According to Kelly McBride, executive director of the Domestic Violence Network (DVN), it had been difficult in the past to report basic facts about the scope of domestic violence in Marion County because data is spread across many agencies and parts of the criminal justice system.
Problem
Solution
The Polis Center developed the community trend report, An Update on Domestic Violence in the Criminal Justice System Marion County, IN, and created an online Domestic Violence Dashboard in which we integrated data from several sources in the criminal justice system to present data about domestic violence victims, perpetrators, and incidents in the Marion County criminal justice system. This provided public access to data and trends about domestic violence that have never before been available for Marion County and which would otherwise not be possible.
Improving Resource Allocation to Address Domestic Violence in Marion County
The Polis Center has partnered with the Domestic Violence Network (DVN) since 2013 to inform community stakeholders about an important social issue. As a result, DVN and its partners can better allocate resources and more effectively work to educate and collaborate with the community to reduce domestic violence in Marion County and save lives.
We produced several trend reports, the most recent being An Update on Domestic Violence in the Criminal Justice System Marion County, IN. An online Domestic Violence Dashboard integrates data from several sources in the criminal justice system and features interactive charts, maps, and citations that make the data easy to use for media, advocates, and policymakers.
We use special techniques to link criminal justice records from several agencies together in ways never done before. This allows us to analyze trends in domestic violence and create the most accurate profiles of victims and perpetrators moving through the legal system. The analysis includes data from The Julian Center, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD), IMPD Victim Assistance, Indiana Supreme Court Protective Orders, Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, Baker One Initiative, and 2-1-1 Connect2Help.
For more information, contact Sharon Kandris.
