Nicholas Otten, 26 of Tea, was arrested last week and charged with assaulting his live-in girlfriend.
Otten allegedly sent suicidal text messages to his girlfriend after the incident, which led to a call to the Tea Police Department, Police Chief Ken Haugen said.
An argument between another couple elsewhere in the county had a more dire conclusion.
On April 16 a Hudson man shot and killed himself after a verbal domestic assault in spite of intervention attempts by Lincoln County Sheriff’s deputies.
Those incidents followed the March murder of Turner County Deputy Chad Mechels, who was shot near Marion while making a welfare check on a suicidal man whose condition worsened following a domestic dispute.
As the population of Tea and Lincoln County grow, so does the danger posed by domestic dispute, both to the victims and the perpetrators. The cases involving the danger of suicide are stark reminders that domestic disputes can escalate in ways most calls do not.
According to law enforcement records, the number of incidents is rising with the population.
Last week’s arrest of Otten marked the ninth domestic assault case in Tea this year. In 2008, the Tea Police Department responded to 78 assault calls involving verbal, simple and domestic assault.
“They are increasing,” Haugen said. “We are getting more and more calls.”
To ensure the safety of officers, victims and suspects, area police are taking more precautions when responding to reports of assault in a home.
“We’re making sure we have the backup prior to taking (the call), in case there is a potential for weapons,” Haugen said. “More and more weapons are involved. If someone is that depressed or worked up and wants to commit suicide, they are bound and determined to do that and they will take anyone with them.”
Alicia Alvarez works with the Compass Center in Sioux Falls, a non-profit organization that helps individuals with rape and domestic abuse issues. She said in small towns, victims are often hesitant to report domestic violence.
“They ask, ‘Is it confidential if I report it?’,” Alvarez said.
Matt Kopecky, a domestic violence officer with Lincoln County, agreed.
“People are reluctant to report this kind of stuff -- it’s just kind of one of those deals,” Kopecky said.
Domestic violence can happen nine times before a woman reports the violence, he said.
The Grant to Encourage Arrest allowed Lincoln County to hire Kopecky and a rural advocate in 2008. Kopecky handles all domestic assault cases within the county, as well as protection-order violations and sexual abuse cases.
Rural advocates go into a community and provide information on domestic violence and what a victim can do.
Many victims don’t know about The Compass Center or The Children’s Inn, for example.
“Women now understand there is a system and can come forth,” Alvarez said.
Programs like The Compass Center offer one-on-one counseling, support groups and second victim counseling for children. The Children’s Inn offers counseling, too, as well as children’s activities and playtime.
Such outreach is necessary because domestic violence cases can differ greatly, Haugen said.
Repeat offenses are more common with domestic violence.
When family is involved, perpetrators are often forgiven after the initial incident and welcomed back into the home -- but officers often return, too.
“Once it’s over, the honeymoon cycle starts again,” Haugen said. “The problem with domestic violence is that it gets progressively worse … It’s different from just an assault case.”
Officers are sometimes thrown in the middle of disputes when a victim changes his or her mind about the arrest.
“You’ll arrive on the scene and you’ll try to arrest one of them, then all of the sudden, they’ll turn on you,” Haugen said.
For more information on domestic assault and how to get help, call the South Dakota Network Against Family Violence and Sexual Assault at 1-800-670-3989, The Compass Center at 339-0116 or The Children’s Inn at 1-888-378-7398.

- Champion Editor John Hult contributed to this report