Examining the impact of hurricane katrina on police responses to domestic violence

The purpose of this study was to investigate the New Orleans Police Department's (NOPD) responses to domestic violence both pre- and post-Hurricane Katrina. This study employed a secondary analysis of data collected by the NOPD in New Orleans, Louisiana, from 2002 through 2006. Analysis indicated that the NOPD actively responded to domestic violence calls following Hurricane Katrina and that domestic violence did not get relegated to secondary status as a consequence of rising demand for police intervention in the city following the crisis precipitated by the hurricane. This article concludes with a discussion of the NOPD's response to the community need for more intensive policing following the storm, particularly to the increase in domestic violence calls, and of the rate of domestic violence occurring in New Orleans following the hurricane.