The Story of Hurt

The story of Kristin Lardner is an issue that has been around for decades. Domestic Violence can be unavoidable for some people and then there are others who could not imagine ever going through it. That other person was Kristin Lardner. She was a happy, care-free spirited artist who loved life. She loved her family and loved having the ability to express herself through art. She was quoted saying, "I would never be involved in a violent relationship." She always gave advice to her friends when their boyfriends put them through the ringer. Kristin just was not that type of girl...that was until she would meet Michael Cartier. Michael Cartier was a known menace to the people around him. Michael was not the kind of person, other people would call trustworthy or even good natured. Michael had run away old girlfriends with his abusive ways. Kristin, unfortunately, knew nothing about this and decided to take a chance with him. After being the single one in her group of friends; Kristin felt it was time for a change.

Kristen met a seemly charming Michael who she thought had been through a rough life. Without digging too deep into his past, they quickly began a relationship. Kristin was known as smart and witty by all those who knew her, but this was not one of her best decisions. Michael's past was a destructive one and it is something Kristin should have known about. She should have known about the previous restraining orders. She also should have known about the fact that his ex-girlfriend, Rose Ryan, slept with knives around her bed. The pure horror and strain he caused upon Rose, should not have gone unnoticed. After only a couple of weeks, Mike's erratic behavior began to peek through. He was no longer able to control himself and his abusive ways. Just as he had done with Rose, he was now doing the same with Kristin. They argued in the beginning. He soon hit her for the first time in private. She decided to give him another chance. After more incidents, one involving animal cruelty, she decided to cut her ties to him. Maybe that was a little, too late. Michael's friends were quoted numerous times saying he had killer thoughts, but no one reported them. Kristin died because of pure negligence.

The policies for this type of procedure were not taken seriously. Law enforcement and the judicial system did not uphold the standard. Domestic violence is a serious issue and should be handled as such. When Kristin decided to file a complaint, they did not handle it correctly. His parole officer actually informed Michael about the call she received from Kristin. That is not the correct protocol, and it might have further endangered Kristin. The parole office leader truly did not care about this situation. Law enforcement also showed a lack of interest. The department allowed papers to lie around instead of processing them. They also prolonged Michael's arrest numerous times. Even though his rap sheet was at least 3 pages long, he kept receiving the minimum sentence. That really made no logical sense. He also went to court numerous times and they were not checking his records. The system truly failed Kristin Lardner.

Kristin did have different alternatives to solving her problem. Since the system was definitely not up to par, she could have chosen other routes. Kristin should have told her parents the complete truth