May 17, 2000

Even though the Justice Department is reporting a dramatic decline in domestic violence, Utah is not seeing a similar trend. News Specialist Shelley Osterloh explains.

A new national report says fewer women and men are being attacked or murdered by their spouses or partners.

Here in Utah, it's a good-news, bad-news situation. Experts in our state are finding that more people are seeking help before a domestic problem escalates into violence. But, the domestic violence homicide rate has actually increased.

Fewer Utah women are going into domestic violence shelters. Experts say more and more people are actually catching the problem early, before the violence escalates.

Diane Stuart/Utah Domestic Violence Cabinet Council: "WHAT WE'RE DOING IS INTERVENING EARLIER IN THE CYCLE OF VIOLENCE. SO PEOPLE REACHING OUT FOR HELP WHEN THEY ARE BEGINNING TO RECOGNIZE THAT SOMETHING'S GOING ON. RATHER THAN WAIT UNTIL IT'S VERY SEVERE. UNTIL WEAPONS ARE USED OR UNTIL THEY HAVE BEEN BEATEN UP SO SEVERELY."

Even though people are getting help earlier, Utah numbers don't mirror the national decrease.

According to the Department of Justice, domestic violence against women dropped 21 percent in the mid 1990s. Among men, the study shows violence against husbands or boyfriends dropped 60 percent since 1976.

But serious domestic violence in Utah has actually increased. After a small dip a few years ago, domestic violence homicides jumped again in 1998 to 13.

The reports says women are apparently finding alternatives to violence, such as protective orders, divorce, hotlines, and counseling.

Diane Stuart: "WE'RE BEGINNING TO LEARN AND UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR AND I DO NOT DESERVE TO BE ABUSED. AND THAT I CAN FIND RESOURCES THAT WILL HELP ME AND SO THEIR OWN ALTERNATIVE ISN'T TO MURDER THE PERSON WHO IS GOING TO MURDER THEM, THEY CAN GET HELP BEFORE THEY GET TO THAT STATE."

But, nationally, men aren't stopping the cycle early. Even with the decline, women are still five times more likely than men to be attacked by their partners.