In the first phase this year of “Project Safe Home,” DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested 21 persons charged with misdemeanor domestic violence offenses.

Sheriff Melody M. Maddox said today that the arrests – all without incident – are among the most dangerous jobs in law enforcement, as the process involves locating individuals and taking them into custody for such offenses as Battery, Assault, Stalking, Criminal Trespass, Family Violence Battery, and Cruelty to Children.

The two-day operation was initiated last year in May, when there were noticeable increases in law enforcement agency reports of domestic violence incidents as families, spouses, and domestic partners sheltered-in-place for months during the pandemic.

About 15 DeKalb County Sheriff’s Deputies and Criminal Process Investigators were involved in this week’s operation, which cleared 35 warrants after 78 attempts.

TOO MANY ADS? GO AD-FREE
Did You Know?: The ads you see on this site help pay for our website and our work. However, we know some of our readers would rather pay and not see ads. For those users we offer a paid newsletter that contains our articles with no ads.
What You Get: A daily email digest of our articles in full-text with no ads.

Since its inception, Project Safe Home has made 92 arrests, which account for many more actual incidents because some suspects were wanted on multiple warrants.

“Domestic violence offenses are intolerable,” Maddox said. “They are generally very personal. They affect relationships between men and women. They affect innocent children who are caught up in adult situations. They can result in families being torn apart – sometimes permanently.

“The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office is committed to making a positive impact on these domestic issues by bringing offenders to justice.”

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Two Georgia teenagers dead from apparent gunshot wounds