Advocates say Connecticut domestic abuse victims continue to receive protection and life-saving services through a program that assesses the danger level of abusive relationships.
While use of the Lethality Assessment Program (LAP) has been widespread, but voluntary, for years, training and deployment is now mandatory across all state and local public safety agencies.
“This means that they can never take LAP away,” says Meghan Scanlon, CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence (CCADV). “And, it means that future generations of law enforcement and advocates and survivors should have this tool, no matter what, to try to keep people safe.”
LAP begins with a questionnaire used by police responding to domestic violence calls. It includes eleven questions including, “Has he/she threatened to kill you or your children?” and “Have you left him/her or separated after living together or being married?”
More than half of the 102,000 LAP screenings conducted in the state since 2012 returned a result of “high danger.”
Survivor Adanna Springer is a member of CCADV’s Survivor Leadership Committee. She says police, responding to several domestic violence calls involving her former partner, used LAP to assess her situation and guide her to safety and vital services:
“Those questions from that first assessment really changed my outlook on the life I was in and made me want to do better. They did connect me with the member organizations, and they have wonderful people there who will help guide you through their process.”
“Immediately on scene, the victim should get connected to services and safety planning at the minimum,” says Scanlon, “and then there will be follow up for more in-depth services after they get the safety planning in place.”
“Our eighteen sites across the state will then work with the individual and any dependents around what other supports they need, from court advocacy to children’s services to shelter, counseling, support groups, employment services, all of those things.”
The program was discussed in a Thursday press conference at the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) in Middletown. DESPP Commissioner Ronnell Higgins said, “We are doing a better job teaching young people or recruits in the police academy about how to keep people safe. Right now, we have a lot to be proud of because it is a model for other states to follow.”
There’s more about LAP at ctlap.org, and the Safe Connect hotline for victims is (888) 774-2900.