Feds Partner With Local Agencies To Reduce Domestic Violence

Two regions of West Virginia have been given a special designation intended to reduce domestic violence involving firearms.

Of the 19 West Virginia homicides linked to domestic violence in 2020, 14 of them involved firearms. Now the Charleston and Wheeling areas are among 78 communities nationwide approved for concerted federal efforts to reduce intimate partner firearm violence.

U.S. Attorney Will Thompson, of the Southern District of West Virginia, will oversee efforts in Kanawha County.

“Usually [in a] highly volatile domestic violence situation, somebody’s going to end up dead,” Thompson said. 

“Not only do we worry about the victims of domestic violence, I also worry about my law enforcement partners. Some of the most volatile situations they ever have to encounter while they’re on duty is walking in not knowing who’s gonna be armed or not armed,” he added.

In the Northern District of the state, U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld will handle cases in Ohio, Brooke, and Hancock counties. He says the designation means prosecutors won’t always have to rely on victims, who are often reluctant to testify against abusers. 

“Most of the domestic violence cases are charged in state court. We’re talking about misdemeanor domestic battery and domestic assault. We’re talking about felony domestic violence. We’re talking about violations of protective orders that occur just within a particular county and don’t involve interstate commerce,” Ihlenfeld said. “The overwhelming number of those cases are prosecuted at the state level. What we can offer from the federal level is stiffer penalties.”

Ihlenfeld also said the designation makes it easier to prosecute domestic violence cases because they don’t rely as heavily on testimony from victims who may be reluctant to testify.

The Justice Department anticipates additional jurisdictions will be designated for focused attention in the future.