I Knew My Sister Wouldn't Get Out of Her Marriage Alive
SADE ADEYINA / COURTESY OF THE AUKERMAN FAMILY
This story introduced me to the complex issue of police officer domestic violence. In reporting it over several months, I discovered so many layers, including the trauma that had rippled out to two families and a community; the training and loyalty that make police abusers so dangerous; and the decisions made by two small-town chiefs of police that appeared to have increased Pam Aukerman's danger and decreased her family's chances of a fair review. I made every effort to report it without appearing to implicate all police officers but also without smoothing over its difficult questions for society. I also knew that Pam's daughter, who was 13 at the time, would someday read it, and I worked closely with her family to make sure they were comfortable with the approach my editors and I took. It's an important issue I would really like to keep getting out to readers.