Vernon County, WI | Local Initiatives Support Corporation

Research shows that women in rural areas and those in lower-income households are both more likely than average to experience domestic violence. This holds true in Vernon County, which is not only rural, it is one of the highest-poverty counties in Wisconsin. The Vernon County Sheriff’s office received 94 calls for domestic violence in 2022, approximately 7-8 calls per month in a county of 31,000. Of those perpetrators, 29% were repeat offenders. Despite the clear-cut problem, the sheriff’s office lacks the necessary resources to change the current climate. As in many rural areas, there is often only one officer on duty at a time in some parts of Vernon County. When an officer goes to the scene of a domestic violence incident, they can only tend to the perpetrator of the violence and cannot offer services to the victim. It is rare for victims to call for help and domestic violence is often underreported due to fear of reprisals and lack of trust that reporting will help. It is imperative that officers be able to provide service to victims so people know that when they call, they will be helped.

To address these concerns, Rural Violent Crime Reduction Initiative funds are supporting the startup of the Vernon County HEART (Helping End Abuse Response Team). HEART is a collaboration between: Vernon County Sheriff’s Office; Family and Children’s Center Vernon County Domestic Abuse Project; Stonehouse Counseling; Passages Vernon County; Gundersen Viroqua Clinic; Vernon County Department of Human Services; Hansen Assessment and Educational Services. Through this initiative, the Vernon County Domestic Abuse Coordinator at Family and Children’s Center trains local volunteers to be prepared to meet local law enforcement at the scenes of domestic violence calls and support the victims. In addition, the initiative provides training for local Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) to be a resource for victims so they do not need to leave town for examination, a significant barrier to victims with children and other responsibilities. HEART also creates a path to change for perpetrators through batterers groups, run by trained local clinicians. The clinicians also provide ongoing training with law enforcement on trauma-informed responses and in local schools to teach children about healthy relationships. The goal of HEART is to create a comprehensive community response to intimate partner violence, reduce the number of children exposed to violence in their homes, and stop the cycle of violence from being passed on from generation to generation.