The Big Picture: Mass DV Murder in Gwinnett

Monday, August 31, 2009

Mass DV Murder in Gwinnett

The AJC is reporting the deaths of four people and injuries to a four-year old in Gwinnett County:

Inside the two-story home on Clairidge Lane, police found the dead and the dying. Atania Butler, 28; her 11-year-old daughter; and Rico Zimmerman, 19, lay dead of gunshot wounds. Lakeisha Parker, 30, was taken to Gwinnett Medical Center. She later died.

The 4-year-old, also Butler’s daughter, was taken to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite for surgery. Police have released neither her name nor her condition.

Within hours, police posted an alert for 44-year-old Richard T. Ringold, saying he was armed and dangerous. Authorities believe he was Butler’s boyfriend.

Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter said investigators believe the incident started out as a domestic dispute but quickly escalated into the county’s biggest multi-victim slaying in more than two decades. Ringold apparently began an argument with Butler in the front yard, pulled a gun, took her inside and shot her, Porter said.

Phil Wiley, chief assistant district attorney, said investigators believe Butler lived in the home with her two children. Parker was her friend and just happened to be there. Investigators are unsure how Zimmerman knew the victims, but it was his girlfriend who escaped the home and called 911, he said.

“She said when he came in, he just started opening fire and started shooting at everybody,” Wiley said.

At the risk of sounding repetitive, we have to emphasize once again that domestic violence is not just a private family matter. Friends and family members of victims and even innocent bystanders are regularly caught in the cross hairs. Police consider domestic violence calls to be some of the most dangerous to which to respond because of the degree of violence of which abusers are often capable. This is why planning for your safety while in or while leaving an abusive relationship is so vitally important. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please contact our 24-hour hotline at (404) 688-9436 or the national domestic violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE to make your plan.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is the establishment of control and fear in a relationship through physical, sexual, emotional, and/or financial abuse. Both men and women are capable of misusing power and perpetrating violence, and male victims are often just as afraid to call the police. More resources for female survivors exist, however, because overwhelmingly women and children suffer the most severe consequences (medical, legal, social, and financial) and therefore require the most intensive interventions.

Many women choose to stay in abusive relationships because they do not want their relationship to end...just the violence. Women often remain in, or return to, abusive relationships because their partners threaten to harm them and their loved ones if they attempt to leave. Commonly, women choose to leave when they become convinced that their life is at risk, or that their children are in danger.

Domestic violence is not just a "family matter". The violence will not stop until men and women come together with a common attitude of non-tolerance. We must speak out for those who may not feel safe speaking up, and our children must learn through our words and example that violence is never justified.