{"id":72447,"date":"2023-03-01T08:00:17","date_gmt":"2023-03-01T13:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/?p=72447"},"modified":"2025-02-12T11:07:59","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T16:07:59","slug":"reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <\/p>\n<p>Durham Constabulary in the UK is taking an innovative approach to reduce the harm caused by serial domestic abuse perpetrators. This approach, Multi-Agency Tasking and Coordination (MATAC), is significant as it shows how offender management principles are effective in working with perpetrators of domestic abuse. In particular, it demonstrates that diversion and support tactics are effective, rather than using more traditional policing tactics of disruption and enforcement. The approach also shows how police agencies can use data more intelligently to identify and rank those who are causing the most harm, thereby targeting resources where they are most likely to have the greatest impact. Finally, the approach emphasizes the effectiveness of a multiagency approach to tackling domestic abuse.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-72479\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1263913657-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>MATAC uses offender management techniques to address the criminogenic behavior of offenders who have committed repeated offenses against a victim or multiple victims. The initiative has enabled a coordinated multiagency response to support victims and steer the offender to appropriate services. A thorough assessment demonstrates that MATAC is an effective means of reducing the harm and service demands caused by domestic abuse perpetrators and provides important insight into factors involved in serial domestic abuse offending.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><strong>Addressing Domestic Abuse<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">The Problem<\/span><\/h4>\n<table class=\" alignleft\" style=\"width: 50%; background-color: #f5f6f8; border-style: none;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">\n<table style=\"width: 96%; background-color: #9c5156;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Durham Constabulary<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Durham Constabulary is one of 43 policing forces in England and Wales. It sits in the northeast corner of England, with a population of 680,000 people covering 12 medium- to large-sized towns with 1,295 officers and 800 staff. The policing area contains significant contrasts. On the one hand, there is a prestigious university in the center of the county with an 11th century cathedral and castle, identified as a world heritage site. On the other hand, there is significant unemployment resulting from a decline of heavy industry, coal, steel, and manufacturing, resulting in areas of social deprivation. County Durham remains in the top 30 percent of the most deprived localities across England.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The problem that needed to be addressed was an increasing rate of domestic abuse reports, reflecting increased harm to victims and increased demands on services. Domestic abuse is estimated to cost over \u00a366 billion in England and Wales, including costs to health services (\u00a32.3 billion) and the police (\u00a31.3 billion).<sup>1<\/sup> Moreover, the human cost to victim-survivors through physical and emotional harm and trauma inflicted onto children and families is significant.<\/p>\n<p>Domestic Abuse Stalking and Harassment (DASH) is a nationally recognized risk assessment used across agencies in the UK. This results in a risk grading applied to each domestic abuse incident of high, medium, or standard. Every time an officer attends a domestic abuse incident, a safeguarding report will be recorded on the record management system, detailing what has happened and who was involved, and a DASH risk assessment will be completed to provide a risk classification of harm posed to the victim(s). During reporting years 2016\u20132017 to 2019\u20132020, there was an increasing trend in the number of domestic abuse safeguarding reports submitted that was mainly driven at the medium risk level, with an increase from 627 medium risk domestic abuse incidents in 2016\u20132017 to 928 incidents in 2019\u20132020.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Hidden Harm<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-72453\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"621\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-1.png 651w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-1-242x300.png 242w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>With reference to the preceding numbers, it\u2019s important to note that domestic abuse is underreported and remains hidden within society while causing chronic harm to individuals, families, and communities. Analysis assists in understanding the extent of this issue. The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) suggests that about half of all domestic abuse incidents that actually occur are reported to the police.<sup>2<\/sup> Analysis of Durham Constabulary data demonstrated that in 2019\u20132020, there were just over 18,000 incidents of domestic abuse reported to the police, representing a prevalence rate of about 3 percent. Comparing this reported rate with the UK-wide prevalence rate of around 6 percent, which has been consistent over time since 2010, it is estimated that half of domestic abuse is reported to the police in the Durham Constabulary area. The most common reason for not reporting such abuse to the police is that the victims may not recognize themselves as abused or they may be fearful of retaliation from their abusers. Furthermore, Durham Constabulary sits within the northeast region of England, which currently has the highest rate of domestic abuse-related crime, at 19 per 1,000 population compared to 10 per 1,000 population across the UK as a whole. Therefore, initiatives to proactively identify and reduce domestic abuse, reported or not, are essential.