Children First for Oregon

Domestic violence murders: Community and victims cry out for solutions

By Guest Columnist
December 12, 2009, 9:13AM
By BRUCE GOLDBERG, ROBIN CHRISTIAN and SYBIL HEBB
The domestic violence murders staining our region in the past month have been horrific and relentless. In total, 18 people have lost their lives in less than 30 days. Along with seven women, two young children were shot and killed along with their mothers, and an adult son died trying, unsuccessfully, to protect his mother. All eight male perpetrators committed suicide.

These tragedies have occurred across Oregon, in both urban and rural communities. One thing is clear: Domestic violence is a public health and safety crisis in our state with far-reaching consequences. Individuals, workplaces, schools and agencies are negatively affected. The toll on victims, children, families and communities cannot be measured.

We have a responsibility to our families and our communities to do better.

We join together to issue a statewide call to action. In the aftermath of these tragedies, government and justice system officials, policymakers and advocates are asking what could have been done to prevent these deaths.

We applaud the fast response of state leaders such as Gov. Ted Kulongoski, who is convening a group of leaders in law enforcement, advocacy and social services to look at how we can do a better job. A statewide critical and thorough review of each case by a multidisciplinary group will assess whether there were missed opportunities to step in, provide safety and avert these heartbreaking deaths.