California Police Chief- Fall 2013 CPCA_2018_Spring Magazine_Final | Page 17

I
n the following instance, the new innovative approach
is applied, and its effective outcome is seen. During
a four-week period in late 2015, Carlos Garcia* and
his children called Chula Vista police for help a
total of six times. Carlos’ wife, Sylvia, had abandoned
him and their four children for another man. Carlos was
distraught because Sylvia had repeatedly violated a
temporary restraining order protecting him and their four
children from phone and text communication, and from
visits at home and the workplace. With Chula Vista’s new
innovative approach, Agent Xanthe Rosario communicated
to Sylvia that the police were taking a new approach to
domestic violence and her ongoing abuse of Carlos would
not be tolerated. Sylvia was warned by Agent Rosario that
the abuse needed to stop, or she could lose access to her
children. As a result, Sylvia’s abusive behavior stopped.
Carlos, who spoke only Spanish, later told Agent Rosario,
“Thank you. This changed my life. I didn’t know justice
existed.”
This project enabled Chula Vista police to send a
profound message to victims of domestic violence –
prevention is a priority and every effort is being made by
the police to protect them from violence. With the initiative
testing a focused deterrence approach to reducing domestic
violence, the goal of the project was to change social norms
and behavior without traditional legal interventions (unless
repeated, customized, and increasingly intensive police
contacts were not effective). This approach was tested by
officers in a specific geographic area of Chula Vista. An
evaluation funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance
showed substantially reduced domestic violence related
crime in Chula Vista resulting from this new approach.
What mattered most to me was that this project was the
right thing to do for our community and our officers. Below
outlines examples of how the innovative approach was
implemented in differing situations.
Non-Crime Domestic Violence Calls – Educational Message
In the geographical test area, if officers responded to a
“verbal-only” disturbance call, they provided both parties
with a consistent message and educational brochure 1 ,
also telling the parties involved that police take these
disturbances seriously communicating that everyone has
disagreements, but not ones loud enough that police are
called for help. The officers explained that the police would
follow up with them
in the future to check
on everyone’s welfare.
The next day, a civilian
police employee sent
both parties a follow-up
text making sure they
were okay.
Domestic Violence
Suspects: Written Warning
If officers
responded to a domestic
violence-related crime,
the officer’s response
was elevated to a stern
warning to the suspect. Officers would then tell suspects
that they could expect future unannounced visits from
police, and that they would receive a great deal of attention
from a special task force if they did not stop the abuse.
Officers also stressed that this new approach was being
driven by the police and not the victims. Officers would
then ask the suspects to sign the warnings that were issued,
and then gave the victims copies.
Domestic Violence Victims: 3-Day Follow Up
Approximately three days after an initial Domestic
Violence crime occurred, officers conducted an in-person
follow-up at the residence. If no one was home, officers left
a card on the door that said, “We stopped by to check on
your safety” along with their contact information. This card
let the victim, suspect, and concerned neighbors know the
police were actively working to prevent problems at the
home. The idea of a 3-day follow-up came from Osvaldo
Cruz, a former Chula Vista detective. When he had worked
patrol as a K-9 officer, he would check on Domestic Violence
victims three days after the initial incidents. A 3-day follow
up seemed to work best because if suspects had fled the
scene, they had usually reconciled with the victim and
were back at home by that point. DV suspects were very
surprised and unnerved to see police show up to check in
on victims – particularly since no one had called for help.
Chronic Suspects/Ongoing Verbal Abuse Situations
For those suspects who continued to abuse their
partners, Agent Rosario, the program coordinator,
implemented a customized problem-solving plan.
SPRING 2018 | California Police Chief
17