Willard

"Sometimes people are so accustomed to fighting, they don't even realize they're living in a domestic violence situation. It's become the norm for them. Anytime we get a domestic violence call, we see poor communication between the people involved. The abuser is basically saying, 'You're not good enough. I'm going to put my hands on you.' They don't know how to work out their differences verbally. Most of the domestic violence calls we get come between 5 p.m. and the next morning, and that's a problem in itself. When we arrest an abuser---a man, for instance---and he says to take the woman out of the house because he's the homeowner, we can't always find a place for her in the middle of the night. I might make 10 or 15 calls and not find anywhere for her to go. Shelters tell me, 'We're full. We don't have any room.' What am I supposed to do? I can't just put her out on the street. It's a heartbreaking situation. I've been a police officer for 12 years, and I can't tell you how many times I've paid for hotel rooms for the night for women and families who had no place to go. And I'm not the only one. There are a whole lot of other police officers who do the same thing. We don't have enough shelters in Memphis for victims of domestic violence. Too many people are being abused; too many people are suffering. The community needs to put its foot down and say 'No more!' This needs to stop."

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Officer Willard Tate was a panelist on the Memphis Public Library & information Center's NO MORE forum to end domestic violence.

From the Shelby County District Attorney WEBSITE:

A three-year study of Domestic Violence statistics reported to Tennessee Bureau of Investigation showed decreasing trends in the incidents of domestic violence reported between 2010-2012. That is good news, but domestic violence still represents over half of the total number of assaults occurring here in Memphis and Shelby County.

• Women are four times more likely to be assaulted than males.
• Spouses are abused more frequently than ex-spouses.
• Children of offenders represent more than half of the total number of domestic assault victims. Juvenile victims constitute 10% of the victims of DV. 

State law defines a domestic abuse victim as adults or minors who: 
​- are current or former spouses;
- live together or have lived together;
- are dating, have dated or have a sexual relationship or had a sexual relationship
- are related by blood or adoption
- are related or were formerly related by marriage

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Officer Willard Tate, Jr., Memphis Police Department, Community Outreach Program

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