My neighbour was almost murdered by her partner. The police response left me disheartened

September 6, 2026 — 5:00am

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The police officer stood tapping his foot as the woman, beaten so severely that a welt had formed on her forehead, picked her way through shattered glass to search for her vape.

“You can’t help someone who won’t help themselves,” he muttered.

Late last year, I witnessed a police response to a domestic violence incident first-hand after a woman on my street was nearly murdered. I was there as a neighbour and did not identify myself as a journalist until after the incident concluded.

With knowledge of how the criminal process works, empathy for officers stretched thin, and an understanding that police must remain impartial, I was still shocked by how poorly the interaction went.

I hope a new police station sanctuary, The Cottage, which opened on Wednesday in the inner west, will help change how survivors access services and ensure their first interaction with police is very different from what my neighbour experienced.

Late into the night, my partner and I ran outside after hearing a woman scream, “Help, help, he’s going to kill me.”

‘Shaking under the stark streetlights and clearly intimidated by the group encircling her, the woman held my hand and asked to move inside. She requested I come too.’

Bystanders said they saw a woman dangling over a balcony and heard a man yelling. A young woman dressed in pyjamas ill-suited to the cool night........

© The Sydney Morning Herald