‘Seamless’ Effort Against Abuse Making Strides

WESTMINSTER — Convictions for domestic violence--traditionally among the most vexing cases for police and prosecutors--have doubled in Westminster under an experimental program the past year, officials said Monday.

The program, also credited with reducing the number of dismissed cases by 42%, trains police officers to be more sensitive and savvy when handling the challenging cases. It puts police, prosecutors, social workers and victim advocates in the same office to streamline and coordinate their efforts, officials said.

The “seamless” approach is needed to bring domestic abusers to court quickly and “stop their cycle of violence,” according to Police Chief James Cook, who joined Orange County District Attorney Michael R. Capizzi at a news conference to present the program’s first-year statistics.

A major part of the program was training street cops to understand the dynamics of domestic abuse so they could better empathize with victims and collect solid evidence that didn’t rely on victim testimony. Fear, spousal pressure and other family situations often push victims to recant, according to one team prosecutor.

“Our approach assumes we’re not going to have the victim’s cooperation,” Deputy District Attorney Jeff Winter said. “We understand that, we forgive that and we move forward with other evidence.”

Officers met with victims of domestic violence to hear their accounts and insights, which helped many of the officers shed some traditional attitudes such as “if you’re not going to help yourself, I’m not going to help you,” Winter said.

The officers were also given microcassette tape recorders to capture the initial accounts by victims and were given detailed checklists that, when filled out on scene, give prosecutors information that will help them build strong cases, Winter said.

The results are fewer cases slipping through the cracks and a new mind-set for street cops, Cook said.

“I remember when I was starting out my training officer would tell me on domestic abuse that I should go in, see if I can arrest anybody and if not leave it alone and get out,” the chief said, reflecting on the early days of his career. “That’s not good enough. We need to break the cycle of violence.”

The close working relationship between officers and prosecutors speeds the entire process, and the presence of social workers and victim advocates allow investigators to quickly get victims and their children the support they need, Capizzi said.

A study of the 106 cases handled in program’s first year and a statistical snapshot of domestic violence in Westminster also showed:

* Domestic violence incidents account for 27% of the city’s assaults, prompting Cook to call the category the “biggest and best hidden violent crime.”

* Under the program, the number of domestic violence cases filed increased 43%, and the number of child-endangerment cases increased 185%, which program leaders said probably shows officers were trained to better recognize and build cases against abusers.

* The cases filed under the program also fared better in criminal justice system. There was a 52% increase in the number of convictions, a 47% decrease in the number of cases rejected by prosecutors and a 42% drop in the number of dismissals by judges.

* More offenders were also convicted on felony-level charges under the program. Twelve were sentenced to state prison in cases handled by the program, a huge increase from the previous year when only one defendant in 103 cases was sent to prison. Other convicted offenders were sent to County Jail or into court-ordered programs.

The program was created with a $200,000 federal grant. While that money has run out, Cook and Capizzi said they would continue the project.