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">The Response<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The response to the problem included offender management techniques of addressing criminogenic needs through providing individual attention of selected offenders with parallel safeguarding for the victims. This differed from other models that relied upon traditional meeting and review structures. It enabled continuity and close working through a single offender manager, who steered the offenders to appropriate services. This built trust and reduced opportunities for offenders to play one professional against another. Although sometimes politically less popular than taking a victim-focused approach to domestic abuse, implementing an offender approach is a vital aspect of preventing harm to victims.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Targeting Offenders within Durham Constabulary<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>During 2017\u20132018, experimentation to general offender targeting was being conducted within the Durham Constabulary involving the use of statistical techniques to identify the most appropriate offenders for targeting. Funding was also made available by the Home Office (UK government department) to set up MATAC partnership programs to target serial perpetrators of domestic abuse. MATAC was developed in response to the UK strategy for tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG).<sup>3<\/sup><\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Perpetrator Program Research<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-72480 size-medium alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-300x195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"195\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-300x195.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-1024x666.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-768x499.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-1536x999.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1279147114-2048x1332.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Perpetrator programs have been used in the Durham Constabulary area over the previous 13 years. Research into domestic abuse perpetrator programs shows two prominent types: (1) mandatory programs delivered by Probation and Prisons Service to those referred by the courts; and (2) voluntary programs usually delivered by voluntary sector or partnership arrangements, which accept referrals from external agencies, as well as self-referrals.<\/p>\n<p>Two models of treatment for perpetrators have become predominant since the 1990s.<sup>4<\/sup><\/p>\n<ol style=\"font-weight: bold;\">\n<li>The Duluth Model<span style=\"font-weight: normal;\">, which comprises psychoeducational groups aiming to confront male perpetrators\u2019 attitudes to women, particularly the normalization of controlling behaviors toward women. The original model does not address intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrated by females or LGBTQ couples because the focus is on gender roles and male-derived abuses of power.<\/span><\/li>\n<li>The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Model<span style=\"font-weight: normal;\"> is a therapeutic approach, performed in either individual or group settings, that seeks to change unhelpful thoughts and behaviors and improve skills to enhance functioning. While the Duluth model relies on a coordinated criminal justice response, CBT offers an alternative to incarceration, prosecution, and associated costs.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>However, meta-analysis of these two approaches found that they produce small treatment effects, with both forms of intervention generally having limited clinical utility in treating male IPV perpetrators. Specifically, these models ignore treatment need factors such as \u201cemotional dysregulation\u201d and relationship dynamics such as bidirectional IPV, sometimes termed \u201csituational couple violence\u201d in literature.<sup>5<\/sup> Research has suggested that these blanket approaches to treating domestic abuse offenders lack utility because they fail to account for the offenders\u2019 individual characteristics, backgrounds, and co-occurring needs and have lacked effective empirical evaluation. This lack may partly be due to underlying political and ideological pressures.<sup>6<\/sup> This highlighted the importance of developing an offender management model in Durham that addressed individual needs and behaviors.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Wider Problem-Solving and Problem Analysis Triangle (PAT)<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>From an organizational perspective, Durham Constabulary had embedded its approaches to domestic abuse in a problem-solving framework. This was presented at their annual Constabulary problem-oriented policing (POP) awards\u2014highlighting the importance of using the PAT to consider immediate and long-term approaches. This was reinforced through victim-survivors speaking at the POP conference on the positive and negative experiences of repeated interactions with local officers. This made explicit the human cost, misery, distress, injury, and danger suffered as a result of domestic abuse. This wider analysis helped reflect the range of approaches required to respond effectively to domestic abuse and provided a context for the development of a bespoke MATAC program in Durham.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-72454\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1099\" height=\"808\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-2.png 1099w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-2-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-2-1024x753.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-2-768x565.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1099px) 100vw, 1099px\" \/><\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Analysis to Create a Target Cohort<\/span><\/h4>\n<table class=\"alignright\" style=\"width: 600px; border-collapse: collapse; border-style: none;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">\n<h4><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><em>\u201cAn algorithm is used to generate a score… based on the recency, frequency, and gravity of their offending and the number of known victims.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-72455 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"445\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-3.png 928w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-3-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-3-768x569.