Police department domestic violence arrest data illustrate persistent social ill

Violence Not Primary Reason For Police Contact

Violence does not have to occur for law enforcement to be engaged in a domestic dispute. Many times law enforcement is called to a scene because someone is concerned about the welfare of two parties who are having a verbal dispute.”

--- Steven McGhee

What is Domestic Violence?

According to Arizona Revised Statutes, domestic violence is considered any act that is a dangerous crime against children as defined in section 13-705 or an offense prescribed in various subsections:

1. The relationship between the victim and the defendant is one of marriage or former marriage or of persons residing or having resided in the same household.

2. The victim and the defendant have a child in common.

3. The victim or the defendant is pregnant by the other party.

4. The victim is related to the defendant or the defendant’s spouse by blood or court order as a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, brother or sister or by marriage as a parent-in-law, grandparent-in-law, stepparent, step-grandparent, stepchild, step-grandchild, brother-in-law or sister-in-law.

5. The victim is a child who resides or has resided in the same household as the defendant and is related by blood to a former spouse of the defendant or to a person who resides or who has resided in the same household as the defendant.

6. The relationship between the victim and the defendant is currently or was previously a romantic or sexual relationship.

Source: Glendale Police Department

By Terrance Thornton
Twitter: @ININEWSMAN

Domestic violence in all its forms is prevalent in wealthy and poor Arizona cities, towns, and neighborhoods, numbers show, with no clear distinction drawn between ethnic backgrounds, cultural differences, or religious persuasion.

“There is a common saying in police work: ‘No call is the same.’ This goes along the lines of this. Every situation is a little different,” said Glendale Police Sgt. Randy Stewart. “People have different issues in their life or relationship that are causing the current issue. Domestic violence occurs in all neighborhoods.”

In Glendale last year, there were 3,010 arrests for domestic violence, a public records request reveals, which translates to nearly 1 in 39 dwelling units within municipal bounds experiencing police contact for a domestic disturbance.

“We are not surprised by the data since we see and deal with these calls daily,” Stewart said.

The Glendale Police Department is not an outlier as Independent Newsmedia made public records requests across the Valley of the Sun seeking to reveal two data points:

• The last five years of domestic violence arrests within municipal bounds; and
• The last five years of domestic violence convictions at the municipal court.

This story focuses on the responses of three police departments in Glendale, Surprise, and the Town of Paradise Valley.

One of the first discoveries is not all domestic violence issues are physically violent.

“There are lots of domestic disputes that are not violent but are still criminal, such as criminal damage or harassment for example,” Stewart reports. “There are times when it has not reached criminal levels and we may still be involved to help diffuse the situation and try and mediate a common ground to prevent it from going to criminal levels.”

Numbers show relatively consistent domestic violence arrests within Glendale, which has a population of about 247,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

In 2019, there were 2,960 arrests, and through Sept. 30 of this year, there have been 2,556 arrests.

In Surprise, a community with an estimated population of 141,000, provided data in whole numbers adding up each arrest during the past five years. In all, there were 627 arrests between Sept. 1, 2017, and Sept. 30 of this year.

Numbers show there were 601 guilty pleas entered into judgment at Surprise City Court. Request for comments was not immediately returned by Surprise Police Department officials.

Zero convictions in 5 years?

At the Town of Paradise Valley Municipal Court, there were zero convictions for domestic violence during the past five years, according to Municipal Court Director Jeanette Wiesenhofer

“I reviewed the last five years of convictions and not one conviction is related to a domestic violence offense,” she said. “Convictions meaning a defendant was found or plead guilty to a DV offense.”

She did, however, clarify there were more than 40 adjudicated domestic violence cases in the town of roughly 14,000 people. Those cases are considered a dismissal.

“The domestic violence charges that were adjudicated in year 2016 through 2020 were dismissed by the state based on the defendant attending a diversion class — alcohol treatment/anger management — and/or the victim not wanting to proceed with charges.”

A total of 49 domestic violence cases were dismissed by Paradise Valley Municipal Court during the past five years.

“Domestic violence is one of the most dangerous calls for service for law enforcement,” said Paradise Valley Community Resource Officer Steven McGhee.

“A minimum of two officers always respond to this type of call. As much information as possible is requested prior to arrival to assist the officers. The police may need to know if there are any injuries so medical services can begin staging nearby until they can safely provide care.”

All precautions are taken upon a formal call for service involving a domestic situation, McGhee explains.

“If there are weapons on the scene or used so attention can be made to address any known threats,” he said of general procedure. “Also, if children or others are within the household so a welfare check can be made on all parties.”

But McGhee says an arrest is not always the answer.

“Once an officer is on scene and the investigation is revealed to be domestic violence, an arrest may be made if probable cause exists for the predominant aggressor within the offense,” he said. “If there is no probable cause, officers will often attempt to separate the parties and provide resources.”

One factor that is part of most if not all calls for service in a domestic violence situation?

“Impairment by drugs and alcohol can be a factor that impacts judgment leading to domestic violence situations,” he pointed out.

“Violence does not have to occur for law enforcement to be engaged in a domestic dispute. Many times law enforcement is called to a scene because someone is concerned about the welfare of two parties who are having a verbal dispute. Although no crime is committed, law enforcement may engage to deescalate the situation and provide needed resolution.”