Klamath County ranks third among Oregon’s 36 counties in terms of domestic violence per person…and the District Attorney is taking steps to reduce those numbers.
Klamath County District Attorney Rob Patridge says he’s making domestic violence cases a priority…
“We’ve got a domestic problem here in Klamath County, and we’ve got to deal with it.”
Patridge says one key is prosecuting defendants before they can abuse again.
Steven Matthew Onstead plead ‘guilty’ Tuesday to multiple domestic violence charges.
“He’s a repeat offender.” Notes D.A. Patridge. “We busted him in September, and took it to trial then, and here we are in January sending him to prison on new charges for 60 months.”
Patridge says Travis Fitzwater is another repeat offender…who plead ‘guilty’ to several charges this morning…
“We’ve got Mr. Fitzwater, who’s going to prison for 42 months, for tampering with witnesses, and coercion as well as the underlying assault.”
Doug Brunnemer was found guilty of assault and strangulation charges during a three day trial earlier this month…he’ll be sentenced in mid-February.
While prosecution efforts are paying off, Patridge says domestic abuse prevention will take a community effort…
“And we hope people will step forward to help us address some of these concerns, and better protect our community.”
Patridge adds that ‘Settlement Tuesdays’ are helping to resolve many repeat offender cases.
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