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Analysis was used to identify a MATAC cohort using the recency-frequency-gravity of offending-serial victim (RFGV) mode, which works as follows: Incidents of domestic abuse reported to Durham Constabulary are logged onto police systems, a proportion of which will also have a safeguarding report submitted (with risk level assigned to it). The analysis starts with each safeguarding report over the previous 24 months aggregated to each offender, so that a score for how \u201crecent\u201d and \u201cfrequent\u201d the domestic abuse episodes can be calculated. If a crime is recorded in connection with the safeguarding report, then this will contribute using the \u201cgravity of offending\u201d score. Using the aggregated safeguarding reports over the same 24-month period, the number of separate victims is calculated, and this will determine the score for the \u201cserial victim\u201d component. (See Figure 3.) Importantly, the RFGV methodology doesn\u2019t discriminate on the basis of risk, i.e., all safeguarding reports at all risk levels are counted. Perpetrators are identified via the RFGV analytical process, in which an algorithm is used to generate a score of up to 100 for each perpetrator, based on the recency, frequency, and gravity of their offending and the number of known victims against whom they have offended. This can also be supplemented by information from partners. The higher the overall RFGV score, the more recent, frequent, and harmful the offender.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><strong>MATAC Overview<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The Durham MATAC project was implemented starting in June 2018 to address a large and increasing volume of domestic abuse referrals at the medium-risk level. MATAC would target high-demand offenders at this risk level with a view to complementing the existing provision of services by the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference to the high-risk domestic abuse cohort.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Objectives of MATAC<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The objectives of the MATAC program follow:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>To identify and rank medium-risk domestic abuse cases to prioritize where interventions would have the most impact<\/li>\n<li>To reduce the levels of harm in the medium-risk domestic abuse cohort<\/li>\n<li>To reduce the service demands posed by offenders subject to MATAC interventions<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Additionally, the overarching safeguarding objectives were to adopt a multiagency approach to (1) reduce re-offending and change the behavior of domestic abuse perpetrators, and (2) safeguard adults and children at risk of domestic abuse.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">MATAC Structure<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Monthly MATAC reviews are chaired by a detective inspector from the Police Safeguarding department with attendance from MATAC offender managers; domestic abuse innovation officers (DAIOs) from the Police Safeguarding department; local safeguarding supervisors; and representatives from domestic outreach support services, housing services, offender manager services, and alcohol and drug rehabilitation services. Other services such as mental health or social care were involved through ongoing liaison. Engagement with offenders typically lasts about five months. They are removed from the MATAC cohort once approved by the detective inspector, confirming there is sufficient evidence of reduction in offending and risk levels. Strategic MATAC meetings review progress and implementation issues and are attended by senior police managers, with this group then reporting into the local strategic multiagency partnership for domestic abuse.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Selecting the MATAC Cohort<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The safeguarding detective inspector reviews the list of nominated offenders in consultation with the offender managers, and DAIOs, and divides them between the north and south areas of the force.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Process: Victim & Offender Simultaneous Risk Assessment and Engagement<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-72456\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"621\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-4.png 690w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-4-261x300.png 261w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/>Offenders are engaged by offender managers while engagement with any potential victims is undertaken by DAIOs. This was an important element not seen in other projects that mitigates risks associated, for example, with the offender blaming the victim for interventions. DAIOs offer a point of contact, referral to support services, and safety advice and share information through the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare\u2019s Law).<sup>7<\/sup> Establishing the engagement of an offender is an important first step and is mainly down to the skill and persistence of the offender manager. If offenders engage, their criminogenic needs (or critical pathways) are assessed, and they are offered support to address those needs. Initial contact with an offender would be supplemented by a letter outlining the purpose of the program and giving information about specific services and support available. The letter also warns of potential action that may be taken if the offender does not change the problematic behavior. The assessment with the offender is recorded within an offender management database, and on the police force\u2019s main operating system, where a profile is accessible to all operational staff. The offender manager then works with the offenders to facilitate arrangements with locally commissioned and specialist services to support the offenders with the issues they have identified.<\/p>\n<p>There are essentially two \u201croutes\u201d that an offender can take:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Therapeutic route (green boxes in Figure 4) for those who engage with the scheme<\/li>\n<li>The Criminal Justice route (red boxes in Figure 4) for those who do not engage.