Milwaukee domestic violence team report, death prevention efforts
Milwaukee domestic violence team report
Milwaukee's Domestic Violence High Risk Team, operated through Sojourner Family Peace Center, is seeing more than twice as many cases as it did six years ago.
MILWAUKEE - A new report sheds light on the challenges of preventing domestic violence deaths in Milwaukee before they turn deadly. Milwaukee's Domestic Violence High Risk Team (DVHRT), operated through Sojourner Family Peace Center, is seeing more than twice as many cases as it did six years ago.
Domestic violence cases
By the numbers:
The team staffed a total of 1,685 cases in 2025 – a 113% increase from 791 cases staffed in 2019. Repeat cases in which at least one person had previously been identified as high-risk made up a third of the caseload, according to the report.
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Dig deeper:
The report found three victims who had previously been identified as high-risk were murdered by their abuser – which the group says is a low homicide rate in comparison to the 10,000 high-risk cases identified since the team was created. However, advocates say the risk of death significantly increases when victims are not connected with services and support.
Sojourner Family Peace Center
"A trend that is concerning to me is that, the reality is that most of the couples for whom someone ends up dying were not known to Sojourner. They were not known to law enforcement prior to that lethal incident," Erin Shubert, Sojourner director of outcomes and evaluation, said.
The report found the team was typically brought in only after law enforcement responded to a particularly deadly or abusive incident. The group said one of its goals is to intervene earlier, before an emergency response is necessary. In addition, raising community awareness of domestic violence, implementing universal screening, and providing education surrounding healthy relationships are all prevention methods the team is working to provide.
What you can do:
Sojourner offers a 24-hour hotline and crisis shelter for those in need of support. The hotline phone number is (414) 933-2722. Those in need of support can also text 414-877-8100.
Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6’s Nicole Herzog and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing.
The Source: Information in this story was gathered from the 2025 Milwaukee Domestic Violence High Risk Team report, Sojourner Family Peace Center, and Sojourner Director of Outcomes and Evaluation Erin Shubert.