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SALT LAKE CITY -- In the last month, at least two law enforcement officers have been shot and injured while responding to domestic violence calls.
"Probably the most dangerous call that an officer is going to respond to is a domestic violence call because they're so unpredictable," said Dell Bircher, an administrator of the state domestic violence program.
- Domestic Violence Link Line: 1-800-897-LINK [5464]
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE
- Utah Domestic Violence Council: www.udvac.org
Recently officers were gunned down in Wells, Nevada and Price, Utah while responding to domestic violence calls.
"Males have a significantly higher domestic violence-related suicide rate at 4.1 per 100,000 as opposed to .6 percent per 100,000 for women," Bircher said.
Law enforcement calls it "blue suicide" when police officers responding to the scene actually end up killing the suspect.
Bircher says stress over the economy is one reason for increased cases of domestic violence.
"When we see difficulties with the economy we do somewhat see increase in domestic violence situations," he said.
Bircher says there's help for Utahans in domestic violence situations.
"Domestic violence can potentially impact lots and lots of folks in the community," said Bircher. "We provide a lot of trainings and education to officers as well as community members."
The Utah Domestic Violence Council can assist individuals who are struggling with domestic violence related issues.
E-mail: niyamba@ksl.com
