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5 <br /> 1 WHEREAS, in North Carolina, according to the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic <br /> 2 Violence, at least 73 individuals were murdered by a current or former intimate partner in 2023 <br /> 3 and at least 63 have been murdered so far in 2024; and <br /> 4 <br /> 5 WHEREAS, at least two Orange County residents have been murdered so far this year by a <br /> 6 current or former intimate partner or family member; and <br /> 7 <br /> 8 WHEREAS, Compass Center, the state-designated domestic violence service provider for <br /> 9 Orange County, serves more than 1,300 survivors of domestic violence each year through its 24- <br /> 10 hour domestic violence crisis line, support groups, court and community advocacy, Latinx <br /> 11 programs, career and financial counseling, and other services and engages thousands more in <br /> 12 prevention education and outreach; and <br /> 13 <br /> 14 WHEREAS, Compass Center has collaborated with numerous local agencies over the last two <br /> 15 years to bring the Lethality Assessment Protocol (LAP) Program to Orange County, which trains <br /> 16 first responders to screen for lethality risk factors and directly connect highest-risk victims to the <br /> 17 Compass Center, and is now receiving on-scene referrals from LAP-trained officers with the <br /> 18 Orange County Sheriff's Office, and the Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and Hillsborough police <br /> 19 departments; and <br /> 20 <br /> 21 WHEREAS, preventing domestic violence requires the collective awareness, care, and action of <br /> 22 individuals, institutions, and systems to transform our communities through social norms, policies, <br /> 23 and laws that reject violence and abuse and promote healthy relationships based on respect, <br /> 24 trust, and equity; <br /> 25 <br /> 26 NOW, THEREFORE, we, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners, do hereby <br /> �g proclaim October 2024 to be: <br /> 29 <br /> 30 "Domestic Violence Awareness Month" <br /> 31 <br /> 32 and encourage the residents of Orange County to observe this time in ways appropriate to its <br /> 33 importance and significance. <br /> 34 Proclaimed this the 1 st day of October, 2024. <br /> 35 <br /> 36 <br /> 37 Jamezetta Bedford, Chair <br /> 38 Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> 39 <br /> 40 A motion was made by Commissioner Hamilton, seconded by Vice-Chair Greene, to <br /> 41 approve and authorize the Chair to sign the proclamation. <br /> 42 <br /> 43 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 44 <br /> 45 Rachel Mandell and Cay Stratton, Compass Center Board members, thanked the Board <br /> 46 for adopting this proclamation. Rachel Mandell said as prevalent as domestic violence is, there is <br /> 47 still a silence around it. She said being able to talk about it in this open forum is important and <br /> 48 they appreciate the Board's time and commitment to this. She said the Compass Center has seen <br /> 49 an over 40% increase in the number of people calling the hotline, 200% increase in the number <br /> 50 of people calling about housing crises, and almost 100% increase in the number of people <br /> 51 responding to the Spanish speaking services. She said she hopes the Board will also recognize <br />