“Sadly, women who are victims of a violent crime fail to receive needed support while their assailants often times go unpunished,” said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., in a press release.

While men are often the victims of domestic violence, one out of three women have experienced some form of verbal, emotional or physical abuse, said Susan Shoultz, executive director of EVE Inc.

“There have been women killed in our community, in our county, by an estranged husband or boyfriend, and it happens all the time,” Shoultz said.

The grant will be used for the Domestic Assault Response Team, or DART, which consists of community and victim advocates, a full-time prosecutor, law enforcement and a probation officer. Advocates for DART are provided by EVE Inc.

Those teams of people would deal with the most high-risk cases.

High-risk cases involve those where either a victim or assailant’s name appears more than five times in police reports, Shoultz said.

“The team members are constantly in communication and work together to keep the victim safe and hold the assailant accountable,” she said.

From October 2006 to August 2007, the organization has seen as many as 4,762 phone calls, 4,013 walk-ins and 328 appointments of people dealing with domestic abuse. This year, there were 1,154 new cases added to 5,335 on-going cases in a period of 11 months, Shoultz said.

With 30 beds, Shoultz said, the organization’s emergency shelter has seen a steady stream of abused women.

“With the assistance of committed local officials, I am hopeful that law enforcement officials can ensure the health and safety of Michigan’s families,” said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., in a press release.

“This federal grant will help Ingham County to work with the community to prevent domestic violence and its terrible consequences for families.”