(AP) – Domestic violence cases have sharply increased in Texas in recent years.
The Houston Chronicle reports that state figures show more than 214,000 wives, husbands, girlfriends and others were injured or died in 2016 at the hands of a family member. State statistics show that’s an increase from about 193,000 in 2011.
In Houston, local police report they received more than 24,000 domestic violence cases in the first 10 months of this year. That’s a 45 percent increase over a similar period in 2013.
The Texas Council on Family Violence says the state continues “to underestimate the reach and devastation of domestic violence.”
The gunman in the recent church shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas, had a history of domestic violence. Victim advocates say the shooting is an example of how domestic violence often spill out into public spaces.
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