Domestic Violence Awareness Month Highlights Crisis and Local Response

Bryan Stalder
Contributor

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a time to spotlight an issue that continues to escalate both nationally and locally. While violent crime overall has declined across the country, domestic violence-related cases are climbing. The Council on Criminal Justice reports increases in both the frequency and severity of intimate partner violence, with firearms playing a greater role in deadly encounters.

Kansas City is experiencing this crisis firsthand. As of late September, the city has recorded 18 domestic violence homicides in 2025—already surpassing last year’s total of 12. An April 2025 report from the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) confirms what advocates have long warned: cases are not only more frequent but increasingly brutal. Survivors are reporting higher levels of threats involving strangulation, firearms, and explicit death threats.

Lisa Fleming, CEO of Rose Brooks Center, one of the city’s leading domestic violence service providers, said hotline calls have more than doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic, now averaging over 1,000 a month. “That severity of the intensity—that’s what seems to be going up and that’s what’s leading to more of those domestic violence homicides,” Fleming said.

Local shelters are stretched thin, with available beds full nearly every day. Courtney Thomas, President and CEO of Newhouse, emphasized that while emergency responses save lives, long-term solutions require investment in prevention and wrap-around services. “Our 24/7 Crisis Hotline rings an average of 42 times a day,” she said. “But the calls keep coming, even when our shelter is full.”

Founded in 1971, Newhouse was Kansas City’s first domestic violence shelter and remains the only one located in the city’s urban core. Today, it has grown into a hub of holistic care for survivors, offering far more than temporary housing. Services include a full-time early childhood education center, therapy for adults and children, legal advocacy, job readiness support, and even an executive chef who prepares three hot meals a day.

“Food is medicine, and many who come into the shelter come from food-insecure environments,” Thomas said. “We want to eliminate as many of those daily worries as possible so survivors can focus on healing.”

This year, Newhouse is undergoing major renovations thanks to funding from the Lowe’s Hometowns initiative, which restores spaces serving as “hubs and heartbeats” of their communities. Updates include a remodeled kitchen, laundry facilities, children’s play areas, and refreshed common spaces where families can gather. For Thomas, these changes go beyond infrastructure: “This isn’t about upgrading walls—it’s about creating a space where survivors can start to feel whole again.”

Rachel Hodgson, Chief Marketing Officer at Newhouse, said these upgrades reflect the shelter’s mission. “Newhouse is Kansas City’s oldest domestic violence shelter, but we are so much more than that,” Hodgson said. “We provide life-transforming services so survivors can create new lives. That means not just safety, but dignity and long-term healing.”

The urgency of this work is clear. In 2024, Kansas City-area shelters served about 10,000 people, but nearly 25,000 requests for help went unmet due to lack of space or resources. And Missouri consistently ranks among the top 10 deadliest states for women killed by their abusers.

The recent death of 42-year-old Braisen Nicole Cain underscores the human cost of this crisis. Cain, a mother of five and pregnant with her sixth child, was killed in her front yard of her Scarritt Renaissance home on August 6. Authorities say her assailant was her former boyfriend, who has since been charged with murder. Her death marked Kansas City’s 18th domestic violence-related homicide this year.

Advocates stress that behind every number is a family, a neighborhood, and a community in mourning. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence calls for stronger legislative action, more resources for survivors, and greater public awareness.

For those seeking help, the Rose Brooks Center operates a 24/7 hotline at 816-861-6100. Newhouse runs a similar hotline at 816-471-5800. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is also available at 1-800-799-SAFE.