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><strong>Assessment and Evaluation of MATAC<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<table style=\"width: 100%; border-style: solid; border-color: #b33b24;\" border=\"1\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color: #9c5156; width: 100%; border-style: solid; border-color: #9c5156;\" width=\"623\">\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Case Study: \u201cPaul\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%; background-color: #ffdacc;\" width=\"623\">\n<p>Paul lived with his family: mother, father and two siblings (brother and sister). Paul witnessed his mother and father fighting and arguing; as a result, Paul\u2019s mother took to drinking alcohol. Paul started to leave his home and spend a lot of time on the streets associating with the wrong people, committing crimes, and taking drugs. Paul used to return to the family home when he needed food and shelter. Paul would have arguments with his mother and father in front of his brother and sister about money for drugs. Paul would damage property, steal money, and assault his parents to get what he wanted. The police were always called, but the family never gave a statement\/evidence against Paul.<\/p>\n<p>Paul was located in the jail cells after a domestic abuse incident and interviewed by the MATAC offender manager. Paul agreed to engage and was assessed. The following critical pathways were identified: mental health, drug\/alcohol abuse, anger and relationship issues, financial issues, accommodation (\u201cno fixed abode\u201d or NFA), and problems with reading and writing. The first step was to get Paul somewhere to live. Paul\u2019s paternal aunt agreed to accommodate Paul on a short-term basis providing he stayed away from his parents\u2019 address and his associates on the streets. The offender manager spoke with Paul and agreed on the way forward, which included the following interventions: referral to a domestic abuse perpetrators program, a mental health assessment by Paul\u2019s doctor, and a treatment program. Paul was referred to an alcohol and drugs misuse service, and one-on-one work was conducted because Paul would not work in a group. A Staying Cool (anger management) course was organized, which Paul attended. Paul was referred to the local job center and Citizens Advice to organize his benefits and sort his finances.<\/p>\n<p>His aunt\u2019s partner worked on a building site for a local building firm. He said that he could get Paul a job if he passed his Health and Safety Course. A CSCS (Health and Safety Course) was discussed and obtained to allow Paul to get a job with a local building firm.<\/p>\n<p>The offender manager closely supervised Paul to ensure he attended his intervention programs and training course. Contact was maintained on a nearly daily basis in the early stages, then, when Paul passed his CSCS course and started to work for a local building firm, contact was maintained via telephone. Paul stayed on track with the critical pathways for six weeks before he went back to his old ways. Paul stole a tablet from the daughter living where he was being accommodated and then went missing for a week. During this time, he went back to his mother\u2019s address and set fire to the shed because she would not give Paul any money. Paul was arrested and spent the weekend in jail. He re-engaged with the offender manager and continued with his critical pathways.<\/p>\n<p>Paul\u2019s relationship and trust with the offender manager increased. He fully passed the CSCS course and is trying to get his own accommodation. Other than the incident when Paul stole the tablet, there were no further reported domestic incidents. MATAC has contributed to this change through education, building trust, controlled engagement, and supervision. Paul\u2019s alcohol use has decreased and his drug use has stopped, which has improved his mental and physical health. He continues to see his family without incident.<\/p>\n<p>Paul stated that, without the help, support, and guidance from MATAC, he would not be drug free, working, and looking for his own house. Pre-engagement, there were 52 safeguarding reports involving Paul over a four-year period. Thirty-seven of these reports involved Paul as the suspect\/offender, including domestic abuse, controlling, threatening behavior, violence, harassment, malicious communications, theft, criminal damage, and arson. There has been only one report (theft of a tablet) since engagement.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p> <\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 100%; border-color: #b33b24;\" border=\"1\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%; border-style: solid; border-color: #9c5156; background-color: #9c5156;\" width=\"623\">\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Case Study: \u201cAndrew\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%; background-color: #ffdacc;\" width=\"623\">\n<p>Andrew, 29 years, lives with his partner., There are 23 safeguarding reports in a nine-month period prior to engagement. The domestic abuse is controlling, threatening behavior, and minor assaults. Andrew attended Durham Crown Court for the offense of assaulting an emergency worker and pleaded guilty resulting in 19 weeks imprisonment.<\/p>\n<p>The MATAC program identified Andrew\u2019s offending via the RFH model, and he was assessed in prison by the MATAC offender manager. Andrew\u2019s main challenges were mental health problems, alcohol\/drug misuse, problems with relationships, and anger management. Once Andrew was released from prison, Andrew agreed to engage with a view of getting his life together. The offender manager worked with Andrew\u2019s probation officer to agree on the way forward, which included the following interventions: referral to a domestic abuse perpetrators program; a mental health assessment conducted by probation\u2019s CPN, and a treatment program. Andrew was referred to an alcohol and drugs misuse service, and one-on-one work was conducted regarding relationships, red flag triggers, and stability. A Staying Cool (anger management) course was organized and attended by Andrew to help him with his anger issues. Andrew was closely supervised by the probation officer and the offender manager to ensure he attended the course and understood what its purpose was and why he was there. Contact was maintained almost daily. Andrew was referred to a local charity that helps with one-on-one support from specialist health trainers and financial coaches; access to training and vocational courses to help improve confidence and learn new skills; and guidance, support, and advice on any area that the client feels will help make a positive change in his or her life.