Substance Use and Abuse in Durham County - Stablerack

Substance Abuse and Law Enforcement
Domestic Violence and the Durham Police Department
Indicator:
The number and percent of domestic violence cases involving alcohol or illicit substances.
Relevance: In the U.S., roughly one in four women will be affected by domestic violence during
their lifetime (21). In 2012 there were 122 homicides related to domestic violence in NC and 4 in
Durham (22). (In 2011 Durham had 10 homicides related to domestic violence but fewer in 2008
(4), 2009 (4) and 2010 (3)).
Domestic violence is defined as the willful abusive behavior resulting in assault or battery against
an intimate partner. For some individuals, the use of alcohol and drugs promotes aggression and
impulsive behaviors. Substance abuse may result in the batterer misinterpreting a comment or
action from a spouse or child, leading to outbursts and lashing out (23). Together, these side
effects of alcohol and drug use may increase the likelihood of domestic violence.
Data: Data were provided via personal communication in April 2010 by the Durham City Police
Department. The Durham City Police Department no longer collects this information, so data are
only available for the years 2004 to 2009. In 2004, the Durham Police Department began tracking
the number of calls to service for domestic violence cases. In 2005, they began to track detailed
information on the calls that they responded to in order to identify repeat offenders. Beginning in
2006, the police began tracking whether the alcohol or substance user was the suspect or the
victim.
Findings: From 2004-2009, the Durham Police Department has averaged about 1,800 calls to
service for domestic violence each year. Figure 8 summarizes how substance use has been
involved in these cases. In approximately one third of these cases, the suspect has abused alcohol
or an illicit substance and about 12% have involved substance use by the victim.
Substance Use and Abuse in Durham County 24