news arctile -- 2 Wareham men charged with domestic violence

2 Wareham men charged with domestic violence
By Manuela Da Costa-Fernandes, Standard-Times staff writer
12/2/98

WAREHAM -- Two Wareham men were in court this week for separate domestic abuse charges involving odd weapons -- a dish and a blow torch.
Michael Murphy, 45, of 17 Pinehurst Drive, was charged with assault and battery on the Thanksgiving weekend.
However, when he was arraigned Monday at 4th District Court in Wareham, the charge was upgraded to assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
If convicted, Mr. Murphy could face a 2?year House of Correction sentence and $500 fine.
According to police reports, when officers were called Sunday night to a domestic fight they found a 39-year-old woman with a large cut on top of her head.
She told police Mr. Murphy had been yelling at her and drinking while watching a football game on television. While she was talking on the phone, Mr. Murphy threw a spoon at her. In response, she threw the spoon back.
That prompted Mr. Murphy to smash a plate over her head, police said, causing a large cut that was treated at Tobey Hospital.
A pre-trial hearing for the case was scheduled for Dec. 15.
In a separate incident also played out in 4th District Court on Monday, a 30-year-old Wareham electrician is accused of trying to set fire to a woman's hair with a blow torch.
John Gonski of Hideaway Lane, East Wareham, also was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
According to police records, the incident happened on Nov. 15 and Mr. Gonski was arraigned the following day. Mr. Gonski is being held without bail at the Plymouth House of Corrections.
He was in court this week for a pre-trial hearing, and his next court date is Dec. 8.
According to police records, the victim said the defendant was intoxicated when he started "flipping out" with a blow torch.
"He tried to set my hair on fire and chased me down the stairs," said the victim in a statement to police.
Then, Mr. Gonski started moving about the house with the torch and saying he was going to burn down the house, which contained three occupants, according to the statement.
A Stoughton native, Mr. Gonski was denied bail to ensure the safety of the victims, court documents said.
While Thanksgiving kicks off the holiday season, some women's advocates say it also marks an increase in domestic pressure on families.
"Anytime anything goes on in the family (like Thanksgiving) can cause a violent outburst," said Barbara Fuyat, executive director of the South Shore Women's Center in Plymouth.
During Thanksgiving week, she said, her organization's domestic violence hotline received 132 calls and five women requested shelter.
However, Gerry Garvey, executive director of the New Bedford Women's Center, argues that it is a myth that the holidays trigger an increase in violence.
"Domestic violence is created by a perpetrator. It does not start with a stress or a holiday. A perpetrator may see the family he normally has control over has access to a support system, so he feels a need to exert control over the family," Ms. Garvey said.
Both women agree that what has changed are the attitudes of police and victims toward reporting domestic violence.
"More women who have been affected by domestic violence have reached out and know the services out there," Ms. Fuyat said.
Likewise, Ms. Garvey said what has increased is the number of police being trained to take domestic violence more seriously.
Once assault and battery with a dangerous weapon meant a knife or a gun, but 4th District Court records show an increase in the use of non-traditional weapons reported in domestic violence. Recently, dangerous weapons have included a vase, a telephone, a car and a starter motor.
Ms. Fuyat said the severity of domestic violence has definitely increased, as has community and police awareness. "We have a better way of tracking it now," she said.
Added Ms. Garvey, "As a society, we are starting to come out about reporting domestic violence."