GRANT TITLE: STOP VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT GRANT (VAWA)

OVERVIEW: The purpose of the S.T.O.P. (Services-Training-Officers-Prosecutors) Violence Against Women Grant Program is to develop and strengthen the criminal justice system's response to violence against women and to support and enhance services for victims. The S.T.O.P. VAWA Grant Program encourages victim service providers, prosecutors, law enforcement, and the courts to implement coordinated multidisciplinary approaches to address domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking.

ELIGIBILITY: To be eligible for funding under this grant program, an applicant must be a(n): a) State Agency; b) Unit of Local Government (i.e., city, county, town); c) Tribal Government; d) Private Nonprofit Organization, including Faith-based Organizations; e) Non-governmental Victim Services Program

PURPOSE AREAS: Only applications that fall under one or more of these purpose areas will be reviewed. The purpose areas are:

1. Training law enforcement officers, judges, other court personnel, and prosecutors to more effectively identify and respond to violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault, domestic violence, and dating violence.

2. Developing, training, or expanding units of law enforcement officers, judges, other court personnel, and prosecutors specifically targeting violent crimes against women, including sexual assault and domestic violence.

3. Developing and implementing more effective police, court, and prosecution policies, protocols, orders, and services devoted to preventing, identifying, and responding to violent crimes against women, including sexual assault and domestic violence.

4. Developing, installing, or expanding data collection and communication systems, including computerized systems linking police, prosecution, and the courts or for the purpose of identifying and tracking arrests, protection orders, violations of protection orders, prosecutions, and convictions for violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence, including the reporting of such information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

5. Developing, enlarging, or strengthening victim services programs, including sexual assault, domestic violence, and dating violence programs; developing or improving the delivery of victim services to underserved populations; providing specialized domestic violence court advocates in courts where a significant number of protection orders are granted; and increasing reporting and reducing attrition rates for cases involving violent crimes against women, including sexual assault and domestic violence.

6. Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs addressing stalking.

7. Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs addressing the needs and circumstances of Indian tribes dealing with violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence.

8. Supporting formal and informal statewide, multidisciplinary efforts, to the extent not supported by state funds, to coordinate the response of state law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, victim services agencies, and other state agencies and departments, to violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault, domestic violence, and dating violence.

9. Training of sexual assault forensic medical personnel examiners in the collection and preservation of evidence, analysis, prevention and providing expert testimony and treatment of trauma related to sexual assault.

10. Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs to assist law enforcement, prosecutors, courts, and others to address the needs and circumstances of older and disabled women who are victims of domestic violence or sexual assault, including recognizing, investigating, and prosecuting instances of such violence or assault and targeting outreach and support, counseling, and other victim services to such older and disabled individuals.

11. Providing assistance to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in immigration matters.

12. Maintaining core victim services and criminal justice initiatives, while supporting complementary new initiatives and emergency services for victims and their families;  

13. Supporting the placement of special victim assistants (to be known as "Jessica Gonzales Victim Assistants") in local law enforcement agencies to serve as liaisons between victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking and personnel in local law enforcement agencies in order to improve the enforcement of protection orders.  Jessica Gonzales Victim Assistants shall have expertise in domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and may undertake the following activities--

• Developing, in collaboration with prosecutors, courts, and victim service providers, standardized response policies for local law enforcement agencies, including triage protocols to ensure that dangerous or potentially lethal cases are identified and prioritized;
• Notifying persons seeking enforcement of protection orders as to what responses will be provided by the relevant law enforcement agency;
• Referring persons seeking enforcement of protection orders to supplementary services (such as emergency shelter programs, hotlines, or legal assistance services); and
• Taking other appropriate action to assist or secure the safety of the person seeking enforcement of a protection order; and

14. To provide funding to law enforcement agencies, nonprofit nongovernmental victim services providers, and State, tribal, territorial, and local governments, (which funding stream shall be known as the Crystal Judson Domestic Violence Protocol Program) to promote --

• The development and implementation of training for local victim domestic violence service providers, and to fund victim services personnel, to be known as "Crystal Judson Victim Advocates," to provide supportive services and advocacy for victims of domestic violence committed by law enforcement personnel;
• The implementation of protocols within law enforcement agencies to ensure consistent and effective responses to the commission of domestic violence by personnel within such agencies (such as the model policy promulgated by the International Association of Chiefs of Police ['Domestic Violence by Police Officers:  A Policy of the IACP, Police Response to Violence Against Women Project' July 2003]
• The development of such protocols in collaboration with State, tribal, territorial and local victim services providers and domestic violence coalitions.
  

BOARD PRIORITIES:  The VAWA Grant Board, comprised of six members, is charged with developing the state implementation plan, reviewing grant proposals, and determining funding awards. The VAWA Grant Board does not set priority areas for funding. Each application will be reviewed on its own merit.

DEADLINE TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION: The 2008 VAWA application period is open.  Grant applications must be received at the District Attorneys Council by 5:00 p.m., September 19, 2008.  

TO REQUEST AN APPLICATION: Click here for a copy of the 2008 VAWA application. For further assistance you may contact the Federal Grants Division at 405/264-5008.