Domestic Violence Headlines for the Week of Aug. 25

The latest domestic violence headlines read like so many before them:  warnings ignored, violence repeated and yet more women left unprotected.

Son of Norway Princess Charged with Rape, Domestic Violence

Even royalty is not immune to the influences of entitlement over women, apparently. In Norway, Marius Borg Høiby, son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit, was recently charged with 32 offenses including four counts of rape, domestic abuse against a former partner, disturbing the peace, vandalism, violation of restraining orders against a differentnother former partner and filming explicit videos of women without their knowledge or consent. He faces up to a decade10 years in prison. 

"The fact that Marius Borg Høiby is a member of the royal family should, of course, not mean that he should be treated more lightly or more severely than if similar acts had been committed by others,” said public prosecutor Sturla Henriksbo. 

Høiby is denying the most serious allegations, including the rapes prosecutors say he committed in 2018, 2023 and twicetwo in 2024. The princess’ son stated after his arrest that his actions were due to him being "under the influence of alcohol and cocaine after an argument," and that he suffered from "mental troubles" and struggled "for a long time with substance abuse."

Abuse cannot be blamed on alcohol or drug misuse, or on mental health issues. Those problems may perpetuate abusive behaviors, but they do not cause them, say experts. 

“A common misunderstanding is that men who batter are extremely intoxicated and out of control when they batter,” says Larry Bennett, PhD, licensed social worker and professor at the Indiana University School of Social Work. “Despite the impairment in men's behavior caused by alcohol and drugs, IPV [intimate partner violence] remains a matter of choice. IPV usually occurs in a safe setting (for the abuser), selected for the protection it affords him, at a time of his choosing, with a predictable victim. The fact that violence rarely occurs outside men's comfort zone suggests that men who batter are very much in control, not out of control.”

Source: CBSNews.com

New York Podiatrist Tried to Hire Someone to Kill His Wife for Second Time, Will Get Under 2 Years in Jail

A former Rockland County, N.Y., podiatrist pled guilty on Monday for trying to hire someone to kill his estranged wife for a second time. After spending four years behind bars for his first failed murder-for-hire attempt, Ira Bernstein says that in 2022, he was recorded asking a landscaper to kill his wife, Susan Bernstein. After finding out he had been recorded, he and his sister, Jaclyn Goldberg, worked together to try and get the recording destroyed by blackmailing the landscaper. 

In his first murder attempt in 2017, Bernstein says he and his girlfriend, Kelly Gribeluk, plotted to hire a local car salesman to run over Susan with a car and make it look like an accident. Bernstein was sentenced to between five and 15 years in prison, while Gribeluk was sentenced to four. The doctor was released in 2021 on good merit, whereupon he immediately started plotting again. 

As many survivors know, abuse doesn’t instantly cease after a victim escapes. Abusers who sense a loss of control are often at their most desperate and dangerous. The risk factor for homicide increases if the abuser has a history of mental health issues, substance misuse problems, strangulation of a partner, violations of a protective order, has threatened murder or suicide previously, or has access to a gun.

Jail time often fails to stop dangerous abusers. A deep sense of entitlement can outweigh any fear of punishment, and once released, many return to stalking, harassing, or assaulting their former partners. That’s why it’s important for survivors to always stay vigilant. Read “Know When an Abuser is Released from Prison or Jail” for more. 

District Attorney Tom Walsh says Bernstein will serve one and a half to three years after pleading guilty to evidence tampering, while Goldberg will escape jail time “if she avoids trouble with the law.”

Bernstein will appear in court Dec. 5 for sentencing. It’s expected Susan will be present to share with the court how her estranged husband’s murder attempts have impacted her. 

Sources: News12 Hudson Valley, AOL.com

Missing Ohio Woman May Be in Danger, Has Abusive Boyfriend 

A 33-year-old Uniontown, Ohio woman whose boyfriend has a history of being abusive toward her has gone missing. Johanna Smith’s father arrived at her home around 5 a.m. last Tuesday after last speaking to his daughter around 3 a.m. He found the doors to Smith’s home left open, but no sign of Smith or her boyfriend, William “Billy” Wyszynski. Smith’s cellphone was later located in a field.

Police believe Smith and Wyszynski could be traveling in a smaller gold Honda with black rims and an Ohio license plate with the number KAK5475. Their last known location was in Pennsylvania, and they may be traveling toward Maryland or Virginia. 

Abusers almost always escalate over time. Rarely do they simply stop abusing. Instead, their escalation can look like going from, say, threats of violence to actual violence. They may take their abuse from behind closed doors to out in public. It’s important that not only survivors but those around them who care about the survivor take red flags seriously. Abusers don’t “lose control” when their abuse escalates, say experts. They know exactly what their plan for dominance, control and power over a partner will be going forward.

Anyone who sees Smith, Wyszynski or the vehicle should call 911 or the Uniontown Police Department at 330-699-6444.

Source: Jordanmiller.news

Minnesota Man with Decades-Long DV Arrest Record Sentenced to Jail for Ghost Guns

On Tuesday, 44-year-old Ronnie Bila Shaka of Minneapolis was sentenced to 140 months in jail followed by three years supervised release after his 2023 arrest for holding his girlfriend and her baby hostage using a ghost gun. Ghost guns—firearms assembled from off-the-shelf parts—are untraceable and increasingly favored by criminals.

This is only one offense in Shaka’s long list of criminal misdeeds, which include eight prior felony convictions and six prior convictions for firearms offenses. His domestic violence record dates back to when he was just 18 years old and includes multiple domestic violence assaults, terroristic threats and repeated violations of no-contact orders. Yet within 12 years, Shaka could be out of prison again—his decades-long record of violence notwithstanding.

“Domestic abusers are among the most dangerous offenders we face,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.  “They prey on the very people they should protect and in doing so endanger their victims, police officers, and the community as a whole. When someone shows they are willing to terrorize their own family, they have forfeited their right to walk free. More than a decade in federal prison is exactly what this conduct deserves, and it should serve as a warning: we will not tolerate domestic violence, and we will hold these offenders accountable before they can destroy more lives.”

Abuse is hardly ever an isolated incident. Ten to 18 percent of those arrested for domestic violence are arrested again within six months, and 15 to 30 percent face a second arrest within 28 months—but up to 60 percent are rearrested within 10 years. And it’s pretty safe to say these numbers only tell part of the story, considering most domestic violence is never reported to law enforcement.

When abusers have access to guns, they don’t just threaten. They execute. The risk of homicide for a partner and anyone else in the home, such as children, skyrockets. Under federal law, people who have a permanent restraining order against them can’t buy or possess a firearm, yet ghost guns, illegal gun sales are just two of many workarounds that allow abusers to continue to remain armed and ready. 

Source: DOJ Press Release