Description: Responding effectively to reports of strangulation can be difficult. Strangulation cuts off the breathing or blood circulation of a victim, and can cause serious injury or even death. A perpetrator may release and re-apply pressure to the neck repeatedly – emphasizing over and over again that the perpetrator has power and control over the victim. Because strangulation can occur without leaving a physical mark, perpetrators may tell victims that they “won’t be believed.” Other forms of physical or medical evidence are often unavailable to corroborate a victim’s statement. Furthermore, strangulation victims often experience extreme trauma, and may have difficulty recalling and clearly expressing what they experienced. Due to growing recognition of the seriousness of this offense, the Indiana legislature, as well as those in several other states, recently enhanced the crime of strangulation from a misdemeanor to a felony. The legislature, however, did not develop a framework to guide investigations of this dangerous crime. Because evidence of strangulation is not commonly understood, relevant evidence may be missed, and the quality of an investigation may suffer. The crime of strangulation remains difficult to investigate, document, and prosecute. The good news is that there are promising new “best practices” that have emerged from local jurisdictions across the country. Research and experience shows how many of these practices can make a big difference to improve the response to strangulation in local communities.

Speaker: Kelsey McKay was an Assistant District Attorney in Texas who specialized in handling domestic violence, sex crime, and strangulation cases. She now travels the country in high demand as a consultant to provide training on the latest research and emerging best practices for effectively responding to strangulation. Please put this important event on your calendars and plan to attend. We have organized this training in the hope that local stakeholders will be inspired to work together to implement some of these “emerging best practices” in our own community.

This Training is FREE and offers 3.5 nursing CEs.  

For more information, please contact Kathryn Pedigo at kpedigo@iuhealth.org.