NT Police today reaffirmed their zero-tolerance attitude towards perpetrators of domestic violence following the arrest and charging of a 27-year-old man overnight.
Police are committed to ensuring the safety of women and children in the community by breaking the cycle of violence and taking direct action against the perpetrators of violence and providing available support to victims.
More than two years ago, NT Police saw a need to develop a coordinated approach and out of this was born Project Respect, with its philosophy of Engage, Enforce and Empower regarding initial response, investigation and ongoing support to victims of domestic violence.
To achieve a reduction in assaults across the Territory, Police have established a number of Strike Forces to target repeat domestic violence offenders and provide a high level investigative response to domestic violence related crime.
The three Strike Forces are Viridian in the Darwin area, Romulus in Alice Springs and Disruptor in Tennant Creek.
Their collective success has resulted in a 7.6% reduction in the number of domestic violence related offences for the year to 30 September 2014 compared with 2013.
In Alice Springs, SupportLink has enabled Police to introduce a larger number of women who suffer violence at the hands of men to the support services available that can assist them in making their lives safer.
NT Police’s Domestic Violence Unit is engaging with men and women to remove violence from their relationships and the multi-agency Alice Springs Integrated Response to Family and Domestic Violence Project continues to provide an acute intervention approach realising positive outcomes.
The man arrested overnight has been refused bail on a number of charges, including five counts of aggravated assault and five counts of engaging in conduct that contravenes a Domestic Violence Order (DVO).
The man had recently been released from prison following his prosecution for previous acts of domestic violence against his partner and children.
The majority of assaults in the Territory remain domestic and family violence related.
