Volunteers for DV Hotline Needed in Washington County, ME

By Tom Walsh, BDN Staff

Posted March 11, 2012, at 11:09 a.m.
Last modified March 11, 2012, at 5:36 p.m.

MACHIAS, Maine — Stepping into a domestic violence altercation can be among the riskiest situations that those on the front lines of law enforcement ever face.

“What an officer is walking into is the most lethal point of a relationship,” said Travis Willey, a patrol lieutenant with the Washington County Sheriff’s Department. “Each situation is different and is very dynamic, and these are some of the most dangerous calls to which police respond.”

How police respond can keep a victim safer or put that person in more jeopardy, he said. “You’re dealing with a very intimate situation between two people at one of the most stressful times of their lives. And when substance abuse is involved, it makes it more unpredictable.”

Willey is the liaison between the Sheriff’s Department and Next Step, the domestic violence project that for 20 years has served domestic abuse victims in Washington and Hancock counties. The agency provides shelter to those dealing with spousal abuse, offering counseling and providing alternative living arrangements in safe houses for battered spouses and their children. Next Step maintains a 15-bed shelter at an undisclosed location in Washington County, with stays ranging from a few days to a few months.

“Domestic violence is about power and control,” said Rebecca Hobbs, the executive director of Next Step. “It’s a lethal relationship, and it’s a very difficult childhood to live in an abusive home. Leaving can be very traumatic, and it’s difficult as a victim of abuse to know what’s best for the kids. We talk with victims about safety and whether there are other safe home living options. We also need to assess whether they are able to live in a communal setting.”

Willey said Next Step caseworkers are essential to the process of victims preparing statements that can be used in prosecuting abusers on charges ranging from assault to criminal threatening, criminal mischief and harassment.

“Next Step’s involvement keeps victims on board,” Willey said. “It improves the quality of the case for the District Attorney’s Office, which increases the chances of conviction.”

Such statements are also crucial, he said, to obtaining court-issued protection orders.

“Protection orders can sometimes provide the break that allows Mom and Dad to regroup and to get the help they need,” Willey said. “There are some success stories out there.”

On a per-capita basis, domestic violence is less of a problem in Hancock County than in Washington County, Hobbs said. That, she says, may be related to higher unemployment, poverty and substance abuse in Washington County.

“Last year we served 900 people, and 400 of those were in Washington County, which has a population that is much smaller than the population of Hancock County,” she said. “It’s more of an issue here.”

Hobbs said her agency is in the process of recruiting and training volunteers who staff a telephone hotline that fields calls from victims of domestic violence. The next training session is on April 7, she said. For more information, call 667-0176.

Original Article

Vaughn held for trial in stabbing homicide

RACINE — Iryin Vaughn was bound over for trial on Friday to face a homicide charge in the Feb. 7 death of Gwynevere Wright.

Vaughn, 25, of Chicago, is accused of stabbing Wright 29 times after they apparently argued. After the alleged homicide, Vaughn took the 2-year-old daughter he and Wright had together and fled to Chicago where he was arrested, police said.

Wright’s 12-year-old son was also in the house at the time of the alleged homicide. His testimony was the subject of a hearing in February when defense attorneys and prosecutors argued whether the boy should testify in person or whether the state could show a video of him being interviewed. Judge Allan “Pat” Torhorst said a video would serve.

On Friday Torhorst said he had reviewed the video and found it sufficient to meet the burden of proof required at a preliminary hearing, and he ordered Vaughn held for trial. Lead defense attorney Katie Gutowski of the Public Defender’s office entered not guilty pleas on the charges. A pretrial conference for attorneys was set for April 20.

Wright’s son told police that he heard Vaughn and Wright arguing in Wright’s bedroom around 10 p.m. He heard Vaughn say, “I hate you. I don’t want to be with you anymore,” the criminal complaint said. Wright said to Iryana, the 2-year-old daughter she had with Vaughn and who slept in the room with them, “Don’t ever date a man like this,” the complaint said.

Later the boy heard his mother yell, “Do it! Do it! Go ahead and kill me!” the complaint said.

Then the boy heard the sounds of fighting, and his mother screamed in pain, the complaint said.

After about five minutes Vaughn opened the door to the boy’s room and asked if he was asleep. Shortly thereafter the boy heard Vaughn leaving in his SUV, and when the boy opened the bedroom door he found his mother dead, the complaint said.

Vaughn remains in jail on a $750,000 cash bond.