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew engaged fully with all services; however in the early stages of engagement, Andrew continued to abuse alcohol and occasionally use controlled drugs. These behaviors decreased as time passed and Andrew\u2019s relationship and trust with the offender manager increased.<\/p>\n<table class=\" alignright\" style=\"width: 60%; border-style: none;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"480\">\n<h4><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\">\u201cThe support, counselling, advice, and direction from MATAC has changed the way he lives and how he treats and reacts to other people.\u201d<\/span><\/h4>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Andrew\u2019s alcohol and drug use has decreased and, in the case of drugs, has stopped, which has improved his mental and physical health. Andrew has obtained his own accommodation and is living separately from his partner, which has reduced domestic abuse incidents to zero. Andrew learned to understand the problem areas within his relationship and how to walk away and calm down when angered; he has used this principle on a number of occasions. Andrew has learned to communicate and discuss the problem areas with his partner without losing his temper. This awareness was due to the input by MATAC and other partners. The two of them are still in a relationship and spending time at each other\u2019s house. Andrew stated that the support, counselling, advice, and direction from MATAC has changed the way he lives and how he treats and reacts to other people. The use of the MATAC warning letter was very successful in making Andrew understand that he was a perpetrator of domestic abuse, which reduced his offending.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p> <\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 100%; border-style: solid; border-color: #b33b24;\" border=\"1\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"border-style: solid; width: 100%; border-color: #9c5156; background-color: #9c5156;\" width=\"623\">\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Case Study: \u201cJohn\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color: #ffdacc; width: 623px;\" width=\"623\">\n<p>John, 38 years, lived with his partner and two children until he and his partner separated due to the domestic abuse between them. There were 36 safeguarding reports over 26 months, including reports for violence, harassment, stalking, and malicious communications. A protection from harassment order was put in place against John who breached the order and was sent to prison. On leaving prison, John was placed on a community order with probation. John has complied with the community order and worked with MATAC since he was released from prison. John was assessed by the offender manager and the following critical pathways were identified: mental health, drug\/alcohol abuse, anger, and relationship issues. A CSCS (Health and Safety Course) was discussed and obtained to allow John to get a job with a local building firm.<\/p>\n<p>A referral was made to a domestic abuse perpetrators program. A mental health assessment was conducted by probation\u2019s CPN, and a treatment program was discussed and implemented. John was referred to an alcohol and drugs misuse service, and one-on-one work was conducted regarding relationships, red flag triggers, and stability. A Staying Cool (anger management) course was organized, which John attended by John. John did not return to his partner. He understands his triggers and is managing them well. His ex-partner has been contacting him via social media, causing him stress and harassment. John has contacted the police and reported malicious communications, which is the correct process; in the past John, would have taken the matter into his own hands. There have been no reported domestic incidents since his engagement with MATAC. John stated that, without the help, support, and guidance from MATAC, he would not be drug free, working, and living in his own house.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>A comprehensive assessment of Durham MATAC was conducted in June 2020 by an experienced constabulary analyst, showing that the initiative was providing an effective intervention that can impact the demand on policing services.<\/p>\n<p>The methodology behind establishing whether a change had occurred was premised on the period pre- and post-starting MATAC, demonstrating the following post-intervention outcomes:<\/p>\n<ul style=\"list-style-type: square; color: #9a1b22;\">\n<li><span style=\"color: #333333;\">a reduction in domestic abuse safeguarding reports<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #333333;\">a reduction in the number of domestic abuse\u2013related crimes committed<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #333333;\">a reduction in the harm incurred by those offenses<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #333333;\">a reduction in RFGV scores<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The assessment considered only those offenders who had at least six months of follow-ups with symmetrical periods for each offender for pre-start and post-start periods.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Reduction in Safeguarding Reports<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The aim of reducing the volume of medium-risk domestic abuse safeguarding forms was achieved when comparing pre- and post-start of MATAC intervention, and this change was statistically significant and of a meaningful magnitude. While the reduction was just over 36 percent when considering safeguarding reports at all risk levels, the reduction was highest at the medium risk (down by about 42 percent). (See Figure 5.)<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-72457\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-5.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"384\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-5.png 1537w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-5-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-5-1024x436.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-5-768x327.