And believe it or not, police are happy with that.

"We're trying to get people to report this," Pasquarello says.

The increased reporting represent changes in the times and mores of the community. What two decades ago was considered an issue for the people to resolve themselves is now very much in the public eye.

"What happened 10 years ago, was no one would call about domestic violence," he sighs.

Last week, Harvard students sponsored a weeklong series of events, part of the national Take Back the Night movement, to bring attention to the issue of domestic violence and sexual assault.

"The reporting [now] is completely different," he says. "People aren't afraid to call the police."

Cambridge's high population density both encourages domestic violence by placing people in close quarters, and makes it easier for neighbors to overhear fights and report them to police.

Domestic violence, however, is a crime, that is easily contained, and therefore easily ignored. Violence from domestic situations rarely spreads into the wider community, and arrests are almost always made on-scene.