COLUMBUS, Ohio — According to the Columbus Office of Violence Prevention, 41% of women at some point in their lives will experience intimate partner violence.

That’s why Mayor Andrew Ginther has tasked the office to work on preventing domestic violence in the city.

RELATED: Ohio Domestic Violence Network pushing for more state funding to address needs of victims

So far this year there have been 10 homicides in the city of Columbus and four of those are domestic violence related.
The city is working on prevention and resources for those impacted.

“We have really taken a two-pronged approach to lessen that in our community. The first is investing an unprecedented amount in victim’s services,” said Office of Violence Prevention Director Rena Shak.

Domestic violence homicides in the city of Columbus have significantly increased in the past three years.
Last year there were 23 domestic violence homicides, there were 25 in 2023 and seven in 2022.

“We will be undertaking a lot of research to figure out who are the individuals who are impacted by domestic violence, how can we best support them, whether it’s the new American community, or urban community. We really want to understand the problem,” Shak said. “We want the community to know there are resources out there. If you are experiencing domestic violence, we are here to connect you to those resources.”

If you or someone you know needs help to get out of an abusive situation, call the free National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or LSS CHOICES 24/7 hotline at 614-224-4663.

Survivors who do not want to make a phone call can chat with ODVN online here.

Additional resources can be found at the following links:

• Ohio Domestic Violence Network
• Center for Family Safety and Healing
• Ohio Women Against Domestic Violence 
• National Domestic Violence Hotline
• Columbus, OH Domestic Violence Help, Programs