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>As part of this assessment, a number of problem profiles for domestic abuse cases <em>not<\/em> linked to MATAC were identified. It was possible to extract exactly the same data for these individuals, who were verified as domestic abuse offenders and RFGV analysis identified their scores over time. While not a formal control group, these other problem profiles provided a comparison cohort. In comparison, the non-MATAC problem profiles remained open for much longer periods of time and saw no meaningful change at the medium-risk level.<\/p>\n<p>A total of 94 perpetrators subject to the MATAC process were included in the evaluation. On average, each perpetrator subjected to the MATAC process remained in the program for 4 months and 26 days. A total of 44 nominals were included in the \u201cother\u201d problem profile cohort. The average of those profiles that are currently active in the comparison category is 14 months and 15 days. An analysis of age and gender illustrated these as comparable groups.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Domestic Abuse Typology<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Both the MATAC and the other profile cohorts were assessed to establish whether the case was IPV or family-related violence (FRV).<\/p>\n<table class=\" alignleft\" style=\"width: 45%; border-collapse: collapse; border-style: none;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">\n<h4><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><em>\u201cMATAC has contributed to this change through education, building trust, controlled engagement, and supervision.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Of the 94 MATAC offender cohort, 81 (86 percent) were involved in IPV, while the remaining 12 (13 percent) were involved in FRV (one individual didn\u2019t fit either category). Analysis shows that the proportion of safeguarding reports attributed to the smaller FRV cohort is proportional. However, when looking at the harm metrics, the FRV cohort is less harmful compared to the IPV cohort and post-MATAC reductions in crime and harm were greater in the FRV cohort compared to the IPV cohort.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Critical Pathways<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Of the 94 MATAC cohorts, 32 \u201cshort-needs\u201d assessments were available that can be matched with the evaluation cohort. Figure 6 summarizes the prevalence and clustering of each pathway. While the relationships pathway is almost a default for this cohort, mental health forms something a backdrop to all the other pathways, including, notably, alcohol. It is worth highlighting that alcohol and substance misuse (drugs) do not always coincide, suggesting that it is one of the two rather than both concurrently that afflicts the MATAC cohort.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-72458\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-6.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"824\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-6.png 763w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-6-291x300.png 291w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Reduction in Recorded Crimes<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>An analysis of how much domestic abuse crime has been committed by the MATAC cohort included all crime references from the safeguarding reports pre- and post-starting for the MATAC and other profile cohorts. On this basis, it is also possible to identify the Office of National Statistics crime severity score (ONS CSS) for each recorded crime.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"list-style-type: square; font-weight: bold; color: #9a1b22;\">\n<li>Crime count<span style=\"font-weight: normal; color: #333333;\">\u2014The volume of domestic-related recorded crime pre-MATAC reduced from a mean of 5.3 to 3.0 after the MATAC intervention.<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Harm<span style=\"font-weight: normal; color: #333333;\">\u2014A significant reduction in harm (CSS total) was found to decrease from a mean of 416.9 to a mean of 286.4 after the MATAC intervention. (The mean values represent the average of the CSS sum totals for each individual.)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Reduction in RFGV<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The first (pre-MATAC) RFGV score of each offender was compared to the last (post-MATAC) score, using the most recent calculation available, i.e., June 2020. For some, the interval between their first score and their score in June 2020 was as much as two years, while for others it was only six months. The results show that the last calculated RFGV score (averaged across the whole MATAC cohort) was reduced by almost 12 percent from a mean of 33.8 to a mean of 29.8, easily achieving statistical significance and a small to medium effect size.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Diffusion of Benefit<\/span><\/h4>\n<table class=\" alignright\" style=\"width: 45%; border-collapse: collapse; border-style: none;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">\n<h4><em><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\">\u201cThe MATAC program highlights the importance of working positively with those individuals who are not only responsible for causing harm but who also have the capability of changing their behavior.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/h4>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>There was a diffusion of benefit where discernible reductions in levels of safeguarding reports, crimes, and harm were also seen in cases where a letter was delivered but the offender refused to engage in the process. Possible reasons for this include the knowledge of being \u201ctargeted\u201d is sufficient to change behaviors. Secondly, even though the offender may be unwilling to engage, there is likely to be an impact of the police working with the victim. The combination of the two may have brought about this diffusion of benefit, but the ramifications should not be underestimated as they highlighted an efficient tactic. This encourages the continued use of visits and letters even where the offender then fails to engage.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Cost Efficiency<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The sustainability of the Durham MATAC model is supported by an evaluation of financial costs. The Home Office has estimated the individual unit cost for police responding to a domestic abuse crime to be \u00a3645 ($828) as outlined in Figure 7.