Article: New survey presents snapshot of domestic violence in Nevada

Written by NNADV Press Release
Friday, March 12 2010 02:50
In one 24-hour period, 333 victims of domestic violence and their children across Nevada received life-saving services from local domestic violence service providers. Domestic violence experts here answered 84 emergency hotline calls. At the same time, 15 requests for services went unmet, largely due to lack of funding.

These are just a few of the numbers from the latest survey conducted by the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). In Nevada, 11 out of 15 local domestic violence programs participated in the survey. The numbers are being released today as part of recognizing International Women’s Day.

“Domestic violence programs have always worked incredibly hard to provide safety and resources for victims, but the economic recession has made it harder to do that work,” said Sue Meuschke, director of the Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence (NNADV). “I urge communities to come together to stop the violence once and for all. Domestic and sexual violence affect all of us and all of us must be part of the solution.”

Each year, NNEDV conducts a 24-hour survey of domestic violence programs across the county. On September 15, 2009, despite the difficulty to raise funds for vital services, domestic violence programs nationwide provided services to more than 65,000 adults and children in one day alone. Other national data include:

More than 23,000 crisis hotline calls were answered.
More than 9,200 requests for services went unmet, mostly due to funding shortfalls.
Nearly 31,000 individuals attended 1,468 training sessions provided by local domestic violence programs to help prevent violence and intervene early in cases of abuse.
Across the nation on September 15, 2009, four women were murdered by their intimate partners. Two women miscarried as a result of domestic violence. Seven children were killed by their fathers in domestic violence homicides. Seven babies were born in domestic violence shelters.

For Nevada in one day alone:

199 domestic violence victims found refuge in emergency shelter or transitional housing provided by local domestic violence programs.
134 adults and children received non-residential assistance and services, including individual counseling, legal advocacy, and children’s support groups.
55 individuals in communities across Nevada attended 8 training sessions provided by local domestic violence programs, gaining much needed information on domestic violence prevention and early intervention.
9 requests for emergency shelter or transitional housing were unmet, mainly because of lack of funding.
As stated by a Nevada advocate, “More victims request shelter than we have beds available. We need more programs to help victims, we need to hold abusers accountable, and we need more education about domestic violence.”

In 2009, 73 percent of domestic violence programs in Nevada submitted their 24-hour counts for September 15. The Nevada specific data along with the full National Domestic Violence Counts 2009 are available online at http://www.nnedv.org/census.