Did You Know that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month?

domestic violence artemis center danger lethality assessment

Artemis Center in Dayton Provides Assistance to Victims of Domestic Violence

domestic violence artemis center danger lethality assessmentRecently Jane Keiffer, the executive Director of the Artemis Center in Dayton, shared an informative data sheet created by a past staff member about a “danger and lethality assessment” of cases from 2019-2022. Needless to say, Jane Keiffer and the Artemis Center do a phenomenal job assisting individuals who have been victimized by domestic violence. We are certainly lucky to have the Artemis Center in our community! Here is a link to the Artemis Center website.

What is a Danger and Lethality Assessment?

A “danger and lethality assessment” helps to evaluate the level of danger a victim of intimate partner violence is experiencing on a level-scale of 0 to 7. An Artemis advocate conducting the assessment goes through a 30-factor analysis to determine the level of danger and lethality a victim shows. A level of 0 is where there is no risk of future abuse either physical or sexual, while a level of 7 is where there is a high risk a homicide will occur.

Artemis advocates conducted 946 danger and lethality assessments in 2022. Artemis found that 54% of clients were at a … Read More... “Did You Know that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month?”

Domestic Violence Cases Continue to Skyrocket!

domestic violence artemis center

Did You Know that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month?

domestic violence awareness artemis centerOn September 21, 2022, I attended a Zoom seminar convened by Federal U.S. Chief Judge Algenon L. Marbey and U.S. District Judge Michael J. Newman, to provide an update on domestic violence cases in the Southern District of Ohio. They assembled an excellent panel for the seminar including Magistrate Jacquelin V. Gaines from the Montgomery County Domestic Relations Court; Jane Keiffer, the executive Director of the Artemis Center; Summer Hawks, the Executive Director of the Greater Dayton Volunteer Lawyer Project and Carl Anderson, a Senior Attorney with Legal Aid of Western Ohio.

They gave a re-cap about the Power Act, which was enacted on September 4, 2018, designed to promote pro bono legal services to empower survivors of domestic violence. In part, the Act states: “Research and studies have demonstrated that the provision of legal assistance to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking reduces the probability of such violence or behavior reoccurring in the future and can help survivors move forward.”

Interestingly, the Act states that “Legal representation increases the possibility of successfully obtaining a protective order against an attacker, which prevents further … Read More... “Domestic Violence Cases Continue to Skyrocket!”

What Do You Do When Your Ex Drops 80,000+ Pennies for Child Support on Your Lawn? Her Response is Priceless!

safe harbor shelter artemis center

Safe Harbor Shelter Sees Spike In Donations

Immature Demonstration By Ex Leads To Unintended Gift For Local Domestic Violence Shelter In Richmond, Virginia

safe harbor shelter artemis centerYes. This actually happened in Virginia on May 21, 2021. A man rents a trailer and dumps 80,000+ pennies on the sidewalk and front lawn of his Ex-wife in satisfaction of his last child support payment. The child, Avery Sanford, who just turned 18 hasn’t seen her father for years. It sounds like her Mother and Avery were smart. What kind of a jerk, let alone a Dad would do this? So, maybe he has his gripes about having to pay child support, but really? Such an immature demonstration to his daughter is totally unwarranted no matter his beef. How disrespectful to his daughter and his ex-wife!

So, what did Avery and her mother do? Well, after making a police report, they shoveled up and collected all the pennies and cashed them in. With the $800 in cash, they donated it ALL to the Safe Harbor Shelter located in Richmond, Virginia. The Safe Harbor Shelter (safeharborshelter.com) is a domestic violence shelter. They focus on assisting victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and human … Read More... “What Do You Do When Your Ex Drops 80,000+ Pennies for Child Support on Your Lawn? Her Response is Priceless!”

Wondering About Domestic Violence in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Shelter-in-Place Era?

coronavirus domestic violence artemis center

Dayton’s Artimis Center Ready to Provide Help for Domestic Abuse Survivors Affected by the Coronavirus Stay-At-Home Order

coronavirus domestic violence artemis centerRecently I have read several articles online regarding the effect the various coronavirus shelter-in-place orders are having on domestic violence cases. Some places have seen a spike in those filings/incidents and others have not.

Logically, one might think that the quarantine orders along with the stress and financial hardship of COVID-19 would naturally result in a much higher number of domestic violence  incidents. To get a better handle on this situation locally, I reached out to Jane Keiffer, MSW, LISW, and the executive director of the Artemis Center in Dayton.

Interestingly, Ms. Keiffer shared with me that there has not been a spike in calls at Dayton’s Artemis Center since the stay at hone order went into effect on March 15, 2020. She said, “We believe that this is due to the abuser being at home, monitoring the victim, close quarters so calls are not private, phones are being taken away or broken. We do not believe it is because violence is not occurring.” Neither the Dayton Police or Montgomery County Sheriff Departments have seen an increase in domestic violence calls either.… Read More... “Wondering About Domestic Violence in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Shelter-in-Place Era?”

Domestic Violence – Let’s Look at the Local Statistics!

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domestic violence artemis centerDomestic Violence – No More Silence

The number of reported domestic violence cases has dramatically increased over the years since the domestic violence statute went into effect in Ohio in 1978. These numbers shocked me, even as a Dayton divorce lawyer who entered the practice back in 1978.

Chief Montgomery County Magistrate Keith Hall recently reported the following:

  • In 1978 there were 35 Civil Domestic Violence Filings
  • In 1979 there were 50 Civil Domestic Violence Filings
  • In 2016 there were 1,400 Civil Domestic Violence Filings
  • In 2017 there were 1,710 Civil Domestic Violence Filings

Believe it or not, this number of Civil Domestic Violence Filings in 2017 EXCEEDED the total number of divorces and dissolutions combined that year!

To try to help put this in context, I interviewed Jane Keiffer, MSW, LISW, the Executive Director of the Artemis Center in Dayton.  Ms. Keiffer explained that she did not interpret these numbers to mean necessarily that MORE domestic violence was occurring, but that there was much more awareness in our society. She told me that in addition the #metoo movement “has allowed individuals to speak up when they have been afraid and has given some the courage to acknowledge what they … Read More... “Domestic Violence – Let’s Look at the Local Statistics!”

Artemis Center Provides Assistance To Victims Of Domestic Violence

An Update on Dayton’s Domestic Violence Resource Agency – The Artemis Center in Montgomery County, Ohio

artemis center domestic violence dayton ohioAs the month of October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, I chose to update an Ohio Family Law Blog article I had posted six (6) years ago on October 25, 2008.  Click here to read it. On Friday, October 10, 2014, I again travelled to Artemis Center to meet with and interview the new Executive Director, Judy Strnad.  Ms. Strnad is a graduate of DePaul University and received a Master in Social Work degree from the University of Illinois in Chicago. The new Director has over twenty-four (24) years of experience in administrative positions with non-profit organizations.  She commenced her position as Executive Director on April 28, 2014.

We began our discussion regarding the topic of Domestic Violence by addressing the “new” wallet-sized cards being issued to persons obtaining a Civil Protection Order (“CPO”) in Montgomery County, Ohio.  The wallet-sized card contains all the information that is included in a multi-page document that includes the Petition for Civil Protection Order in Domestic Violence and the resulting Civil Protection Order.  The wallet-sized card is the result of collaboration between the Domestic Relations Court, the Montgomery … Read More... “Artemis Center Provides Assistance To Victims Of Domestic Violence”