<sup>8<\/sup> The crimes committed by the cohort of 94 offenders subject to this evaluation reduced on average from 5 to 3 crimes, indicating 188 less crimes at a cost saving of \u00a3121,260 per year. Alternatively, safeguarding referrals reduced by 303. Considering typical referral-crime ratios (69 percent of referrals have a crime associated), this indicates 209 less crimes at a cost saving of \u00a3134,805 ($172,000) annually. There is therefore value in the continued annual employment costs for two MATAC offender managers of \u00a328,500 each (\u00a357,000 total), more so when it is plausible to work with 50\u201360 offenders each year. The wider cost savings to other agencies are also significant. For example, 209 less crimes would result in a \u00a3250,800 ($321,000) cost savings to Health Services and a \u00a335,530 ($44,483) cost savings to criminal legal services. These financial savings have assisted in securing the MATAC offender managers as permanent posts within Durham Constabulary with considerations for further roles being created.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-72459\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-7.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"166\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-7.png 1522w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-7-300x55.png 300w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-7-1024x188.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Ashton-Fig-7-768x141.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #9a1b22;\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<aside class=\"pullout alignleft\"><\/p>\n<p><strong>IACP RESOURCES<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theiacp.org\/projects\/police-response-to-violence-against-women-vaw\">IACP’s Police Response to Violence Against Women Library<\/a> <\/span><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theiacp.org\/resources\/audio\/domestic-violence-safety-and-accountability-audit-podcast\" class=\"broken_link\">Domestic Violence Safety and Accountability Audit Podcast<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theiacp.org\/resources\/\"><span data-ccp-charstyle=\"Hyperlink\"><strong>theIACP.org<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/brief-iacp-dv-training-video\">The Brief: IACP Domestic Violence Training Video<\/a> <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/aside>\n<p>Reducing the harm caused by domestic abuse is a chronic and generational problem that faces all police agencies. Sadly, it is ever-present across societies, and the harm it causes to children, families, and wider communities warrants investment in long-term problem-solving approaches. The MATAC program highlights the importance of working positively with those individuals who are not only responsible for causing harm but who also have the capability of changing their behavior. The focus on approaches that involve diversion and support tactics, rather than using more traditional policing tactics of disruption and enforcement, strengthens the understanding and tactical options in the challenge to reduce and prevent domestic abuse.\u00a0<span style=\"font-family: Webdings;\">🛡<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>The analytical work for this article was completed by John Cooper, Senior Analyst, Durham Constabulary.<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<aside class=\"pullout pullout--wide alignleft\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-72473\" src=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-272x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"165\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-272x300.jpg 272w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-929x1024.jpg 929w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-768x847.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-1393x1536.jpg 1393w, https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/AshtonBW-1857x2048.jpg 1857w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>David Ashton (BA Hons, MSt) is a detective chief superintendent with over 24 years policing experience with Durham Constabulary in the UK. He is currently head of Crime and Safeguarding and has been nominated twice as a finalist in the Herman Goldstein Awards for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing (POP).<\/p>\n<p><\/aside>\n<p><strong>Notes<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p><sup>1<\/sup>Rhys Oliver et al., <a href=\"https:\/\/assets.publishing.service.gov.uk\/government\/uploads\/system\/uploads\/attachment_data\/file\/918897\/horr107.pdf\"><em>The Economic and Social Costs of Domestic Abuse<\/em><\/a> (UK: Home Office, 2019).<\/p>\n<p><sup>2<\/sup>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ons.gov.uk\/peoplepopulationandcommunity\/crimeandjustice\/bulletins\/crimeinenglandandwales\/yearendingjune2022#domestic-abuse-and-sexual-offences\">Domestic Abuse and Sexual Offenses<\/a>,\u201d <em>Crime in England and Wales: Year Ending June 2022<\/em> (UK: Office for National Statistics, 2022).<\/p>\n<p><sup>3<\/sup><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/tackling-violence-against-women-and-girls-strategy\/tackling-violence-against-women-and-girls-strategy\"><em>Tackling Violence against Women and Girls Strategy<\/em><\/a> (UK: Home Office, 2021).<\/p>\n<p><sup>4<\/sup>Robert P. Butters et al., \u201cIntimate Partner Violence Perpetrator Treatment: Tailoring Interventions to Individual Needs,\u201d <em>Clinical Social Work Journal<\/em> 49 (2021): 391\u2013404.<\/p>\n<p><sup>5<\/sup>Elizabeth Bates et al., \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/insight.cumbria.ac.uk\/id\/eprint\/2275\/1\/UK.BIP.Final%20EAB%20amendments.pdf\">A Review of Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programs in the United Kingdom<\/a>,\u201d <em>Partner Abuse<\/em> 8, no. 1 (2017): 3\u201346.<\/p>\n<p><sup>6<\/sup>Catherine Donovan and Sue Griffiths<em>, <\/em>\u201cDomestic Violence and Voluntary Perpetrator Programmes: Engaging Men in the Pre-Commencement Phase,\u201d <em>British Journal of Social Work<\/em> 45, no. 4 (June 2015): 1155\u20131171.