Isolation order doesn’t spike county DV, suicide case rate

Domestic violence and suicide rates have decreased in Kootenai County since residents were urged to stay at home because of cornoavirus concerns.

The decrease comes as a surprise to many, including some public officials who feared that being shut in would cause a rise in suicides and domestic violence.

The number of reported self-harm cases dropped off this year during the governor’s stay-at-home order compared to the same period last year and the year before, Sgt. Chris Wagar of the sheriff’s office said Monday.

Deputies this year and a year ago — from March 1 to April 16 — reported 73 suicide or self-harm calls, Wagar said. Of the 73 calls this year, 24 were considered valid compared to 28 last year.

Two years ago, the county received 71 suicide calls that resulted in 43 people taken into protective custody. That means they were admitted to the hospital, or underwent psychological evaluation at a crisis center.

“The numbers have actually gone down,” Wagar said. “If you look at two years ago, they have gone down drastically.”

Each time dispatchers send deputies to check on a call, it’s logged as a self-harm call. It could be that a relative or neighbor thinks someone needs help. Sometimes the calls are erroneous, Wagar said.

“They go investigate, and they could be non-events,” he said.

If the people ask for help, or if deputies believe a person needs counseling or intervention, the people may be taken into custody. Those calls are logged as legitimate suicide calls.

So far this spring, two documented suicide cases have been logged, compared to three last year, and eight in 2018.

“We want to have zero cases,” he said. “It’s not a good number by any means.”

A lot of people believed Gov. Brad Little’s stay-at-home order would result in an increase in domestic violence as people, facing the stress of joblessness and forfeiting the usual outside entertainment, were cooped up inside.

So far, that hasn’t happened.

Deputies this year, during the March to April period, have logged 107 domestic violence calls compared to 131 last year, and 148 two years ago.

The two-year reduction is about a 30 percent decrease.

Wagar said his department has received a slew of calls regarding a social media post Sunday that purported 73 suicides over the March to April period.

He said that was wrong, and there has been an increase in misinformation on social media platforms.

“I’ve been getting calls about it all day,” Wagar said Monday. “We ask that you research and confirm information before sharing it.”