DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN SMALL CITIES AND TOWNS: A PILOT STUDY

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Abstract
This study is an examination of domestic dispute incidents reported to police agencies in small cities and towns. The study includes 38 percent of the police jurisdictions in Ohio and 61 percent of the agencies reporting domestic dispute data. The agencies are distributed among urban, suburban, and rural counties, serve 11 percent of Ohio's estimated 1979 population, and account for 22 percent of the state's reported domestic disputes. From these data the following conclusions are drawn. First, domestic disputes reported to these agencies displayed the highest occurrence rate per 1000 residents of any population group. Second, in domestic disputes where criminal complaints are initiated, the police display a tendency not to take any action. Third, the tendency for police not to arrest domestic offenders is seven times higher than the arrest rate. Fourth, in noncriminal complaint incidents the police seldom take any action. Fifth, when the police jurisdictions’ populations are similar, there is a difference between police dispositions of domestic disputes in urban, suburban, and rural counties. Finally, the police in general and small police agencies in particular are justly criticized for their failure to provide adequate protection to domestic dispute victims.