HR 47 Text

HOUSE RESOLUTION 47
(By Delegate Webster, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegates Argento, Ashley, Blair, Boggs, Ellem, Frazier, Lane, Lawrence, McGeehan, Miley, C. Miller, Perdue, Perry, Phillips, Porter, Romine, Rowan, Schadler, Schoen, Shook, Shott, Staggers, Susman and Wooton)

Declaring April 2, 2009, to be Domestic Violence Prevention Day in West Virginia.

Whereas, All people have a right to be safe in their homes and with their families; and
Whereas, During the fiscal year 2007-2008, almost 15,000 individuals were served by one or more of the 14 licenced domestic violence programs in West Virginia; and
Whereas, Domestic violence is a phenomenon that erodes the infrastructure of our families; our social makeup and our culture, and threatens the integrity of our future; and
Whereas, Women compromised 51% of our state's population and account for 75% of all domestic violence victims; and
Whereas, Domestic violence is a major health problem in the country, with medical costs exceeding $5.8 billion in 2005, and 35% of all women seeking emergency medical care were victims of domestic violence; and
Whereas, Domestic violence is also a major law enforcement problem within West Virginia, but according to the WV State Police 2006 Crime in West Virginia Report, just under 12,000 incidents ended in the arrest of a domestic violence offender; and
Whereas, Statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation show that 30% of all assaults on law enforcement officers in 2005 were committed while the officers were responding to domestic violence emergencies; and
Whereas, According to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund, in the last ten years, 81 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty while responding to domestic violence emergencies; and
Whereas, According to the 2005 West Virginia State Police Crime Report, in 2005 34 homicides in our state were the result of domestic violence; and
Whereas, Women are three times more likely than males to be murdered by an intimate partner; and
Whereas, Statistics from the West Virginia State Police show that 6 children died in our state as a result of domestic violence in 2005; and
Whereas, Boys who witness domestic violence are twice as likely to abuse their own partners and children when they become adults; and
Whereas, Domestic violence affects both sexes and all races, ethnic backgrounds and socioeconomic classes; and
Whereas, Domestic violence can be deterred, prevented, and reduced, through a large network of private, public, and non-profit entities working together to form a coalition providing social, legal, medical, educational and protective services for victims of domestic violence; and
Whereas the West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence has been working for over 25 years to provide safe space, quality services, and systemic change to give families options for building lives free from violence; therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Delegates:

That the House of Delegates declares April 2, 2009, to be

Domestic Violence Prevention Day in West Virginia and commits itself to treating this problem with the seriousness that it deserves and working to achieve solutions that deter, prevent, and reduce domestic violence.

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