Christina Wunsch
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Something so many women go through and don’t report, and after the experiences that I’ve encountered the last few months, with Springfield Township Police, Summit County Prosecutor’s office, Police Chief Jack Simone, I understand why.
In my experiences in the last few months, I’ve encountered abuse by my husband, police corruption and cover ups, bribery offered by officers, threats and accusations from law enforcement and how much having personal ties with law enforcement helps criminals get away with whatever they want.
It all started March 23rd 2020, my husband slammed me to the floor and sat on top of me. (Causing injuries to my chest, documented at the hospital as an assault) I could not breathe after the slam, and a 200lb man on top of me just made matters worse. He told me that if I’m talking, I’m breathing. This happened in the presence of our 4 yr old child. The police were called to the home, and my father in law and myself told the responding officer that my husband slammed me down. But because father and son were chaotically verbally fighting, my situation with my husband was overlooked and the officer told me to get my 3 young children and to get out of the house. The following day, I went to the court house and obtained a temporary protection order against my husband, for myself and my children.
Couple days after I was granted the order, I went to the home with a police escort to get some of mine and my children’s things. The officer present was my husband’s friend Detective Kris London. He was civil at first, but then started threatening me about dropping the order, and tried telling London that I pushed him, which he did not believe, and told Josh to get back in the house. I thanked London for helping me, and left. Unfortunately, my husband decided to text me right after I left, (a violation of the tpo) officer London was flagged down, and said he didn’t care and drove away. I went to the police station the same day, and it just made matters worse. I was already scared of my husband and what he had said to me if I didn’t drop the order. So after talking with them, the police decided not to arrest, and instead give him a warning about contacting me.
April 1st 2020: Full hearing for the Civil Protection order. Josh admits to the judge that he indeed in his words “Suplexed me to the floor and sat on top of me”. So the judge orders the protection order for one year, with supervised visits for our children.
In the days and weeks following, my husband continued to email me, stalk me, pretend to be someone else and text me from another phone number. He posted about me, and sent Facebook messages. He called the Stark County Sheriff’s saying he’s looking for me, and needs a welfare check done. A deputy then contacted me, asking me where my children and I are. I informed the deputy that there is a protection order and my husband isn’t allowed around us, that if he needed I would tell him where I was so that I could meet with him and he could do the check. He told me he didn’t know about the order, it’s not necessary and gave his information incase I needed to contact him.
I went to the police station and wanted him arrested for violation of the protection order. The officer (Wagner) writes a report for telecommunications harrassment and tells me that I am the problem. That I should delete my facebook, and change my life around to better suit my husband, that he thinks I am just trying to get him in trouble. He tells me he will write the report but that’s all, he said he’s not arresting him for the violation of the order and to take my police report to the prosecutors myself.
April 28th: I requested police for another escort to get more things from the home. I was assaulted by my husband’s then girlfriend, she slammed me against a door frame causing injuries to my back. The officer (Steve Burket) witnessed her assault on me, and as I am telling the officer to arrest her, she continues to come after me, telling me that we can go, she will get her rings on, he forcefully gets me out of the house, that I’m done getting my things, he’s leaving, he’s retiring this year, and that he was at the house as a courtesy and wasn’t doing anything.
I went to the police station and wanted to press charges against her. Officer Burket had already gone home, and I was met again with officer Wagner, he tells me he sees too much of me. I explained what happened and showed him my back, he mocked me and said oh did you need medical attention for your scratch? He told me he’s not doing Officer Burkets’ job for him and I needed to come back the following day.
April 29th: I go back to the police department and ask to talk to burket, he was in the field so I talked to him through the recorded dispatch line. He states that he isn’t writing the report, that his body cam wasn’t on the previous day. That he saw the push and that if I would have responded with equal violence, I too wouldn’t have been arrested. He said if this incident made it to the prosecutors office and he had to testify, he would give his opinion, that I’m just trying to get her and my husband in trouble and have a vendetta. He hangs up. I speak to a supervisor because at this point…I am completely pissed off. Sergeant Moore says she will have him write the report.
