Family Focus: Domestic Violence

2009 was a good year for LVMPD's efforts to reduce domestic violence. The Crimes Against Youth and Family Bureau started a Lethality Assessment Program in 2009. By asking 11 carefully designed questions, officers try to determine if a victim of domestic violence is at high risk of becoming a murder victim during a future attack. Nevada also enacted a law making strangulation during a domestic violence attack a felony. Captain Vincent Cannito believes both developments are a factor in a decline in calls for service to help domestic violence victims.