Original Article

 

Murder victim mourned

Posted: Sunday, February 12, 2012 10:38 pm

RACINE — A wonderful person with a beautiful smile, who always put her children first — that was the Gwynevere Wright that emerged Sunday night as close to 50 people gathered for a candlelight vigil to remember the slain sister, mother and neighbor.  

Wright was found dead on Tuesday at 900 Racine Street in the upper-level apartment she shared with her two children.

Racine police were called to the apartment that night at about 11:10 p.m. after a neighbor called 911 to report that an assault had occurred and that Wright’s toddler was missing. An Amber Alert issued early Wednesday morning was canceled within hours after Chicago police found the Racine toddler, Iryana Vaughn, unharmed with her father, Iryin Vaughn, at a Chicago residence.

Vaughn, 25, has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide while armed. He is expected face those charges today in Racine County Circuit Court. 

Standing in the cold outside her apartment, Wright’s family and friends joined with strangers, singing spirituals and sharing the things that made Wright’s short life so special. 

“Gwyn was my biggest supporter,” said Wright’s older sister, Lashawnda McCarty. “She will be truly missed. Now I have nobody to call.”

McCarty, who lives in Green Bay, said she found out about her sister’s death early Wednesday morning after getting a call from her other sister and hearing about it on the news.

Wright’s brother, Zachary Strother, said his sister moved to Racine from Chicago last year hoping to give her two children a better life. 

“That shows you a little bit about her character,” said Strother. “She put her kids first.”

One soft-spoken woman who lived near Wright called her a “light” in the neighborhood.

More than a celebration of Wright’s life, the vigil doubled as a call to action for victims of domestic violence and those looking to help such victims escape abusive relationships. 

“I want to say to all people who are in (an abusive) relationship, ‘You need to get out of it,’ ” said Strother, white clouds of steam billowing from his mouth. “At the first sign of any abuse, you need to get away. You need to run.”

Cherie Griffin, executive director of the Women’s Resource Center, applauded Strother’s words. She encouraged anyone in a abusive relationship to contact the center.  

“Flee, get out, get safe,” Griffin said. “There is always someone at the Women’s Resource Center. We have had women show up at the door at 4 a.m.”

McCarty said she knew her sister was in an abusive relationship and constantly encouraged her to leave, but said she never thought the violence “would go that far.” 

“I just hope that other woman in that situation learn from this,” McCarty said. “If someone loves you, they don’t hit you, they don’t talk about you, they don’t put you down. That is not love,” she said. “It is a good feeling to know that these people are out here ... It’s showing that they care.”

Family members said Sunday that Iryana, and Wright’s 13-year-old son, both of whom, they say, were at the apartment when Wright was killed, are now safe and doing about as well as can be expected. 

“Yesterday was her son’s birthday, so we took him out to a fun place where they had bumper cars,” said Wright’s aunt, Shirley McCarty. “Iryana is 2, so she doesn’t even really know what’s going on.”

Lashawnda McCarty said the family is in process of figuring out who will be the primary caregivers for the two children. As for how the family hopes to help Wright’s older son cope with the knowledge of how his mother died, Lashawnda McCarty said the only way they can help him is through love. 

“Love is the key to anything. Love is the key to everything,” she said “The answer is love.”

How to help

A memorial fund has been established to help the family with funeral expenses and the care of Wright’s two children. Donations can be made at any Chase Bank location. Checks should be made out to the “The Gwynevere Wright Memorial Fund” and mailed to Chase Bank, 4314 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60076. For more information, contact the Women’s Resource Center at 262-633-3274 and ask to speak to Cherie Griffin. You can also send an email to wrcrc@sbcglobal.net.

Original Article

Vigil held for woman killed in domestic violence incident

Posted on: 10:15 pm, February 12, 2012, by Jeremy Ross, updated on: 10:08pm, February 12, 2012

Video Available on Original Article

RACINE — A vigil was held Sunday night to remember 27-year-old Gwynevere Wright. Wright’s body was found inside a home near 9th and Pearl in Racine Wednesday, and an Amber Alert was issued for her daughter, Iryana Vaughn, who was eventually located in Chicago with her father, Irvin Vaughn. Sunday night, families from Racine and Chicago came together for a candlelight vigil to pray for victims of domestic violence.

After this incident, neighbors said police were at the home on a regular basis, and that Vaughn had a history of domestic violence incidents against Wright. It is believed that Wright was stabbed to death, and police say Vaughn is the suspect in this case.

