New York City, New York–“A woman is dead allegedly at the hands of her husband, who neighbors say was the frequent target of her abuse.
“The 50-year old woman was found strangled inside her apartment just before 10 a.m. Saturday at the Red Hook houses at 151 Richard Street. Her 58-year old husband is in critical condition with stab wounds to chest and arms, possibly self-inflicted.
“Neighbors say the couple struggled with alcohol problem and that the wife was abusive to her husband. They say he apparently had enough when she returned home Saturday morning and allegedly strangled her with the belt of a bathrobe.
“He may have tried to commit suicide. Police aren’t commenting.”
In the audio, the 1010 WINS radio reporter says “neighbors say he was the nicest guy, and they wonder why he took the abuse for so long.” One neighbor who knew him and his wife said:
“She abused him–she beats him up all the time. He probably couldn’t take it no more…she hit in the back of the head with a bat.”
I’m certainly not going to declare the guy an innocent victim or say I’m sure he acted in self-defense, but the third party accounts of his abuse at the hands of his wife certainly suggest it’s possible. The step forward is that the radio station actually acknowledged that he may well have been a victim of domestic violence, and that his action may have been in self-defense or retaliation.
To learn more, listen to the audio by clicking here. The story is Domestic Violence Turns Deadly in Brooklyn (3/30/08).
The story is also another example of the large role that substance abuse plays in domestic violence.