By: Julie Chang
Calls to Austin domestic abuse shelters have spiked and Austin police believe a woman has died at the hands of her boyfriend in recent days, a worrying sign that family violence could be another byproduct of the coronavirus pandemic.
Compared with the same period last year, the SAFE Alliance, which operates emergency shelters and provides services to domestic abuse victims in Central Texas, saw a 15% increase in calls — about 334 in total — to its hotline during the week of March 16 when social distancing restrictions and school closures started becoming more widespread.