Content by Keyword: Community-Based Violence

A number of California laws were reported to be important factors in the community's response to domestic violence. California penal code defines domestic violence as a felony, making it a more serious offense than a similar assault by an unrelated individual, which is a misdemeanor and requires a citizen's arrest. By making domestic violence a fe

The active nature of the San Francisco community was reported to be an important factor in the city's approach to coordination. San Francisco is characterized by a culture of cooperation which enables people to come together and accomplish things quickly. The city's style was summed up by one respondent: "Things in San Francisco have to be coaliti

The well-established and long-term relationships between the various agencies in the San Francisco community foster a great deal of informal coordination as well. Since many of the agency staff have served on committees together, they are comfortable raising issues informally. A number of people reported that they typically rely on informal mean

Other community agencies interact to some extent with domestic violence service providers, although they historically have not been part of the established domestic violence network. For example, one shelter does outreach to churches, temples, English as a second language (ESL) programs, and health clinics to discuss domestic violence and the shel

San Francisco's response to domestic violence has been strengthened by recent institutional changes within the health care community. For example, San Francisco General Hospital has developed and implemented changes in its policies for addressing domestic violence. As a pilot site for the FUND's health care project, a multidisciplinary team from t

In general, the domestic violence community and criminal justice agencies have developed cooperative working relationships and undertaken a number of collaborative efforts over the years. It is the FUND's philosophy to involve the targeted agency(ies), in addition to domestic violence advocates and agencies, in their institutional change efforts.

While the Consortium laid the foundation for its members to develop funding priorities for the city money and marriage license fees, the effects of this arrangement extend beyond these funding sources. In one instance, California recently appropriated state money for domestic violence, but specified that the funds must be used by shelters. Since t

A great deal of coordination takes place in San Francisco through the work of the various committees. As previously noted, the community has a long tradition of collaboration and forming coordinating groups to address particular domestic violence issues. The Domestic Violence and Justice Committee is one example of a group formed to address a spec

Some of San Francisco's earliest efforts to improve the response to domestic violence occurred in the early 1980s. La Casa de las Madres, the oldest shelter in San Francisco, was established during this period, as was Woman Inc. which provides legal assistance and counseling to battered women. At the same time, a number of other changes occurred w

San Francisco has a long history of interagency collaboration and political activism on many issues, and the community's response to domestic violence follows in this tradition with a well-established and comprehensive network of agencies that work together on domestic violence issues. A broad range of stakeholders participates in the coordination

San Francisco is a densely populated city of 730,000 with a very culturally and ethnically diverse population. Of San Francisco's total population, about half are white, 30 percent are Asian/Pacific Islander, and roughly 11 percent are African American. Nearly 14 percent of the population is of Hispanic origin. About one third of the population is

The impact of coordination on victims, offenders, and services has grown over the last decade. The specialized domestic violence units would not have been created without community pressure from the outside, including from victim advocates and service providers. There is evidence to suggest that the specialized units have decreased the number of d

The domestic violence community in San Diego County views itself as extremely lucky that it has been able to develop a system of coordinated and comprehensive services while being spared a lawsuit or a tragic and publicized case (as has happened in many other communities). The coordination and communication among providers has developed slowly ove

Training in and by community agencies has also been an important component of the coordination effort. In order to break down barriers, especially in the early days of the council, it was important for victim advocates and shelter workers to learn about what the police and prosecutors do, just as it has been important for the police department and

While the medical services protocol was developed in 1990, only recently has the medical community become increasingly involved. Much of this growth is due to the Scripps Hospital of San Diego's involvement in the emergency room pilot project developed and run by the Family Violence Prevention Fund in San Francisco. (For a complete description of

The role of advocacy is very strong in the San Diego County domestic violence community, which views advocacy as the responsibility of everyone, not just victim advocates and shelter workers. All service providers, even those whose main contact is with the offender, make an effort to contact the victim to notify her of her rights, options and avai

The specialized domestic violence units not only coordinate with each other, but also with many community social service providers. The specialized unit at the San Diego Police Department consists of 19 detectives, 3 sergeants, 5 light duty officers, and 5 volunteers. This unit investigates all domestic violence cases where an arrest has been made

The San Diego DV Council includes over 200 members from agencies throughout the county that provide services to victims and perpetrators of domestic violence, the medical community, social services agencies, law enforcement, prosecutors offices, judges, and the military.