According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 4 women and 1 in 10 men experience contact sexual violence, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime. About 1 in 2 female homicide victims in the U.S. are killed by a current or former intimate partner. The same is true for 1 in 13 male homicide victims.
Corinealdi's character, Jax, served as a criminal defense lawyer this season for Kane's character, Chanel, who's facing prosecution for killing her abusive husband.
Mohamed points to the ever-present domestic violence in our culture, citing it as her inspiration for Chanel's story.
"Whether it's being talked about or not, it's something that women and even men have experienced for a very long time," Mohamed said. "It was kind of a no-brainer to be able to highlight this topic, especially in a personal way, because I always feel like through television and through stories, that's how people understand things."
Kane speaks to the way her characters' trials mirror millions of women across the world, including their reasons for staying in abusive situations.
"There is fear that if they take that step and the plan is inadequate, then it could lead to homicide," Kane said. "It could lead to the end of their life. And on top of that, there is an immense amount of shame and guilt."
Dr. Warner agrees.
"Sixty percent of women recant their statements," Warner said. "They also are afraid of prosecution. They don't leave, they go back. It's a cycle, right? And they have kids, you have financial abuse, you have all kinds of things that happened that's just really heavy."
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics National Crime Victimization Survey, more than 50% of domestic violence incidents are never reported to law enforcement.
"They're suffering in silence," Kane said. "Which is why this conversation is so important."
In preparing for the role, Kane leaned on hard research. She consulted interviews with victims, 911 calls, figured out common injuries survivors deal with, and used Mohamed's connection to the National Domestic Violence hotline. Mohamed points to also leaning on the shared experiences of the show's creatives.
"We had so many shared stories in the writer's room about this experience," said Mohamed. "I personally had some experience with it, and so I put that into the show. And then, of course, because we wanted to make sure the statistics that we talk about were accurate, we consulted with the National Domestic Hotline."
Despite all the preparations and support offered by Mohamed and the rest of the cast and crew, Kane still found marked complications in portraying such a heavy and pertinent subject matter.
"One of the biggest challenges in playing Chanel was when we finished, what I felt was an immense amount of guilt," Kane said. "Why? Because I got to go home to a safe home. I got to go home and get loved on by my son. And there are millions of women who do not have that. It took me a while to shed that."
Dr. Warner speaks to the importance of a loved one's presence for real people experiencing domestic violence, the people that can't shed the pain of abuse when a television shoot wraps.
"The first time that they disclose it to you," said Warner, "Stop talking because they're downloading. They're getting that out, and if you shut them down, they're never going to tell anyone again."
"I hope that the show is able to eliminate the negative stigma around domestic violence," Kane added. "I hope that anyone who is going through this and experiencing this now, or who has experienced it, is inspired to come out from that shame, out from that guilt, out from that fear, and find power and self-worth in Chanel's story, and know that there is help available."
If you or someone you know is experiencing relationship abuse, help is available. Please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) or on their website at thehotline.org.
"Reasonable Doubt" is now streaming on Hulu.
Watch the full conversation in the video player above.
Andres Rovira and Jason Honeycutt contributed to this report.
Disney is the parent company of Hulu and this station.