Could the death of Kristina (Thompson) Lamberson, the Elwood woman who was found shot last week, have been prevented? That is the question going through the minds of her family and friends, especially the two children she left behind. No one knows whether her death could've been prevented, but more could've - and should've - been done by law enforcement officers to protect her.

The system failed Kristina Lamberson.

She was in a violent marriage with Robert Lamberson. According to police reports, he threatened to do her harm, cursed her children, pushed her in the mud and spit in her face. When she filed for divorce in January, she also took out a protective order against Robert Lamberson through Madison Superior Court 1.

That didn't stop him from calling her on several occasions. Elwood Police arrested Robert Lamberson on March 2 at 6:30 a.m. for invasion of privacy for violating the protective order. He was put in a holding cell at the Elwood Police department. Then a curious thing happened. He was allowed to post 10 percent of his $3,000 bond and was on the streets five hours after being taken in. The next day, according to police, he killed Kristina and took his own life.

What's curious about this is that Elwood City Court Judge Kyle Noone had issued a standing order that anyone arrested on domestic charges be held for 24 hours to cool off. Noone's 24-hour order would have meant Lamberson would be in jail until 6:30 a.m. the next day. He did not kill within that 24-hour period. Another 17 would pass before the call came in to 911. Still, a longer cooling down period behind bars might have altered his course of action over the following hours.

State Senate Bill 27, in addressing this matter, "requires a facility having custody of a person arrested for a crime of domestic violence to keep the person in custody for at least eight hours from the time of the arrest, and prohibits a person arrested for a crime of domestic violence from being released on bail during the eight-hour period." The bill has passed both houses of the General Assembly and awaits the signature of Gov. Mitch Daniels.

State Senate Bill 27 would give uniformity to law enforcement agencies and courts as to how to handle domestic violence arrests. Domestic violence experts, however, contend that 24 hours could make more of a difference. We agree.

Elwood Police Chief Jack Miller said Noone's order to hold domestic violence suspects for 24 hours didn't apply because the protective order came from Superior Court. Noone disagrees, saying the invasion of privacy charge went to his court.

This is a classic case of buck passing. Elwood police knew about Noone's order and sidestepped it. Police also knew that Robert Lamberson had been threatening Kristina since the beginning of their marriage last summer.

Miller and Elwood Mayor Merrill Taylor announced an internal police investigation on Wednesday to review procedures concerning the Lamberson case and determine what needs to be changed. But an internal investigation is not good enough.

The Madison County Domestic Violence Fatality Review team, made up of victim advocates and law enforcement officials, is also investigating. The team will examine why someone like Robert Lamberson was let out after five hours, despite his threats and violence toward Kristina, and what standard practices are used in such situations in all Madison County courts.

Of course, none of that will bring back Kristina Lamberson. None of that will return a mother to her two children. This is a tragic case that illustrates why an extended cooling-off period has to be enforced in all domestic violence cases, which are highly emotional. All county law enforcement agencies and courts should take a hard look at what happened in Elwood, and what might have been prevented.