The Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence estimates that one in four American women has been physically abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.
As the number of domestic violence cases increases, agencies that serve victims, including Heartly House in Frederick County, are often overburdened and underfunded, according to those who operate them.
Nationwide, on a single day in 2007, nearly 13 percent of the roughly 61,000 requests for service were unmet, because of a lack of resources, limited funds for critical services and supplies, lack of shelter space and insufficient program staff, according to a census from the National Network to End Domestic Violence. The census took a snapshot of domestic violence service agencies in every state within a 24-hour period.
Maryland’s survey was conducted Sept. 25, and 22 out of 24 agencies responded. That day, 859 victims were served and 139 requests for service were not met. Heartly House participated in the survey.
A lack of staffing was a common reason victims’ requests for services could not be met — 64 percent of programs in Maryland have fewer than 20 paid staff members, according to the survey.
With a roughly $2 million budget, Heartly House has 36 full- and part-time paid staff who responded to more than 16,000 calls regarding domestic violence in fiscal 2007. That’s an increase of 22 percent compared to fiscal 2006, and calls have almost doubled since 2004, according to Heartly House statistics.
While the number of calls is increasing, Heartly House CEO Barbara Martin said she doesn’t have the money to implement all the programs needed to combat domestic violence. One such effort would be more community education.
Martin also cited a current waiting list of about 70 people who are good candidates for ongoing counseling, but with fewer than six full-time counselors, there simply isn’t time.
“The federal money available isn’t growing,” she said. “The grants tend to be flat-funded, but costs keep going up.”
While total funding is difficult to measure because many agencies, such as police departments, receive money to fight domestic violence, state grants for domestic violence programs have essentially remained flat at about $1.6 million annually since 2002, according to statistics from the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence .
That represents about 1/200th of 1 percent of the state’s $31 billion budget.
“That’s a minuscule amount of money and completely inadequate to the seriousness of the issue,” said Michaele Cohen, the network’s executive director. “It’s shocking that this is the amount of money the state is putting into this issue. If they could address domestic violence, they’d also be addressing a lot of other issues.”
While Cohen believes the state’s contribution to domestic violence programs is troubling, Frederick County Assistant State’s Attorney Teresa R. Bean said the 21 domestic violence-related deaths in 2007 in and around Frederick County could serve as a wake-up call for victims, as well as other community members.
“It’s brought the issue out into the open,” she said. “People think: ‘Oh my God — what has happened?’”
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