The number of convictions for domestic violence offences in the Queenstown Lakes increased by more than 80% between 2018 and last year.
Ministry of Justice figures show an 87.5% rise in convictions in the Queenstown District Court, for all types of domestic violence offending, over the four-year period.
Otago Lakes Central acting prevention manager Senior Sergeant Steve Watt said the introduction of victim video statements about three years ago was proving to be a highly effective tool for securing convictions.
Frontline staff responding to a family harm incident could record an interview with the victim using their phones.
"They’re taken straight after the event’s happened, and you see the emotion."
The videos provided compelling evidence when police decided to prosecute, and increased the likelihood of an offender admitting charges rather than going to a trial.
"In the past it was quite often a ‘he said, she said’ scenario," Sen Sgt Watt said.
"Without corroborating evidence it was really hard to secure a conviction."
Although any statistics relating to domestic violence were a concern, the rise in convictions in the Queenstown Lakes area was "not necessarily a bad thing".
"It means we’re getting it right for the victim."
However, the Covid-19 pandemic had undoubtedly played a role in family violence offending in the past couple of years, he said.
In tourism-dominated Queenstown, relationships and families had been put under stress by uncertainty over employment and financial pressures.
Those impacts had exacerbated alcohol abuse, which was already a factor in about 90% of family harm incidents.
Police prevention staff took part in weekly video meetings with social workers from Central Lakes Family Services and representatives from Oranga Tamariki, mental health services and the Department of Corrections, Sen Sgt Watt said.
They typically looked at 10-15 family harm cases a week in the Otago Lakes Central policing area — which includes Queenstown, Wanaka, Cromwell and Alexandra — discussing the role of each organisation in how best to support the victim and family.
"The aim is to put the supports in place to prevent the family harm from reoccurring."
