Police Practice and Research Risk Scores and Reliability of the SARA, SARA-V3, B-SAFER, and ODARA Among Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Cases Referred for Threat Assessment

Threat assessment services help police by identifying risk and recommending ways to mitigate risk for cases perceived to have a high potential for intimate partner violence (IPV). However, research has yet to show that cases referred for threat assessment score higher on IPV risk tools than routine policing samples, which would show whether referrals are appropriate. Furthermore, it is unknown whether these tools can be scored reliably from documents gathered by threat assessors without contacting perpetrators or victims. We scored the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment Guide (SARA) and its revision (SARA-V3), Brief Spousal Assault Risk Evaluation Form (B-SAFER), and Ontario Domestic Assault Risk Assessment (ODARA) from threat assessment files of 238 men referred for IPV offenses. Cases scored higher than previously reported routine policing samples. Inter-rater reliability coefficients for total scores and most subscales were ≥.70. Findings support appropriateness of referrals and capacity to reliably score IPV risk tools.