Concord Police Starts Domestic Violence Unit

In an effort to combat the ever growing problem of domestic violence in the community, the Concord Police Department has created a Domestic Violence Unit and staffed it with its first officer.

Officer Christy Spaulding, a police officer for the last five years, was hired recently for the position and starts today, according to a statement by Concord Police Chief John Duval.

The city, according to Duval, currently uses four grants for police officer positions. The grants state that the money needs to be used for “police services to address specified needs within the community.” Not unlike efforts to target the elevated crime levels in the South End or the racist graffiti incidents, Duval and the department have identified domestic violence as “a serious problem affecting families and the overall community and it is certainly deserving of dedicated resources.”

Duval said that the Spaulding’s focus will be in three areas: First, to provide a system to follow-up on domestic violence cases, which will still be handled by patrol; education outreach; and prevention.

The follow-up on cases will involve making sure there is "greater support for victims" as they work to break the cycle of violence. Educational and prevention efforts will include, but not be limited to, partnerships with schools, children, the public, and advocacy groups, in order to “develop prevention strategies and work towards identifying and reducing risk factors” that lead to domestic violence incidents.

“Officer Spaulding will work closely with other advocacy groups to develop prevention strategies and work towards identifying and reducing risk factors that lead to domestic violence,” he said.

Anyone interested in communicating and working with Spaulding are advised to call 603-230-3739 or email her at cspaulding-at-concordpolice.com.