Wright’s family members say they don’t know what prompted the murder of the mother of two. “She came here looking for a better life for her kids. I never expected it would go this far,” Wright’s sister said Sunday.

The family found comfort Sunday night in the company of friends and strangers, and realized victims of domestic violence don’t have to be alone. “I pray for all the women going through this stuff,” Wright’s sister said.

Chicago police say Vaughn was extradited to Wisconsin, and has been charged with one count of first degree intentional homicide. Officials say two-year-old Iryana Vaughn was returned to Wisconsin after the incident, and was in state custody, in good health. Officials say Iryana’s little brother was home at the time, and was taken by Racine police.

For information and resources relating to domestic violence, CLICK HERE to visit the Women’s Resource Center of Racine website.

Original Article

Clark apologizes to mother of Schoenborn children

JUSTINE HUNTER

VICTORIA— From Friday's Globe and Mail

Published Thursday, Mar. 01, 2012 6:45AM EST

Last updated Monday, Mar. 12, 2012 7:59AM EDT

A series of failures that allowed an abusive and psychotic Allan Schoenborn to murder his three young children in 2008 remain largely unaddressed, leaving families exposed to risk, says a new report from B.C.’s watchdog for children.

Following repeated commitments by the province to fix its patchwork of domestic violence services since those murders – promises that have not been sustained – Premier Christy Clark pledged Thursday to do better.

In her report on the Schoenborn murders, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond noted that the government has not yet acted on a series of recommendations she made two years ago following another domestic violence case that left five dead.

B.C. has not established domestic violence courts. It has not broadly provided risk assessment training to police, Crown counsel, child protection and victim services workers. Resources for child protection, income assistance, mental health, addictions and domestic violence remain starved after last week’s budget, she said. And if anything, the justice system is more frayed and fragile than it was four years ago when the Schoenborn children were killed in their beds.

Ms. Turpel-Lafond’s new report chronicles a series of missed opportunities and says children exposed to domestic violence continue to be placed at risk by a protection system so weak, “there really isn’t a system at all.”

Parents in the midst of domestic violence are often left to assess the risks their children face.

“A frustrating and sometimes fatal concept continues to exist,” she told reporters, “that a mother in a dangerous domestic violence situation is capable of, and responsible for, taking on the staggering responsibility of protecting her children from a dangerous spouse.”

That was the case with Darcie Clarke, who had rebuffed entreaties to reunite with Mr. Schoenborn in the hours before he murdered their children. But she left the children in his care believing he would not harm them.

It was also the case with Sunny Park, who was seeking to leave her abusive husband Peter Lee when he stabbed her to death, along with his six-year-old son and the boy’s grandparents.

Ms. Turpel-Lafond’s report on the Peter Lee murders in 2009 led to a government pledge to reduce domestic violence, but services for victims of violence were later cut. She said Thursday she needs to see concrete action and new resources, not just speeches, this time.

On Thursday, the government conceded that its many attempts to fix the system have been haphazard and transient.

The Premier stood in the legislature and apologized to Ms. Clarke, the mother of the three children. She said the province’s fragmented system of domestic violence services failed to help the family. “We as a province can and must do better,” she said. “None of us can reverse the past, but we can learn from this tragedy and make sure that families in these circumstances receive better support than did the wife and children of Allan Schoenborn, a sick man who did so much harm.”

Her government announced a new domestic violence unit under the direction of Mary McNeil, the Minister for Children and Family Development. Ms. McNeil told reporters she is comfortable with the current budget, but her new unit will examine whether additional resources are needed. First it has to conduct an inventory of what services exist. “We need leadership on domestic violence,” she said. “We are going to make this work.”

The report on the deaths of Kaitlynne, Max and Cordon concluded that professionals who interacted with the family seemed blind to the risk to the children despite Mr. Schoenborn’s long history of mental-health issues and violence, which had escalated dramatically in the week prior to the killings.

One of the last chances to intervene occurred at a tele-bail hearing just days before the killing, where Mr. Schoenborn was freed against the recommendation of police. The justice of the peace said he was giving Mr. Schoenborn a break and urged him, “don’t let anything [go] wrong.”

Ms. Turpel-Lafond called that hearing “a disgrace to the justice system.”

Today, B.C. continues to allow cases involving domestic violence to be managed through that system of bail hearings by telephone. Justice Minister Shirley Bond promised to raise that issue with the province’s chief justice, but she said it will be up to the courts to make changes.