A 39-year-old Santa Barbara man was in custody Wednesday evening as the primary suspect in the death of a 39-year-old woman who appeared to be teh victim of a domestic violence violence attack.
Investigators say the victim in this crime died of injuries she received during the assault.
The suspect and the victim were not married but did have a daughter together who was present during the violent act. Police say the girl was physically unharmed and is now being taken care of by Child Welfare Services.
Marsha Marcoe with Santa Barbara County's Domestic Violence Solutions says incidents like this are sadly all too common.
"In Santa Barbara County we think one out of every five women are involved with domestic violence," said Marcoe. She said those crimes can vary greatly from verbal abuse to murder. "We don't really know the number for how many violent crimes because a lot of time women are afraid to come forward, they're so ashamed."
The suspect in Wednesday morning's murder is being held in the Santa Barbara County Jail on one million dollars bail.
HOW TO FIND HELP
Santa Barbara County
- Santa Barbara (805) 964-5245
- Lompoc (805) 736-0965
- Santa Maria (805) 925-2160
- Santa Ynez Valley (805) 686-4390
San Luis Obispo County
- Toll-Free 24 hour crisis line: (855) 886-7473
Monterey County
- 24 hour Domestic Violence Hotline: (831) 372-6300