In less than a month, four domestic violence homicides occurred in Wichita, two of which were murder-suicides. StepStone, a two-year transitional housing program for survivors, was awarded a $25,000 grant to help end domestic violence.
Program director Dung Kimble says the grant will be used to facilitate three national speakers as well as implement local training for law enforcement.
The training will "remind officers that victims are scared to call the police, and that children are also victims of domestic violence when it occurs in the home, and how to respond to the victims and children when they are out on the domestic violence calls," Kimble says. "Domestic violence calls are one of the most dangerous calls law enforcement will go out on."
The grant was awarded by HopeLine from Verizon, a national phone recycling program that fixes phones to benefit victims of domestic violence.
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Carla Eckels is assistant news director and the host of Soulsations. Follow her on Twitter @Eckels.
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