Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
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78 OCTOBER 2022 I N D E P T H "women" because they are the primary victims of domestic violence homicide. In fact, current or former intimate partners commit 14 percent of all homicides in the United States, with more than 70 percent of the victims being female, and disproportionately women of color. At the heart of that research and training are the models that the Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center developed for predicting and identifying domestic violence homicide before it happens. The DVHRT Model is effective because many domestic violence homicides are very predictable—risk factors include things like extreme and constant jealousy, forced sex, prior strangulation, unemployment, and access to firearms—and because of that predictability, research- based risk assessments like the DVHRT Model can help a community's domestic violence response system identify the most dangerous cases. The Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women recognized the DVHRT Model as a "leading promising practice" in intimate partner homicide reduction. The other tool, DA-LE, is an 11-question, evidence- based risk assessment tool that identifies victims at the highest risk of intimate partner homicide or near- lethal assault and is designed to be easily administered by responding law enforcement officers. It helps them recognize whether a domestic violence 9-1-1 call is part of a larger pattern of increasing violence that needs a different level of intervention. "We want law enforcement to have a sense of the context of the domestic violence, what the history of domestic violence has been in that family," Dubus says. The Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center has already provided training and technical assistance to more than 250 jurisdictions across the country. Now, with the launch of the Geiger Institute, that nationwide training will be more formalized and widespread, with plans to grow its staff, develop new partnerships, raise funding, and evolve the work to increase safety for marginalized communities. "Part of what the Geiger Institute is trying to do is raise private investment dollars to build our capacity to do more work with more communities, so that we're not working one community at a time, but rather we're able to answer the demand," Dubus says. These models also help drive home the sense of urgency: Some cases are emergencies. "There are going to be times, there are going to be some survivors, that walk through that door who require immediate hands-on [help]," Dubus says. "There can be no waiting list." CONTACT jeannegeigercrisiscenter.org If you are working to get through your today, or working to prepare for your tomorrow, Newburyport Bank is ready to help. If you are looking to build, acquire land or expand into a new location, Newburyport has an entire team dedicated to serving businesses like yours. Contact us today to learn how we can help your business on its journey, as well as prepare you for your destination. Journey Well. NewburyportBank.com A better journey for your business.