CLARK COUNTY, Wash. — In the days following a murder-suicide that claimed the lives of five people, one Clark County organization said they've received an alarming increase in calls for help in cases of domestic violence.
The Clark County Sheriff's Office released the names of the five people who died in an apparent murder-suicide in the Orchards neighborhood just outside Vancouver on Sunday. The suspect is identified as 64-year-old Stuart K. Rouse. Deputies believe Rouse killed his wife, Cristina; his brother, Ronald; and his two adult daughters, Kristina, 33, and Melissa, 19, before turning the gun on himself.
"We know that domestic violence has no bounds," said Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) Clark County CEO Brittini Lasseigne. "It can be any gender, it can be any race, it can be any financial situation, it can be any familial situation."
According to the YWCA, they've seen a 50% increase in calls to the 24-hour domestic violence hotline. Normally, on average, they get about 23 calls per day. Over the past four days, that average increased to 38.
Lasseigne explained that after such a horrific incident, some reflect on their own situation or that of a loved one.
"They take that step to reach out because they realize that it could've been them," she said, "And they want to try and find safety before something larger happens."
She said the holiday season can be an additional stressor, and they've historically seen a rise in domestic violence cases and calls during this time of year.
"It was a year and one day ago that we had a domestic violence incident of a man who murdered his baby and shot his wife," said Lasseigne, "This year, we have seen 10 homicides in our community. We as a community are grappling with that. It's senseless violence, and we want to protect our community and find a solution so that we are not seeing this happen anymore."
YWCA Clark County is calling for donations this time of year in order to help them support more people who call in for assistance. Despite the high call volume, they're available to help with shelter and housing, support for protection orders, and safety planning.