Domestic violence calls are routine. Domestic violence investigations are not. Most patrol officers arrive on scene, document the obvious, and move on. The cases that actually result in prosecution are built differently, from the first 911 call through evidence collection, victim interviewing, and documentation that holds up when the suspect lawyers up and the victim recants.

This 15-hour online course covers the full investigative arc of a domestic violence case. Not the policy overview you sat through at the academy. The actual work: understanding why victims behave the way they do, how to conduct victim and suspect interviews that produce usable statements, what evidence to look for beyond visible injuries, how to handle stalking as a component of DV cases, and how to document everything in a way that supports prosecution even when the victim will not cooperate at trial.

The course is built for patrol officers who handle DV calls on every shift and for investigators who carry DV caseloads. The content applies across misdemeanor and felony-level cases and covers the dynamics that make domestic violence unlike almost any other investigation you will run.

What the Course Covers

• History, types, and prevalence of domestic violence
• The psychology of domestic violence: why victims stay, why they recant, and what that means for your case
• Coercive control and the dynamics of abusive relationships
• The DV 911 call: what to capture and how it affects prosecution
• Initial scene response and evidence identification
• Injury documentation and advanced photography techniques
• Victim interviewing: trauma-informed approach, rapport building, and obtaining usable statements
• Suspect interviews
• Stalking investigations as a component of DV cases
• Lethality assessment and victim safety planning
• Documentation and report writing for DV cases
• Building prosecution-ready cases when victim cooperation is uncertain

Online and self-paced. 15 credit hours.

Who This Course Is For

This course is designed for patrol officers who respond to DV calls and investigators who carry domestic violence caseloads. It is applicable across experience levels. Officers new to DV investigations get a complete framework. Experienced officers fill the gaps that years of handling calls the same way tend to leave.

Why Victim Behavior Is the Starting Point

The single biggest failure mode in domestic violence investigations is misreading victim behavior. An officer who does not understand why victims minimize, recant, or refuse to cooperate is going to make poor decisions at the scene, collect inadequate evidence, and write reports that fall apart at trial. This course addresses victim psychology directly and builds investigative technique on top of that foundation, not in spite of it.

Understanding coercive control, the cycle of abuse, and the practical reality of what victims face when they consider cooperating with prosecution changes how you approach every part of the investigation. It affects how you conduct the victim interview, what questions you ask, how you document injuries, and how you build the case to survive a recantation.

Building Cases That Survive Recantation

Victim recantation is not an exception in domestic violence cases. It is the rule. Officers who understand this from the beginning collect evidence differently. They capture the 911 call details, document excited utterances, photograph injuries thoroughly and systematically, identify corroborating witnesses, and write reports that give prosecutors something to work with even when the victim will not testify.

The course covers all of it: what evidence matters, how to get it, and how to document it in a way that holds up.

Course Format

The course is fully online and self-paced through RTI's LearnDash-based LMS. It includes case studies, scenarios, and an investigative aid and checklist for use in the field. A final assessment is required for completion.

Credit Hours

15 credit hours. Officers should verify POST acceptance with their agency training coordinator prior to enrollment. RTI can provide documentation to support approval requests.

Most law enforcement training exists because someone needed to fill a POST requirement. You've sat through that training. You know exactly what it looks like.

RTI courses are built by working investigators who got tired of watching officers fail in the field because their training never matched reality. Every module is grounded in current forensic science, tested against real case outcomes, and built to hold up in court, not just in a classroom.

No rubber-stamp certificates. No recycled slide decks from a decade ago. No instructors whose only qualification is that they once attended the course they're now teaching.

If you do the work, you'll leave with skills you can use on your next shift.
That's the standard RTI trains to.

Is this course only for detectives or investigators assigned to DV units?

No. The course is built for patrol officers first. Patrol is where DV cases are made or lost. Investigators benefit from the course as well, but the material is grounded in what happens on scene before a detective ever gets involved.

Does the course cover the psychology of why victims stay or go back?

Yes, in depth. Understanding victim behavior is foundational to everything else in the course. Officers who understand the psychology make better decisions at the scene, conduct better interviews, and build stronger cases.

Does the course address stalking?

Yes. Stalking is covered as a component of domestic violence cases, including how to identify it, document it, and build a stalking investigation alongside a DV investigation.

What if the victim recants? Does the course cover that?

Directly. Building prosecution-ready cases without relying on victim cooperation is a core focus. The course covers evidence collection, documentation, and report writing strategies specifically designed for cases where the victim may not testify.

How long does the course take to complete?

15 credit hours. Completion time varies by student pace. The course is self-paced and accessible on any device.

Is this course POST-certified?

Officers should verify POST acceptance with their agency training coordinator prior to enrollment. RTI provides documentation to support out-of-state and individual agency approval requests.