Honoring Victims and Survivors of Domestic Violence

SafeHaven of Tarrant County, the County’s only state-designated Domestic Violence (DV) organization, joins thousands of agencies across the nation to educate and inform the country about the pervasive social issue during National Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM), in October.

In coordination with the critical month of awareness and education building, the organization released the 2021 Fatality Review Report — a comprehensive, human-centered, scientific analysis and report of Intimate Partner (IP) homicides that occurred in Tarrant County last year. The report is designed to collect and compare data year-over-year to refine the agency’s evidence-based practices and tools, aiming to reach what SafeHaven believes is an attainable goal — the end of IP homicides in Tarrant County. Furthermore, the report seeks to bring each victim’s story to light, bestowing them with the dignity and justice they deserve.

During this year’s DVAM, SafeHaven will host a special Remembrance Event on October 20, 2022, at noon (1010 N Center St., Arlington, TX 76011) to honor the seven Tarrant County victims who lost their lives due to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). This event will honor the women, their families, and their individual stories represented in the 2021 Fatality Review Report.

“We know that data inspires change, and while it is a goal to use this data to highlight the issue of domestic violence in the County and address it, it’s important that we not view the women who were killed as numbers. They were people,” SafeHaven President and CEO Kathryn Jacob said.

The only one of its kind in the County, the report is composed of data put forward by organizations that participate in a Coordinated Community Response (CCR) effort, including the Tarrant County District Attorney, JPS Hospital Systems, police departments, and other health and human service agencies across the County.

Cases are synthesized by the Tarrant County Adult Fatality Review Team, who seeks to holistically understand and discover the details around each IP homicide – exploring possible harm reduction through systemic, policy, and practice improvements in the County and beyond. SafeHaven and the entire Team lead with the philosophy that a CCR to IPV is the most effective way to keep victims safe and hold offenders accountable.

The 2021 Fatality Review Report includes high-level details about the County’s intimate partner homicides – providing perpetrator/victim demographic information, crime information, and interaction with community agencies before the homicide.

The data collected from the report’s inception until today demonstrates a general decrease in IP homicides since 2016, with the exception of 2020 — which confirmed the global pandemic’s deadly effects on IP homicides with 17 total deaths, a considerable spike over 2019, which saw eight victims. The current report (2021), although painting a still somber picture, it’s tinged with hope as numbers returned to pre-pandemic levels, with seven individuals losing their life due to IPV.

Since 2016 the Fatality Review Team has implemented specific, evidence-based changes to decrease IP homicides. The downward trend is meaningful as it shows the work and CCR is positively affecting the County.

“At SafeHaven, we base our interventions and services off science because we want to rid our country of domestic violence; it’s 100% possible, “Jacob continued. “While there is still work to be done to reach zero fatalities, the trend is promising.”