatally shooting himself outside of a warehouse in Olive Branch where she worked.
- In June, police charged David Neal Cox, Sr., 39, with the capital murder of his estranged wife Kim Cox, 40, and the kidnapping of her two children. Cox allegedly held the two children hostage, one of which was his biological child, for several hours after shooting Kim Cox. David Neal Cox. Sr. remains in the Union County Jail where he is being held without bond.
New laws, new reports
Lanette Sandlin handles domestic violence cases for the Tupelo Police Department and said she has been piled high with reports since taking the job in July.
“This is something I have to deal with on a daily basis,” said Sandlin. “And it’s something that we don’t see ending. We just have to deal with it and do our best to assist the victims and arrest the abusers.”
Sandlin said some changes to the law have increased felony arrests for domestic violence. When a person is arrested for domestic violence a third time, it is a felony. Before the law changed in July, choking a person was a misdemeanor. Now the first act of choking is a felony. Sandlin said she has already sent four felony domestic choking cases to the grand jury.
“In the past we’d have a person who’d choke a victim because they knew it was a misdemeanor,” said Sandlin. “But now it’s an automatic felony, so we hope this will at least deter people from doing that. Often abusers will use choking because the physical scars aren’t as evident.”
Unlike some crimes, with domestic violence the victim doesn’t have to file charges against their attacker. If sufficient evidence exists that abuse has occurred, police by law have to file the charges against the accused offender.
The longer domestic violence occurs, the more likely someone will be seriously injured or killed. Almost one-third of female homicide victims are killed by intimate partners, according to the NCADV.
Johnson said prolonged periods of domestic violence can turn into tragic stories.
Contact Danza Johnson at (662) 678-1583 or danza.johnson@djournal.com.
Fri 1 Oct 2010
Posted by Admin under Community Groups, Jeans For Justice, Public Service Announcements
Comments Off
Jeans painted with messages about violence have been created by residents of northeast Mississippi from a wide variety of backgrounds and age groups in conjunction with our annual “Jeans for Justice” fund-raiser. The jeans reflect the individual artists’ feelings about violence in our community. Some jeans honor victims of violent crime, others state facts and statistics, and others send a message of hope. “Jeans for Justice” are on display in the meeting room at the Iuka Public Library through the month of October.
Click here to find out about "Jeans for Justice"
Click here to learn about the Iuka Public Library