<\/p>\n<p><sup>7<\/sup>UK Home Office, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/domestic-abuse-bill-2020-factsheets\/domestic-violence-disclosure-scheme-factsheet\">Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme Factsheet<\/a>,\u201d updated July 2022.<\/p>\n<p><sup>8<\/sup>Oliver et al., <a href=\"https:\/\/assets.publishing.service.gov.uk\/government\/uploads\/system\/uploads\/attachment_data\/file\/918897\/horr107.pdf\"><em>The Economic and Social Costs of Domestic Abuse<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Please cite as<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">David Ashton, \u201cReducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders:\u00a0Durham Constabulary MATAC,\u201d <em>Police Chief<\/em> 90, no. 3 (March 2023): 36\u201346.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Durham Constabulary in the UK is taking an innovative approach to reduce the harm caused by serial domestic abuse perpetrators. This approach, Multi-Agency Tasking and Coordination (MATAC), is significant as it shows how offender management principles are effective in working with perpetrators of domestic abuse. In particular, it demonstrates that diversion and support tactics are effective, rather than using more traditional policing tactics of disruption and enforcement. The approach also shows how police agencies can use data more intelligently to identify and rank those who are causing the most harm, thereby targeting resources where they are most likely to have the greatest impact. Finally, the approach emphasizes the effectiveness of a multiagency approach to tackling domestic abuse.<\/p>\n<p>MATAC uses offender management techniques to address the criminogenic behavior of offenders who have committed repeated offenses against a victim or multiple victims. The initiative has enabled a coordinated multiagency response to support victims and steer the offender to appropriate services. A thorough assessment demonstrates that MATAC is an effective means of reducing the harm and service demands caused by domestic abuse perpetrators and provides important insight into factors involved in serial domestic abuse offending.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4042,"featured_media":72448,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145,126],"tags":[642,678,1465,2346],"class_list":["post-72447","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research-evidence-based-policing","category-topics","tag-crime-reduction","tag-domestic-violence","tag-evidence-based-practices","tag-matac"],"acf":{"subtitle":"Durham Constabulary MATAC","post_author":"David Ashton, Detective Chief Superintendent, Durham Constabulary, United Kingdom","main_category":"Research & Evidence-Based Policing","legacy_article_id":"","legacy_issue_id":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.4 (Yoast SEO v24.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Reducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders - Police Chief Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Durham Constabulary in the UK is taking an innovative approach to reduce the harm caused by serial domestic abuse perpetrators. This approach, Multi-Agency Tasking and Coordination (MATAC), is significant as it shows how offender management principles are effective in working with perpetrators of domestic abuse. In particular, it demonstrates that diversion and support tactics are effective, rather than using more traditional policing tactics of disruption and enforcement. The approach also shows how police agencies can use data more intelligently to identify and rank those who are causing the most harm, thereby targeting resources where they are most likely to have the greatest impact. Finally, the approach emphasizes the effectiveness of a multiagency approach to tackling domestic abuse. MATAC uses offender management techniques to address the criminogenic behavior of offenders who have committed repeated offenses against a victim or multiple victims. The initiative has enabled a coordinated multiagency response to support victims and steer the offender to appropriate services. A thorough assessment demonstrates that MATAC is an effective means of reducing the harm and service demands caused by domestic abuse perpetrators and provides important insight into factors involved in serial domestic abuse offending.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Police Chief Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheIACP\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-03-01T13:00:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-02-12T16:07:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1412662044-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Margaret White\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@TheIACP\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@TheIACP\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Margaret White\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"25 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Margaret White\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/#\/schema\/person\/8ccef21069086f34ed017e84cdf4fe52\"},\"headline\":\"Reducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-01T13:00:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-12T16:07:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\"},\"wordCount\":4989,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1412662044-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"crime reduction\",\"domestic violence\",\"evidence-based practices\",\"MATAC\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Research & Evidence-Based Policing\",\"Topics\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\",\"name\":\"Reducing Harm Caused by Domestic Abuse Offenders - Police Chief Magazine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1412662044-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-01T13:00:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-12T16:07:59+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/reducing-harm-caused-by-domestic-abuse-offenders\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1412662044-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.policechiefmagazine.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/GettyImages-1412662044-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1920,\"caption\":\"Portrait of an upset woman with her head in her hands. 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