Department of Justice Seal Department of Justice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 2004
WWW.USDOJ.GOV
OVW
(202) 514-2008
TDD (202) 514-1888

ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT ANNOUNCES $20 MILLION FOR COMMUNITIES THROUGH PRESIDENT BUSH’S FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER INITIATIVE


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft announced today that the Department of Justice is awarding more than $20 million to 15 communities chosen under President Bush’s Family Justice Center Initiative to prevent and respond to violence against women, and to five communities that will receive technical assistance grants to provide specialized expertise and consultation to them. The President’s Family Justice Center Initiative, unveiled by President Bush in October 2003, is an unprecedented pilot program that will make a victim’s search for help and justice more efficient and effective by bringing professionals who provide an array of necessary services together under one roof. The Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has taken the lead on this pilot program to develop comprehensive domestic violence victim service and support centers in these 15 communities across the country.

“The Family Justice Center Initiative Awards will make a tremendous difference for women in these communities who are victimized by domestic violence, allowing those who desperately need help to find it in one place,” said Attorney General John Ashcroft. “The cause of justice is served not only when we prosecute criminals, but also when we reach out to the victims of crime. The Family Justice Centers will ease their burden and demonstrate that the most compassionate way of helping victims can also be the best and most effective way.”

“Offering centralized, comprehensive services to domestic violence victims is the coordinated community response at its best,” said Office on Violence Against Women Director Diane M. Stuart. “Whether it’s obtaining a protection order, talking to an advocate, or meeting with a prosecutor, these centers will enable victims to get the assistance they need to put their lives and their children’s lives back on track.”

Often, the services designed to help these victims are uncoordinated and scattered throughout communities. The President’s Family Justice Center Initiative sites are designed to bring together advocates from non-profit, non-governmental domestic violence victim services organizations, law enforcement officers, prosecutors, probation officers, governmental victim assistants, forensic medical professionals, civil legal attorneys, chaplains, and representatives from community-based organizations into one centralized location.

The 15 Family Justice Centers are encouraged to look to the family justice centers pioneered in San Diego, CA; Indianapolis, IN; and Hennepin County, MN for the comprehensive development and creation of their own centers. Justice Department efforts will be further supported by its partners from the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, Department of Education, Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Labor.

The Department of Justice selected the recipients of the Family Justice Center Initiative Awards based on several criteria, including geographic distribution, economic and cultural diversity, service to underserved populations, and coordination with Native American communities. The 15 communities receiving the awards are:

2004 PRESIDENT’S FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER INITIATIVE

AWARD AMOUNTS AND CONTACTS

Site

County of Alameda: $ 1,227,250
Oakland, California - Joline Owyang, (510) 272-6217
Family Violence Law Center: $ 150,000
Julia Arno, (510) 540-5370

Bexar County: $ 1,227,250
San Antonio, Texas - Kaye Whitcomb, (210) 335-2342
Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid: $ 150,000
Michele Clark, (512) 447-7707

City of Boston: $ 1,046,880
Boston, Massachusetts - Cathy Greene, (617) 619-4265
Greater Boston Legal Services: $ 150,000
Barbara Mitchell, (617) 603-1550

Defiance Municipal Court: $ 1,214,086
Defiance, Ohio - Pam Weiner, (419) 784-9558
Legal Aid of Western Ohio: $ 150,000
Pam Weiner, (419) 784-9558

County of Erie: $ 945,712
Buffalo, New York - Amy Rockwood, (716) 858-4941
Neighborhood Legal Services, Inc.: $ 150,000
Alexis Dickerson, (716) 847-0655

Hillsborough County: $ 1,098,008
Tampa, Florida - Vicki Adelson, (813) 301-7352
Bay Area Legal Services: $ 150,000
Richard Woltmann, (813) 232-1222

City of Knoxville: $ 1,077,000
Knoxville, Tennessee - Judith Martin, (865) 215-2040
Legal Aid of East Tennessee, Inc.: $ 150,000
David R. Yoder, (865) 637-0484

City of Nampa: $ 915,566
Nampa, Idaho - Sabrina Bowman, (208) 468-5419
Idaho Legal Aid Services: $ 150,000
Kelly Miller, (208) 336-8980

City of New York: $ 1,227,000
Brooklyn, New York - Dina Doriotis, (212) 788-6815
Sanctuary For Families, Inc.: $ 150,000
Hilary Maddux, (212) 349-6009

Ouachita Parish Police Jury: $ 1,034,220
Monroe, Louisiana - Kim Golden, (318) 323-9300
Legal Assistance for Victims: $ 150,000
Kim Golden, (318) 323-9300

Sitka Tribe of Alaska: $ 1,115,000
Sitka, Alaska - Alicia Gassman, (907) 747-3207
Alaska Network on Domestic: $ 150,000
Violence and Sexual Assault
Kari Robinson, (907) 586-5643

Somos Familia Family Institute, Inc. : $ 726,470
Las Vegas, New Mexico - Angelina Salmeron, (505) 425-8120

St. Joseph County: $ 1,047,591
South Bend, Indiana - Catherine Wilson, (574) 245-6635
Legal Assistance for Victims: $ 150,000
Catherine Wilson, (574) 245-6635

City of St. Louis: $ 1,250,695
St. Louis, Missouri -Anna Ginsburg, (314) 622-4623
Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc.: $ 150,000
Cyra Lohman, (314) 534-7888

City of Tulsa: $ 1,079,321
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Monica Hamilton, (918) 596-7413

San Diego Family Justice Center Foundation: *$ 1,606, 950
San Diego, California
Comprehensive Technical Assistance Provider
Casey Gwinn, (619) 236-6220

City of Indianapolis: *$ 143,125
Indianapolis, Indiana
Technical Assistance Provider
Liz Allison, (317) 327-3552

Hennepin County: *$ 143,125
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Technical Assistance Provider
Cathy McMahon, (612) 348-6202

Safe Havens: *$ 414,198
Boston, Massachusetts
Faith-Based Technical Assistance Provider
Anne Marie Hunter, (617) 227-6992

National Network to End Domestic Violence: *$ 125,000
Washington, D.C.
Technical Assistance Provider
Lynn Rosenthal, (202) 543-5566

Total: $ 20,604,197

*Technical Assistance Grant for providing specialized expertise and consultation to the 15 new Family Justice Centers.

More information about the President’s Family Justice Center Initiative and other initiatives involving the Office on Violence Against Women is available on OVW’s website at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/vawo.

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