In the mid-morning of September 8, 2022, Karina Castro, mother of two little girls, was brutally murdered in a domestic violence incident. San Mateo County authorities have expressed their condolences and concern for such acts and their increase.
"As co-chairs of the San Mateo County Domestic Violence Council, Supervisor Groom and I are shocked and saddened to learn of the tragic and senseless death of Ms. Karina Castro in San Carlos on September 8, 2022. Ms. Castro is more than the headlines you will see about her death," said Elisa Kuhl, Victim Services Program Manager for the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office.
"To those who survive her, she is a mother, a sister, a daughter, a granddaughter and a dedicated and loving friend. The members of the San Mateo County Domestic Violence Council would like to express our deepest condolences to Ms. Castro's family and friends," said Kuhl.
In San Mateo County, there were two domestic violence homicides in 2022 and five in 2021. However, for the San Mateo County Domestic Violence Council, it believes one is too many.
Intimate partner violence is corrosive and harms not only the survivor, but also affects children living in the home, family members, friends, co-workers and the community, the San Mateo County Domestic Violence Council detailed in a release.
Officials reminded that if you or someone you know is experiencing intimate partner violence, there is help and you can visit the website: https://www.smcgov.org/dvc/resources.
Another option is the county's single-source provider of comprehensive intimate partner abuse services, CORA, which is also available for support.
CORA provides free counseling, advocacy, legal services, emergency shelter and housing. For the community at large, CORA provides education and its 24-hour hotline (1-800-300-1080), which is always available.
"CORA's services are available 24 hours a day, every day, to ensure that anyone affected by intimate partner abuse has access, free of charge, to the full range of services needed to help them move to a safe place," said Karen Ferguson, the organization's executive director.
For her part, Supervisor Carole Groom, noted that San Mateo County is committed to ending domestic violence and supports the multidisciplinary Domestic Violence Council. "The goal of the Domestic Violence Council is to reduce and prevent domestic violence and improve services for victims."
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