Domestic violence rises in Kansas City, Overland Park and Northland during pandemic
When Grandview police arrived at the duplex on 154th Terrace on March 30, officers immediately noticed the red marks on the woman’s arms and signs she had been crying.
Her boyfriend, Dakota W. Wurtz, 22, had been drinking whiskey that day and had gone into a violent rampage, flinging beer bottles and smashing picture frames, according to police. Wurtz allegedly refused to let his girlfriend leave, punched her and choked her so hard that she became dizzy, saw stars and almost passed out.
The woman told officers she was afraid for her life.
The assault was one among hundreds of domestic violence incidents — many more than usual — reported over the past several weeks in the Kansas City metro area. As had been feared, such abuse was on the rise here since stay-at-home orders were put in place.
Police and advocates for domestic violence victims had predicted that more people would be in danger while trapped at home with their abusers.
From March 24, when the orders went into effect, until Thursday, 911 calls for domestic violence in Kansas City climbed 26% compared to the same time last year, said Capt. Tim Hernandez, who supervises the Kansas City Police Department’s special victims’ unit, tasked with investigating domestic violence, child abuse and sex assault crimes. Law enforcement in other jurisdictions, including Johnson and Platte counties, also reported increases.
“It is unsettling,” Hernandez said. “We understand what is going on and that it’s going to be harder for victims to contact and call the police. But we still want those in a harmful or dangerous situation to get a hold of us.”
For those who have sought help, the pandemic has made the future even more uncertain.
One survivor who has lived in the Newhouse domestic violence shelter for about six months said it breaks her heart to think about the victims calling in to crisis hotlines these days. She worries about what she would do if a virus outbreak forced the shelter to close.
“I don’t have family here,” she said. “During this time we’re not technically allowed to travel so I wouldn’t get to try to at least go home to my family.
The shelter has employed social distancing gradually to minimize the trauma experienced by residents. Residents with roommates have moved into their own rooms, and they have scheduled different times to eat. They can’t sit in groups anymore.
Residents are still allowed out of the shelter twice a day but otherwise, she said, her days consist of meals, chores and exercise. The adults in the shelter, she said, are largely focused on keeping the children healthy.
Susie Copeland, a case manager for Newhouse, said there was a lot of anxiety and uncertainty in the beginning as residents began to adjust. The pandemic interferes with the work they must do to rebuild their lives.
One woman, Copeland said, had just paid off the costs from one eviction and was to meet with an agency to help resolve another, but the COVID-19 pandemic canceled that appointment.
“She was pretty upset about that,” Copeland said. “This is just a little bit of a delay … that stuff is just being put on hold for them.”
Increasing numbers
Not only in Kansas City, but in Overland Park, Lee’s Summit and Independence the outbreaks of violence at home have been seen.
Lee’s Summit police said an April 8 shooting in the 100 block of SE Summit Avenue was the result of earlier violence in the home. A man shot his aunt in the leg and then shot and killed himself, according to police.
Overland Park police have seen a 28% increase in the number of calls from a year ago. Police have noted another trend: officers are responding to more verbal disturbances involving parents and their children, said police spokesman Officer John Lacy.
Independence police have to responded to 15% more verbal domestic disturbance calls so far this year.
Kansas City, Kansas, police said they have seen a decrease in domestic violence calls but the calls they have received have been more serious and more likely to involve a deadly weapon.
Some local prosecutors have filed more domestic assault cases.
Jackson County prosecutors have filed at least one each day since March 24, and sometimes multiple cases per day, according to Mike Mansur, a spokesman for Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.
Wurtz, of Grandview, who now faces four counts of second-degree domestic assault. He remains in the Jackson County jail after failing to pay a $25,000 bond.
The Johnson County District Attorney’s Office has seen an uptick between 6% to 8% in domestic violence cases from the previous year. District Attorney Steve Howe said most of the cases coming in are domestic violence related. He has not seen an increase in other crime.
Since March 23, Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd said his office has filed 16 domestic violence cases. That represented a 38% increase, Zahnd said.
“Unfortunately, the social distancing measures required to fight this pandemic sometimes force victims to spend even more time with their abusers, isolated from others,” Zahnd said.
“Add to that the other stresses created by the pandemic — loss of income, uncertainly about what the future holds, and other pressures — and you wind up with a particularly volatile combination where people prone to abuse will act on their worst impulses.
“There are hundreds of acceptable ways to deal with that stress, but violence is never one of them.”
Getting help
Calls have remained steady to domestic violence shelters and agencies such as Rose Brooks, who answers on average 8,000 annually.
Most calls are for support, safety planning, orders of protection, and emotional support, said agency spokesman Scott Mason.
Abusers often use various tactics to prevent their victims from reaching out for help, such as using the virus to keep them away from loved ones.
“Please call. Do not believe those that tell you there isn’t help out there right now,” Mason said. “We can still provide safety planning and services, including assessing if it is safe for you to seek shelter or an order of protection.
“Again, if it is safe, please reach out to a domestic violence agency for help.”
Ondria Thornton, a therapist for Newhouse, said she’s encountered higher levels of anxiety, depression and uncertainty about the future among the clients she’s worked with.
The pandemic, she said, is weighing on many of her clients as they worry about their ability to move into permanent housing, make ends meet and adjust to community living and reduced staffing in the shelter.
Since mid-March, she said, her individual and group therapy sessions have moved online and to the phone. The change came with a couple weeks of adjustment as everyone got used to the new form of communication.
Her job, however, is the same. And she’s kept the same schedule she operated on when she worked at the shelter.
The increased anxieties, she said, has led to more emphasis on mindfulness and emotional regulation skills during her sessions.
“A lot of my clients come from backgrounds that were very unstable and traumatizing,” Thornton said. “My role is to help them use their skills to manage that even in trying times.”
The new challenges brought by coronavirus will continue for some time.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, Mayor Quinton Lucas and Independence Mayor Eileen Weir joined other elected officials, including Gov. Mike Parson, to extend the stay-at-home orders into early and mid-May.
Resources
Protection orders are still available through the courts.
If you or a loved one are in need of help these resources are available. You do not need to have an emergency to call the crisis hotlines.
- Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault: Crisis hotline, 816-531-0233 or 913-642-0233
- Safehome: 24-hour hotline, 913-262-2868
- Kansas City Anti Violence Project: Crisis hotline, available by text, call or email, 816-348-3665 or 913-802-4014 or info@kcavp.org
- Rose Brooks Center: Crisis hotline, 816-861-6100
- Hope House: Crisis hotline, 816-461-4673
- Newhouse: Crisis hotline, 816-471-5800
- Synergy Services: Crisis hotline, 816-321-7050 or 800-491-1114
Any of the six Kansas City area metro shelters can be reached at 816-468-5463.
If you are outside the Kansas City area the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 800-799-7233. Those who are hearing impaired can call 1-800-787-3224.
This story was originally published April 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
