GREENE COUNTY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Several domestic violence incidents have made headlines recently, including one that turned fatal in Greene County.
A woman and her son were killed and buried in a shallow grave, and another woman was seriously injured last week because of what authorities call domestic violence related attacks.
The woman and son were Samantha Jerrell and her 14-year-old son Colton, who was a student at Linton-Stockton High School. Principal Michael Riggleman says the hardest part for the school’s counselors and social worker is getting people to speak up.
“We use the phrase see something, say something,” Riggleman said. “That’s the hardest part is to get them to reach out to ask for those services, so we do have different programs that we use throughout the year to make students aware of the resources that are out there if they need or if they are in the need of assistance.”
Riggleman says that ministers from around the area have came to the school to help students cope with the loss of their peer.
“As the need arises, our community is really great about stepping up and helping out, I don’t see that being any different honestly,” Riggleman said. “It’s not just Linton, it’s our surrounding area as well. They have all expressed concern and support for us during this time.”
Authorities say Jerrell and Colton were killed by Jerrell’s ex-husband. Also last week, 34-year-old Michael Sheppard was accused of attacking and nearly killing a woman who obtained a protective order against him.
CODA executive director Emily Murray says the most dangerous time in an abusive relationship is when the victim attempts to leave.
“It’s really important to me that folks sit down with a domestic violence program and say, ‘can we make a safety plan?’,” Murray said. “Or ‘what can you do to just help me leave? What can you help me do to file a protective order and make sure that I’m safe or help make sure that I’m safe after I’ve filed that protective order?’ So it’s just working with your program to see how we can keep people safe.”
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. For additional resources, see below:
