ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Drivers in St. Petersburg may notice a little splash of color on the city’s police cruisers this October.
In observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, St. Petersburg Police now have purple awareness ribbons stuck on their vehicles.
According to Chief Anthony Holloway, the goal of the domestic violence ribbon magnets is to raise awareness that help is available, and domestic violence is unacceptable in our community.
"As [drivers are] driving down the street they'll see that on one of our police cars as a reminder that if their friend, relative or someone is going through something to get them help,” said Holloway. “Domestic is one of our biggest issues that we see, a lot of people don't like to talk about it and if we can break that cycle then we can really help our community."
“We WANT victims to reach out so that we can get them the help that they need,” read a statement released by St. Petersburg Police. “We WANT victims to be safe so they can live in peace. We WANT children to grow up in a home where they do not have to witness domestic violence. We want to prevent domestic violence homicides. If you are a victim of domestic violence, help is available. Call us.”
According to department statistics, St. Petersburg Police received over 8,000 domestic-related calls for service in 2017 alone. Fifteen victims were killed in a domestic-related homicide from 2013 to 2017 in St. Pete.
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