October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, with a spotlight on helping people get out of abusive relationships.

Perry Police Chief Eric Vaughn says his department deals with domestic calls nearly every day, and most of the time officers are called to diffuse tense situations. However, he says if things escalate, the police are equipped to act decisively. “In domestic situations, the laws have been created to give officers the ability to file charges against a perpetrator, without the victim having to step forward and do that themselves. Because sometimes that’s the most difficult part, because they’ve been in that relationship so long and feel that kind of oppression from a spouse or someone they live with that they just don’t feel like they can do it themselves. So the laws have been written so the police officers can step in and help out in that situation, and file those charges. And the law actually says in some certain situations we have to.”

Vaughn adds, many times what officers do in domestic situations is direct the parties to different services, including the Crisis Intervention Advocacy Center. He says there are offices in Perry and Adel, and they are capable of helping victims through the legal processes, finding a safe place to live temporarily, and answering any questions the victim may have. Above all, Vaughn says it’s important for people to seek help, in order to break the chain of violence and get everyone the care they need.

To hear more from Vaughn about this and other police-related topics, listen to yesterday’s and today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County programs at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.