D.A. Reports Huge Jump in Spousal Abuse Calls : Crime: A surge in the number of prosecutions sought is attributed to the Simpson case and to a more aggressive stance by law enforcement.

Domestic violence complaints to the Ventura County district attorney’s office have skyrocketed in recent months--an increase attributed partly to the O.J. Simpson case but also to a more aggressive stance by police.

“We have received several calls from women since the O.J. Simpson case,” said Deputy District Atty. Lela Henke-Dobroth, who heads the unit that prosecutes domestic abuse cases. “But it started increasing before O.J. Simpson--I think in part of because of our new domestic violence protocol.”

From June 12, when Nicole Brown Simpson was killed, to July 17, prosecutors have received 275 complaints from police departments to review, Henke-Dobroth said. By contrast, prosecutors received only 140 complaints in December and the same number in January before police began looking more closely at such cases.

Early this year, all police agencies in the county adopted a new protocol for handling complaints--a set of procedures that call for more evidence gathering and follow-up on abuse calls. Since then, abuse cases referred for prosecution have steadily increased, reaching 192 in April and 240 in May.

Henke-Dobroth said the majority of domestic abuse complaints are referred by police officers and filed by prosecutors as misdemeanors.

“We probably file between 70% to 80% of the cases and . . . we win prosecutions on at least 70%,” she said. Sentencing for misdemeanor convictions range from mandatory counseling to a maximum of one year in jail.

Calls to domestic violence hot lines have also soared, counselors said.

Colleen Duncan, a coordinator with Interface Children, Family Services of Ventura County, said the heightened publicity from the Simpson case has spurred more women to call Interface’s hot line, one of two in the county taking domestic violence complaints.

“We will do four or five on the hot line, per day, on an average day,” Duncan said. “After the O.J. thing, that doubled to tripled on some days.”

Jamie Leigh executive director of the Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, said the Simpson case may have encouraged some women to get help.

“I think it’s raised awareness, where more women are saying, ‘That could be me,’ ” Leigh said. “Women who have been reluctant in the past are now reaching out for assistance because they feel they’ve been given some permission.”

Women who call police for help are also apt to get better service now because of the new protocol, said Oxnard Assistant Police Chief Tom Cady, who sits on the Ventura County Domestic Task Force.

The protocol encourages officers to take more time gathering evidence in abuse calls so that they have stronger cases for prosecution, even if the victim later decides not to cooperate. Police officers throughout Ventura County are being trained to get taped interviews, take photographs and talk to witnesses at the scene.

“In the past, when we didn’t have that evidence, and the victim was prepared to change their story, we could not successfully prosecute the case,” Cady said. “Because we do have more evidence, and more information, there are more cases we are able to submit.”

Law enforcement agencies are also more reactive to domestic violence calls now because they see the political heat the Los Angeles Police Department has received from the Simpson case, Leigh said.

“I think the police are very, very sensitive to this issue now because there have been a couple of homicides,” Leigh said. “The police are naturally going to be putting more complaints in front of the D.A.’s office. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”