He wrote the report, gave his opinion and lied. He also falsified it, the filing date would be the 29th or whenever he finished it. It says it was filed the 28th, now how could that be when I didn’t even get him to do it until the 29th?
At this point, I am done dealing with the department and go straight to the Chief. I email him and let him know what has transpired and how his officers have responded and treated me. He was eager to assist me and figure out what we could do to better assist me. After meeting with him several times, I gave him ample evidence to support all of my claims. Texts, emails, police reports, copies of pictures, copy of my protection order, copies of message threats from my husband’s friends, and audio recordings of my husband beating me. The chief tells me that should pursue a counseling degree, and that I can work for the Safety Support Center. That he’d help me achieve that. Is that supposed to help me get justice?
I just wanted justice, I didn’t understand why my husband could continously violate the protection order and get away with it. I didn’t understand how my husband could commit domestic violence, admit it to a judge and still didn’t get charged with it, even when I asked to press charges. I didn’t understand why I (the victim) was treated with complete disrespect and told that I am the problem. I didn’t understand why I was made to be a burden to the police doing their jobs. The Springfield Township PD has victimized me over and over, ostracized and alienated me.
When I finally thought I was getting somewhere the Chief tells me last Wednesday we can ask for charges with violating the protection order, and try for the Domestic Violence. However on Monday morning, I get an email about how the prosecutor wouldn’t authorize the charges with no explanation as to why not. I called both the Akron and Summit Co. prosecutors office. Neither of them had any record of my husband, and had no idea what I was talking about. They told me the chief more than likely talked to his police legal advisor and not their offices. I asked the chief for a name, so that I could ask myself, why charges weren’t going to be pressed. I didn’t get a name, I got an email stating if I’d like to discuss things further, I could call. No thanks, you’ve done enough of absolutely nothing Chief.
Now I know why most victims of Domestic violence don’t report. You get victim shamed, told you’re the problem, made to feel like you’re absolutely nothing but a woman looking for vengeance. The police don’t want to help, and make you feel like you should just give up. They try to take away your VOICE, your right to stand up for yourself, the right to seek JUSTICE !!
I REFUSE TO GIVE UP!! I will FIGHT for my RIGHT OF JUSTICE!! I am writing this to show people what is happening with the police and victims of Domestic Violence. I truly had thought about just giving up. I have been a victim of Domestic violence for 5 years of my relationship with my husband. I have had my arm broken, my finger broken, shoved out a door into glass bottles, drug around the house by hair, my head slammed into the stairs repeatedly, my husband’s foot pressed to my neck while he’s telling me to die, that he wants me to just die. Told that I’m never leaving him, told he’ll kill himself. All while terrified of him and told that if I call the police I will go to jail, and that my kids will be taken from me. Abusers use whatever they can to terrify you into not reporting. They know what to do, and they know how to do it. Police had been called to my home 4 separate times by neighbors, when he heard sirens, it was always said, you will go to jail, they’ll take our kids, get them to leave. The police always separated us and I would get them to leave. But I couldn’t continue to live the way I was. I knew I needed to get myself and kids out of there before he killed me, and them. I am a survivor, and lucky to be alive, without the continous support of my friends and family, I probably would have given up by now.
I am asking you for your help with me obtaining justice with this police department and my husband! I need someone that knows the law like the back of their hand. Someone that could help point me in the right direction of what I can do next. *PLEASE SHARE MY STORY! * This isn’t just for me either, this is for all Domestic Violence Victims that are met with the same outcome as me. It’s time for a CHANGE!! Police need better TRAINING to handle these types of cases! Stand Up Against Domestic Violence!
FUCK YOU SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP POLICE DEPARTMENT! YOU CAN’T SILENCE ME AND I AM NOT GIVING UP AND WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT FOR MY RIGHTS AND EXPOSE YOUR OFFICERS!
*I have every shred of evidence and more supporting everything I have just written.*
