West Virginia’s current domestic violence response system is failing victims and leaving dangerous gaps in safety, accountability, and enforcement.

I am calling on West Virginia lawmakers to urgently reform domestic violence laws to better protect survivors, ensure proper law enforcement response, and prevent victims from being criminalized for defending themselves.

In states like Tennessee, domestic violence enforcement is handled more strictly when there is probable cause of abuse. Law enforcement response is more structured, accountability is clearer, and victim safety is prioritized more directly at the scene. West Virginia needs to move toward stronger, faster, and more consistent protections.

Right now in West Virginia, response times can be delayed depending on location and staffing, and there are often not enough officers or emergency responders available to consistently handle domestic violence calls with urgency. In life-threatening situations, response time matters. Victims deserve fast, coordinated responses where safety is the immediate priority.

No victim should ever be left wondering if they will be arrested for defending themselves, if they will lose their child or job for reporting abuse, or if help will even arrive in time when they call.

We must do better.

I am calling on West Virginia lawmakers to strengthen domestic violence response laws to prioritize victim safety when there is clear evidence of abuse, improve law enforcement training to correctly identify the primary aggressor in domestic violence situations, ensure victims acting in self-defense are not criminalized when evidence shows they were protecting themselves, increase staffing and resources for police and EMT response to domestic violence emergencies, improve emergency response times for domestic violence calls, strengthen enforcement of domestic violence protective orders so violations are taken seriously and acted on immediately, reform DVPOs so they provide real protection instead of just paperwork that can be ignored or violated without consequences, and improve accountability systems for repeat domestic violence offenders.

Domestic violence protective orders in their current form are not enough. Many victims feel like they are only given a piece of paper while aggressors can continue contact, violate orders, and threaten safety with little immediate consequence. That is not protection  that is delay.

Victims in West Virginia should not feel unprotected in their own homes or unsupported by the system meant to protect them. No one should have to choose between survival and fear of legal consequences.

I started advocating for this after witnessing domestic violence situations involving my own family. In one case, my sister was assaulted and choked by her partner. She defended herself during the attack, and was later told by responding officers that while she could press charges, she could also potentially face charges depending on the injuries on both sides. She has a young child, and this situation left her terrified of losing her job, her child, or being arrested simply for protecting herself. The next day, another one of my sisters was attacked by the same individual. She also defended herself. Even though there was evidence that he was the primary aggressor, law enforcement focused on visible marks on him and did not treat the situation as a clear domestic violence assault or immediately pursue charges. These experiences showed me how inconsistent, confusing, and unsafe the current system can feel for victims in West Virginia.

West Virginia has an opportunity to modernize its domestic violence response system and align it with stronger, more effective protections used in other states.

It is time for change.