Domestic violence in Milwaukee on the rise

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee police are responding to more domestic violence calls, but advocates say police work alone won't solve the problem.

It's a life Kalon Fleming said she lived for 15 years.

"Every day was a fear, every day," the domestic violence survivor said. "It was physical abuse, it was mental abuse, and emotional abuse."

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She said she was in a toxic marriage and raising three kids.

"I had nowhere to go and for that reason, I stayed there," Fleming said.

It was one of her kids that gave her the courage to leave. He told his doctor he only felt comfortable with one parent: his mother.

"I had one of two choices: either I act like I didn’t hear him, or I react, and that’s what I did," Fleming said.

She packed up her kids and left.

She now works as an advocate and case manager for the ASHA Project, an organization that supports survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking.

"We’re out at doors, we’re accompanying these people to appointments, and grocery shopping," she said.

Data from the Milwaukee Police Department shows a 12% jump in total domestic violence cases from 2022 to 2023. So far, cases in 2024 have already outpaced 2023.

MPD criminal investigation bureau inspector Paul Lough said the city recently expanded its domestic violence high-risk team to eight officers. They work with victim and survivor advocates.

"It’s a call that officers are responding to almost nightly or daily," he said.

ASHA Project director Antonia Drew Norton said incarceration alone will not solve the problem.

"It’s a lot of mental health issues going on, addictions that are not being addressed," she said. 

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She wants more counseling for abusers and survivors, pointing out the majority of their clients are African American.

"You’re talking about a community that has been built on adverse childhood experiences," she said. "Populations that have trauma after trauma and into adulthood."

Big picture solutions take time. Advocates like Kalon say for now, they are trying to help one client at a time.

"I see myself in these women," she said. "They’re crying out for help, they’re crying out for shelter."

If you or someone you know needs help, the National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).