In Boston, Massachusetts, Captain Robert Dunford doesn?t consider recent drops in crime a reason for law enforcement professionals to take it easy. Rather he views the decline as an opportunity to tackle one of the most pervasive complaints for police nationwide ?domestic violence. ?Domestic violence is a community issue,? Capt. Dunford says. ?We want to educate the community as to what goes on.? It may sound simple, but that?s just not the case. Domestic violence is something people, including well-meaning neighbors and some police officers would rather not deal with. ?It?s a private matter among the family,? has been the attitude for years. Thankfully, that?s starting to change. Domestic abuse of all types has tremendous impact on not only the victims and family members, but on the entire community, according to Paul Johnston, a community service Officer in Area C-11, otherwise known as Dorchester. ?A real big factor we?re dealing with is a giant attitude,? Johnston said in a interview. ?People don?t understand the kind of impact this crime has on a community. They think if they get involved, they risk being labeled a busybody, or will lose a neighbor or a friend. As a consequence of that attitude, the violence will keep spreading.? This new initiative called ?Neighbor to Neighbor?, launched by the officers of area C-11, is an example of preventive-policing at its finest. Officers at community meeting will brief the community in detail on calls associated with domestic abuse. In addition, there will be a high-visibility public relations campaign for the program including a float in a local parade and advertisements in local restaurants. In the Dorchester area of Boston, domestic violence accounts for 35 percent of aggravated assaults and 70 percent of simple assaults. If “Neighbor to Neighbor” can impact those numbers, crime can go down even further.