Handling Domestic Violence Safely and Obtaining Legal Protection
These key steps will enable you to stay safe and secure when dealing with a domestic violence incident. One of the main ideas to keep in mind is to plan ahead before a future incident. Gathering extra clothes and storing them at another person’s house, getting extra cash or a credit card for emergencies and making a copy of your car keys are all ways you can plan ahead before a future occurrence. This is crucial for your safety in case the aggressor creates an extreme situation where you cannot escape. Having this all planned in advance will allow you to get away from your aggressor quickly and safely and get to a safe place to then call the police. Make sure you do not wait or hesitate to call the police. Often domestic violence victims feel that they can handle or manage their abuser. That maybe this situation was out-of-character and will not happen again and that they can “fix it” or help “heal” their abuser. However, if this has become a pattern in your relationship, chances are that this kind of confrontation will occur again.
If the person who is …