Advocates Furious After Topeka, County DA Refuse to Prosecute Domestic Violence Cases-- WDAF Video

Topeka City Council discusses domestic battery prosecution and the repeal of Domestic Violence as a crime within the City Limits - October 4, 2011 http://cjonline.com/news/2011-10-04/council-discusses-domestic-battery-prosec...


Advocates Furious After Topeka, County DA Refuse to Prosecute Domestic Violence Cases - http://www.fox4kc.com/news/wdaf-advocates-furious-after-topeka-county-da-refu...
Tess Koppelman, edited by Jason Vaughn 6:30 p.m. CDT, September 29, 2011

TOPEKA, Kan.— Domestic abuse advocates in Topeka are outraged after the Shawnee County District Attorney's Office said that they will no longer be prosecuting domestic violence cases, and now the city of Topeka is talking about repealing its anti-domestic violence law.

Shawnee County prosecutors, dealing with a 10 percent budget cut, told city officials that they will no longer prosecute misdemeanor cases, including domestic violence. The move has left domestic violence victim's advocate Claudine Dombrowski furious, saying that the move leaves victim caught in the middle.

"It's appalling, it's disgusting," said Dombrowski. "A week after this started there were over 30 cases that had been dismissed because the county dropped it on the city, and the city says we can't do it."

Dombrowski says that she was the victim in a "misdemeanor" domestic abuse case 16 years ago - a crowbar strike to the head left her with 24 stitches and two broken wrists. Now, she worries that nothing is being done to protect victims.

"They need to invest in headstones, because these women are going to end up in cemeteries," said Dombrowski.

In an apparent attempt to force the county to prosecute the misdemeanor cases, the city wants to repeal its domestic violence ordinance. The city council will vote on the issue next Tuesday.

"The city of Topeka just said domestic violence is legal and you can beat your wife," said Dombrowski.

Neither the Topeka interim city manager nor the Shawnee County district attorney would talk to FOX 4 about the conflict. The interim city manager had agreed to talk, but then backed out after learning that FOX 4 was talking to Dombrowski.

"No matter how political you want to be, or you want to play hardball with peoples lives, how can you in good conscious say it's okay to repeal domestic battery as a crime in the city of Topeka just so you can get out of prosecuting them," said Dombrowski. "I'm terrified for these women."

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• Chad Taylor
• Dan Stanley
• Topeka
• City Council
• Kansas Domestic violence