LAW ENFORCEMENT JOINS IN THE OBSERVANCE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH

October is observed each year as Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  The supporters of this observance are using it as a chance to encourage the public to know the warning signs of domestic violence and to find out what they can do to help victims.

Denise Downer-McKinney, Chief of the Rome Police Department, states that domestic violence calls are among the most dangerous calls to which officers respond.

PFC Chris Ridling with the RPD asserts that victims are typically abused five to eight times before they ever seek help.  He adds that officers are always on the lookout for warning signs of domestic abuse, to include broken furniture, terrified children and old wounds.

Domestic violence is not limited to physical abuse, says Downer-McKinney;  it often involves emotional and psychological abuse.  And it can impact men, women and children.  But there is help (and hope). The Hospitality House for Women, Inc. is a key organization which serves victims of domestic violence in Rome and Floyd County.

Hospitality House offers a crisis hotline 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It may be reached at (706) 235-4673 (HOPE).

A third of all female murder victims are killed by their domestic partner, says Ridling.  Downer-McKinney indicates that one in four women will be victims of domestic violence in their lifetime.

Information about Domestic Violence Awareness Month events in Rome and Floyd County is available on the Hospitality House’s Facebook page.