MIDDLEBURG, Fla. -- In the past few days our area has seen a rash of domestic issues that went too far: a man killed outside the post office, a Bradford County Sheriff's deputy is accused of injuring his wife in a fight over the weekend, and a wife is dead after police say her husband ran her over with his truck after an argument in Clay County.
"We're seeing it across the nation. There seems to be more fatalities," said Peggy Payne.
Payne is the CEO of Quigley House, a facility helping domestic violence victims find safety from their attackers. She says her heart broke when she learned about the latest case in Clay County - Nola Collier was killed after police say her husband ran her over after an argument.
"Nine times out of 10 there has been domestic violence in the past," she said.
Action News has obtained the 911 call history from the Collier's home. It shows police have been called there multiple times for civil disputes.
"There does seem to be a high volume of calls there," said Lt. Ronald Hodges with the Clay County Sheriff's Office.
The hard facts from the Clay County Sheriff's Office show in 2012, there were six murders in Clay County -- four of them were domestic violence related. In all, domestic violence played a role in 34 percent of all 2012 crimes.
But Hodges says it's something many victims don't report.
"They should always try to solicit help. We're here we get there as fast as we can so we can try to take things down a notch or two and have everybody try to think straight through instead of just flying off the handle," he said.
Payne says for many victims it is tough to take that step and walk away. But she says the recent cases in our area prove it can and does sometimes end in death.
