Three Law Enforcement Agencies Join NCDOJ’s Life-Saving Domestic Violence Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, June 18, 2026
Contact: [email protected]
919-538-2809

RALEIGH - Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced today that three additional North Carolina law enforcement agencies have started implementing the Lethality Assessment Protocol (LAP), a life-saving approach to responding to domestic violence incidents. Earlier this month, Franklin PD, Sylva PD, and Western Carolina University PD became the three newest departments to go through LAP training. NCDOJ is the statewide administrator for the program.

Officers from these three departments will now be trained to use the LAP assessment when responding to domestic violence calls. The training and assessment help officers identify domestic violence victims who are at heightened risk of being killed by their partners. It weighs factors such as past incidents of violence as well as nonviolent behaviors that research shows are linked to domestic violence homicides to determine risk. When law enforcement use this tool to determine that someone might be at high risk, they can then immediately connect the person to local domestic violence service providers who can offer support and safety resources.

"This tool is proven to help law enforcement identify victims who could be in serious danger and connect them with help before it's too late," said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. "I want to thank Franklin PD, Sylva PD, and Western Carolina University PD for becoming the three newest agencies in our state to adopt this program to help keep their residents safe."

"Completing LAP training with the NCDOJ is a major step forward in our mission to prevent domestic homicide," said Sylva Assistant Chief of Police Robbie Carter. "The Sylva Police Department adopted this protocol to give our frontline officers a definitive tool for recognizing high-risk situations as they happen. By integrating this training into our response, we can intervene early, protect vulnerable individuals, and provide victims with an immediate pathway to safety."

Data shows that LAP can identify 92 percent of women facing near-fatal violence. In the first five months of 2026, law enforcement agencies in North Carolina have used the LAP tool 1,348 times to screen victims and connect them to domestic violence services.

In October, Attorney General Jackson met with the Forest City Police Department and Family Resources of Rutherford County to discuss their partnership as the department prepared to implement LAP training for its officers.

LAP was developed by the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence in 2005. The North Carolina Department of Justice implemented the program in 2019 and provides training to law enforcement agencies and victim service organizations across the state so they can adopt it. LAP uses the Honest Assessment Response Tool, a proprietary software created and owned by Forseti.

Throughout this year, Attorney General Jackson and NCDOJ are also regularly convening a statewide collective of domestic violence fatality review teams to review domestic violence fatalities at the state level and identify ways to prevent and address domestic abuse.

Click here for more information on the program.

###