Attorney General Clark Announces Release of Domestic Violence Fatality Report

Report includes review of 2023 homicides and recommendations to Legislature

Attorney General Charity Clark today announced the release of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Commission's annual report, including statistics, trends, and recommendations. The Commission, housed within the Attorney General's Office, found that in 2023, seven of Vermont's 29 homicides were related to domestic violence. Included in the Commission's report are key recommendations, including addressing access to firearms, funding victim service positions for local law enforcement agencies, and expanding the use of lethality assessments statewide.

"Reviewing the circumstances around the seven Vermonters who lost their lives to domestic violence is sobering and very sad," said Attorney General Clark. "The work of the Commission provides us with an opportunity to make improvements to address domestic violence in our state, and ultimately, save lives. I want to thank the Commission for their work on this important matter, and members of the Legislature for supporting the Commission's recommendations."

From 1994 to 2023, there were 432 homicides in Vermont, of which 44 percent, or 190, were determined to be related to domestic violence.

The Domestic Violence Fatality Review Commission was created by statute in 2002 to collect data and conduct in-depth reviews of domestic violence-related fatalities to better understand how the fatalities occurred and what can be done to prevent them. The Commission includes 17 members representing a broad range of stakeholders, including law enforcement, health care providers, state agencies, advocates, and the judiciary.

Among the Commission's recommendations are a statute to give the court explicit authority to require an abuser to engage in domestic violence accountability programming, and create a working group of stakeholders to devise ways to improve compliance with firearm surrender orders.

"Despite much progress, domestic violence remains a leading public health and public safety challenge in Vermont," said Karen Tronsgard-Scott, Executive Director of the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. "The work of the Fatality Review Commission is integral to hearing the stories of domestic violence survivors and surviving family members and changing the way our systems to the most serious of domestic violence."

Attorney General Clark made addressing domestic violence a priority of her first term, championing the recommendations of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Commission over the past two years. In addition to implementing virtually all of the recommendations of the Commission, she partnered with the Legislature to: enact restorative justice as a potential model that might be best for some survivors; passed safe storage and other gun safety laws relating to extreme risk protection and relief from abuse (RFA) orders; and expanded the definition of "abuse" to include coercive controlling behavior, which will increase the number of survivors able to qualify for an RFA. In addition, Attorney General Clark worked with community partners including the U.S. Attorney's Office, local law enforcement agencies, and libraries to promote safe storage of firearms.

There are many resources available for people experiencing domestic violence, including the National Domestic Violence Hotline. You can use their safety planning tip sheet or call 800-799-SAFE (7233). Additionally, the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence has a statewide hotline for domestic violence that can be reached at 800-228-7395. The Network's fifteen member programs provide services to survivors in all fourteen counties in Vermont. For an interactive map to help you locate a local program near you, visit https://vtnetwork.org/get-help/ .

A copy of the Commission's report, released yesterday, is available here .

CONTACT: Amelia Vath, Outreach and Communications Coordinator, 802-828-3171