Dear Editor:
I am writing as a resident of Isanti County in response to two articles in last week’s issue of the Isanti County News (March 15). I appreciate the efforts that our community is making to acknowledge and address domestic violence as reported on the front page story, “Isanti, Kanabec, and Chisago counties participate in domestic violence action day.”
However, I was saddened to see several pages later that the county attorney’s office chose to prosecute a women with a drug charge who had called the police to save her life from abuse. In his efforts to raise awareness about domestic violence, I hope that our county attorney, Jeff Edblad, will seek additional training for his staff to understand the barriers that victims of abuse face in reaching out to the police for help.
Prosecuting victims in their attempt to break the isolation and cycle of violence deters them from seeking the help their lives depend on. Police and prosecutors use their discretion when determining their response to such calls. Our priority should be safety, and our justice system should ensure that safety is accessible to those who desperately need it.
Taryn Tessneer
Cambridge