Taking a stand

Led by determined policewoman Suzanne Newton, an amazing group of women from the country town of Taree have come together to provide support and protection for women in distress. Together, they are bringing about lasting change.

After almost three hours’ negotiation with a frightened client, a harried hospital social worker and a busy magistrate, Senior Constable Suzanne Newton is mentally drained. But the domestic violence liaison officer has achieved what she set out to do: get a Taree magistrate to approve her application for an Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (a type of restraining order) against a father of two who poses a serious threat to the life of his family and himself. 

The man, who has a long history of drug abuse, psychotic behaviour and domestic violence, was discharged from a Sydney psychiatric ward that morning and was expected to head to the town of Taree, where he lives. On hearing the news of his release, the man’s mother-in-law called the Taree Police Station as her daughter (the man’s wife) fled with her children to a safe place where they could hide. During the man’s latest spell in hospital, his wife informed him she wanted a separation – the woman, her mother and Senior Constable Newton were acutely aware that this announcement could trigger more alarming behaviour from the aggrieved and disturbed man. “All the statistics show that the most dangerous time in familial homicides is when the woman raises the possibility of separation,” Sue explains.

Alas, the domestic violence liaison officer knows what she’s talking about. She’s been to houses, time and again, where she’s found frightened women and children in distress. Sometimes a mother will have locked herself in a bedroom with her children to escape a man’s blows; other times, a woman in a pristine house will conceal cuts and welts, and vehemently deny her partner’s abuse – despite having called 000 only a few hours before.

Sue has been in the police force for almost 20 years. She started her career in Newcastle, where she was one of two women in a station of more than 50 men. There, she performed general duties and worked in the child mistreatment unit. During this time, the policewoman saw things that tested her mental strength far more than her colleagues’ patriarchal attitudes. “When you witness systematic abuse by a man who trained his greyhound dogs to penetrate a young girl for years, it turns your stomach,” she says grimly. “You know nothing will shock you as much again.”

By the time Sue was assigned to Taree in 1996, she had also experienced the frustration many police feel when dealing with victims of domestic violence. Inevitably, women are so cowed by years of being told they’re ‘worthless sluts’ and worse, it’s a long journey before they are emotionally strong enough to defend themselves and take control of their lives.

In Taree, Sue became frustrated by the time spent on many of these cases; in the Aboriginal community especially, she found it almost impossible to build a rapport with women, who distrusted anyone in a police uniform. “It was clear the Koori community was wary of police. I realised it was going to take years to build relationships with victims as a result.” Sue was also dissatisfied with the time lag between police intervention in a domestic-violence incident and any follow-up by welfare agencies. “The twenty-four-hour period following a domestic-violence incident is critical; it’s during this time that you can bring about change,” she says.

So, in November 1999, Sue invited her network of community representatives to a public meeting and outlined a bold plan to change the way victims of domestic violence were supported in the Manning/Great Lakes area. Her vision was for civilian staff and police to work together under one roof. These welfare workers would use unmarked police cars and police radios, have access to police records and would step in immediately after police had responded to a crisis and filed the paperwork. “We needed people working within the police system to provide the kind of specialist support that domestic violence cases required. We needed to do things differently to obtain better outcomes for victims, the community and police.”

The solicitors, psychologists, social workers, and representatives from the court, local women’s refuge and Koori community who attended Sue’s meeting were inspired by her proposal and gave it a unanimous thumbs-up. “I was encouraged by the support I was shown,” Sue recalls. “But I knew this wasn’t going to happen overnight and it would take a lot of hard work.”

However, the policewoman was persistent. She knew her vision challenged police protocol and practice, and sensed she would have to work hard to make the hierarchy take notice. Fortunately, Sue had sympathetic station commanders who were also keen to improve support for domestic-violence victims in the area.

She realised the police authorities would not fund her idea, so she turned to Leonie McGuire, who at the time was manager of Lyn’s Place, Taree’s only women’s refuge. Together they penned many funding applications for a proposed Police/Women’s Refuge Partnership Against Domestic Violence Project, and for two years collected nothing but rejection slips.

Undeterred, the pair struck gold in late 2001 with a $75,000 commitment from the Casino Community Benefit Fund. “We were pleased, but I knew it wasn’t enough,” Sue says. “I went to my commander and told him we’d have to give the money back because the strategy wasn’t going to work without a police car and radio back-up.”

But Sue and Leonie are not women who give up easily. Thanks to the support of a five-person committee which did a lot of legwork and paperwork, and ceaseless lobbying and networking by everyone concerned, the team made a breakthrough. A cheque from the NSW Police Minister’s Discretionary Fund enabled them to lease a police car for the project and, after persistent lobbying by Sue, the NSW Premier’s Department offered funding for two years. The domestic violence project could now afford to employ additional staff, including another Koori representative. “We were given the opportunity to show what we could achieve,” says Sue.

The Police/Women’s Refuge Partnership Against Domestic Violence Project finally kicked off in May 2002. Sue says the project would not have worked if all the parties involved didn’t have a common goal: helping women in distress and reducing the incidence of domestic violence in the Manning Valley district. “Police work in a paramilitary organisation; refuge workers come from a strongly feminist background. You couldn’t get two more different bedfellows!”

Beyond the pretty sun-kissed countryside and sparkling tributaries that wind their way through Manning Valley to NSW’s mid north coast, there are alarming statistics about domestic violence in the community. According to a 2005 Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research report, on average between six and nine per cent of women over the age of 18 are physically assaulted each year. Most victims of domestic violence are aged between 20 and 39, while the assailant is typically a current or former partner. In the Greater Taree/Manning Valley area, which has a population of 42,838, the domestic-violence project currently has 1,200 clients on its books. On average, the domestic-violence project processes 30 new clients a month – about one new case each day.

Sue says she initially thought four staff members would be plenty to tackle domestic assaults in the region – ”overkill even,” she laughs mirthlessly – but she’s since realised the extent of need. “We couldn’t deal with our client caseload without the four workers we have now,” she says.

If you are a victim of domestic violence in need of help, call 1800 200 526.

Break the cycle

Both men and women caught in the vortex of domestic violence find it difficult to grasp the fact physical and emotional abuse is inexcusable.

An Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (a type of restraining order) can break this cycle. Senior Constable Michelle Gray, a domestic violence liaison officer explains: “Restraining orders are a civil matter between two people, not a criminal matter as many women believe. It’s important women know their rights. An ex-boyfriend who harasses a woman with abusive text messages can be stopped with a restraining order, as can a man who constantly threatens to belt a woman and her children. If a man breaks the court order, it becomes a criminal matter, which means the police can step in.”

 

By Josephine Brouard. Photography: Scott Hawkins. Styling: Nicholas Sholl. Hair & make-up: Jay Jay Rauwenhoff.