“The video was extremely difficult to watch,” DPD Captain Dana Russell said about a brutal beating recorded at a Potbelly restaurant in Detroit.
“You can see that she has the will, the fight in her and we’re just really thinking about her,” added Haven CEO Christine Kinal. Haven is an emergency shelter for survivors of domestic violence in Oakland County.
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The case they’re referring to, happened last month in Detroit. The suspect accused of viciously beating his girlfriend at a Potbelly restaurant in Detroit last month was out on parole.
“With parole, there is a higher risk when there’s prior history of domestic violence,” Kinal said.
In this case, 30 year old Orlando Thomas Jr was on parole for unarmed robbery.
“This isn’t far off from what he did, you know, when you think of an armed robbery, this was a blatant assault with chairs and weapons in public,” Kinal said. “And if they’re willing to do it, and it’s on the menu, and they have the ability to do at once, there’s always a risk for someone to be able to do that again,” she added.
“If it happens in Detroit, we’re coming after you,” warned DPD Captain Russell. “We are definitely trying to make an impact in domestic violence and trying to stop the cycle.”
Last year, Detroit Police launched a domestic violence task force. “We do want to make sure that we handle the egregious cases, the ones where weapons are involved, so that you know someone doesn’t get hurt or murdered,” Russell said.
The Extreme Risk Protection Order is another tool for DPD. If a suspect accused of domestic violence has a lot of registered guns ..a judge can approve a search warrant to get those weapons off the street.
“If we can’t get them on the domestic violence charge because a victim doesn’t cooperate, then we go for the offender being in possession of the weapon while on parole or a convicted felon,” Russell said
“There are many people who leave parole and are very successful but there’s some that don’t - and those these are the high-risk situations,” Kinal pointed out.