Working with family members or friends who have lost loved ones to domestic homicide requires considerable sensitivity. It is important for teams to determine at the outset, what their position will be regarding interviewing victim or perpetrator contacts. In the course of our work we have met family members and friends who did not want to discuss the homicide. We have also met people who are traumatized by the insensitivity of service professionals who initially notified them of the death of their loved one, or who subsequently became involved in the prosecution of the perpetrator.

Most fatality review legislation does not permit fatality review teams to share information with family members or anyone else concerning the homicide, unless that information is part of the public record. If family members or friends approach review teams and state a willingness to provide information to the team, it is important for the team to spell out the limitations regarding what they can share about the case. It is important for survivors to feel they have access to the review team; at the same time it is important for the review team to adhere to its statutory duties regarding the disclosure of information.

It might also be wise for a trained counselor who works on the team or a team member who had previously established a relationship with the family to assume the responsibility of being the “point person” to work with the family and others who were close to the deceased. This counselor might wish to inform them that digging more deeply into the death of their loved one, even by using available public record data, might uncover information or accusations about the decedent that the family members were not aware of prior to the death.

Finally, remember that there are persons close to the perpetrator who may also wish to participate and from whom the team may wish to request information. Once more, it is imperative that teams consider all options regarding interviewing persons close to either the victim or perpetrator before beginning the review process. The NDVFRI can provide helpful resources to assist teams in making this determination and establishing protocols for communicating with persons who were close to a decedent.