Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 1, 1995 TAG: 9506010070
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
She left home about a month ago, the day her husband followed her to a grocery store, angry that she was going somewhere without him. He cornered her, slammed her against a wall and pressed both hands over her nose, mouth and throat.
"I felt the life going totally out of my body," she said. "I really felt like he would kill me."
She is back home. He has been ordered out.
She never knows when he might "go off." Once the divorce papers are served, "I just don't know what he'll do," she said.
Wednesday, she sat in the audience at a news conference at the Turning Point - the Salvation Army's shelter for abused women - for the Roanoke-area launching of AWARE, an alarm system developed by ADT Security Systems for victims of domestic violence.
The small crowd that had gathered on the shelter's front lawn was told of her presence but not who she was or where she was seated.
She will be AWARE's first Roanoke-area participant.
"Sometimes, when you call the police, they're right there. Sometimes, they're not," she said. "With this, they would know that it's an emergency. They would know there was somebody who needed them in a hurry."
Two months ago, the Turning Point's advisory council agreed to oversee valleywide participation in AWARE, an acronym for Abused Women's Active Response Emergency. Participants likely will be women deemed at greatest risk of abuse based on their histories and those of their abusers.
ADT will provide the alarm systems - wiring, a wall-mounted panel and a necklace pendant, valued at $5,000 to $6,000 with installation - to participants at no charge.
The system is activated by pushing a button on the wall panel or the pendant. That triggers a silent alarm, alerting ADT's monitoring facilities. The facilities, in turn, notify law enforcement in the participant's locality.
The pendant has a limited range and is most effective inside the home. But it can be activated from outside, in a front or back yard.
ADT started the AWARE program four years ago. It is credited with saving the lives of 16 abused women.
The four-locality area - Roanoke, Roanoke County, Salem and Vinton - is the 33rd region in the country and the third in Virginia to participate in AWARE. AWARE has been operating in Richmond since January 1994 and the Virginia Beach area since October.
Jim Rice, district general manager for ADT in Western Virginia, said the company will provide as many systems as are needed.
"ADT's contribution to the safety and security of women in moments of fear and distress shows their corporate desire to be a good neighbor, to give something back to this community," Roanoke Mayor David Bowers said. "It's a great example of how charitable organizations and private companies working together with law enforcement can accomplish not only real crime prevention but also greater security for victims of domestic abuse."
Roanoke County Commonwealth's Attorney Skip Burkart said he and his staff will refer people to AWARE "if there's somebody who we think is a good candidate for it. I think it's a great idea."
To be considered for participation, applicants must meet certain criteria. Among other things, they must have a restraining order against the abuser, agree to prosecute and be in imminent danger.
Asked about the possibility of an abuser's ripping the control panel from a wall or the pendant from around a neck, Burkart said the abuser "shouldn't even be anywhere near there."
A participant "has got to have a protective order," he said. "As soon as the woman who has the system sees that abuser coming, she ought to hit that button."
And participants should not be lulled into believing they are safer solely because of the alarm system, Burkart said.
"They can't figure, 'Well, I've got this system, so I can just put my guard down and go wherever I want, do whatever I want,''' he said. "They still have to use common sense and be careful."
by CNB