Our state doesn’t want to be on this top ten list. Out of all the states in the country, this one has the sixth highest rate of domestic abuse.
A police department in Upstate is telling people to come forward and get the help they need.
This happens after a man killed his wife and her friend. Chief of Police for Mauldin, George Miller, said that domestic violence went on for years without being recorded.
“We had never seen this kind of domestic violence before,” Kristi Vicars, a victim’s advocate with the Mauldin Police Department, said.
Police say Mariellen Bessent Minor became more and more scared of her separated husband in the months and weeks before she died. Kim Thrift, her friend, came with her to get her kids from his place.
“After it was over, a lot of people told us they were scared for her safety,” Chief Miller said. “From what we heard, it was both physical and verbal abuse.”
Christopher Minor is said to have killed his wife and her friend in the parking lot of the Brookfield Apartments where he lived, cutting short the custody swap.
Advocates for victims can help plan visits with children that aren’t watched. Vicars said it’s best to meet at a safe place, like the police station when there is domestic abuse.
In 2022, there were more than 28,000 reports of domestic violence attacks across the state. Vicars wants to make sure that other victims don’t join those numbers.
“Those victims will try to go back to the stable situation they knew if you don’t help them right away and get the resources they need.”
“We see a lot of domestic violence here in Mauldin,” Vicar told the group.
The CDC says that 42% of women in South Carolina have been victims of domestic abuse at some point in their lives.
These kinds of things often don’t get recorded, like what happened to Mariellen.
“I think it was because she didn’t want it to be known or seen by other people.” “Not many people knew,” Chief Miller said.
The Mauldin Police Department has things that can help.
“We can try to set up intake calls with Safety Harbor or Mary’s House if they don’t have somewhere to go.” Those are two different places where people who have been sexually assaulted or abused at home can go. “They can take them in, give them food, help them get jobs, and connect them with other resources to get back on their feet,” Vicars said.
Vicars told victims to write down what injuries they have, get help from the police or a number, make a safety plan, and keep important papers and things they need in a safe place they can easily get to.
Vicars said that people who are close to the abuser should also be careful and know the signs, such as avoiding family and friends and defending the attacker.
“Tell someone what you see. Get the cops. Let us know by calling us, and we’ll send an officer out. A vicar said, “They can check the house and make sure everyone is okay.”
