PORTSMOUTH — Deborah DeBare and Lori DiPersio, executive directors of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Women’s Resource Center, respectively, issued this joint statement regarding Wednesday’s domestic murder in Portsmouth.
“We are deeply saddened by the domestic violence murder that occurred overnight in Portsmouth. The life of Yolanda McArdle was cut violently short when she was stabbed multiple times by her intimate partner.
“As our communities mourn this loss of life in sadness and outrage, this tragedy reminds us that domestic violence is a widespread epidemic, one that impacts all Rhode Islanders.
“The perpetrator, Raymond Ramsey, is a known repeat offender, having been arrested many times for domestic violence across more than a decade. At the time he committed this heinous act, he was out on bail, awaiting trial for a domestic violence crime he committed more than two months ago.
“In the wake of 6 domestic violence homicides and 8 lives lost as a result of domestic violence in Rhode Island in 2015, it is critical that our criminal justice system strengthens its response to domestic violence.”
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