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Sandy • Domestic violence is not just a family matter, it's a crime that affects everyone in the city, Police Chief Kevin Thacker says.
So, to mark National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, Thacker and Sandy Mayor Tom Dolan on Tuesday encouraged residents to take a stand against violent behavior in their personal relationships and in their community.
Officials released 272 purple balloons at the Tuesday ceremony in recognition of the victims of physical domestic violence in Sandy last year.
They also put up 508 pinwheels in the shape of the word "Kids" in front of the city justice court building to symbolize the number of children who witnessed violent behavior. Prevent Child Abuse Utah, which donated the pinwheels, believes that seeing such violence is a form of abuse that can have lasting effects on kids.
The ceremony also included a showing of "Find Your Voice," a video about domestic abuse victims.
The awareness campaign encourages victims to come forward, anyone who witnesses domestic violence to report it and community members to educate their children about domestic violence as a way to prevent it.
Domestic violence incidents in Sandy have dropped this year from the previous year, according to city statistics.
The figures show that from Sept. 1, 2013, to Aug. 31, 2014, there were 272 assaults 26 fewer than in 2012-2013 and no domestic violence-related homicides.
Police say that during the previous reporting period, Sandy resident Arla Christensen, 85, was beaten to death with a golf club by her grandson-in-law, Kevin David Cuillard.
In May, a 3rd District judge found Cuillard, 42, not guilty by reason of insanity and ordered him committed to the Utah State Hospital, according to court records. A mental health expert who examined Cuillard found that he was "acutely psychotic" and believed he was a Jedi fighting a Sith Lord when he killed Christensen.
The number of reported verbal domestic incidents in Sandy where no physical violence took place was 471 in the latest reporting period, down 43, and the children who witnessed domestic violence totaled 508, 30 fewer than the previous year.
"We're glad they're continuing to go down," Thacker said of the drop in domestic violence incidents.
However, he added, the decrease is not enough.
"Even if we had just one victim of domestic violence," Thacker said, "it would be too much."
Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC
Resources for domestic violence victims
Anyone who needs confidential help can call the Utah Domestic Violence Information Line at 800-897-5465 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. The YWCA, 801-537-8600, and South Valley Sanctuary, 801-255-1095, offer shelter for victims.