By Ryan Orr
Victorville Daily Press
VICTORVILLE, Calif. — A local man is proposing a family justice center that would house prosecutors, sheriff’s deputies and every service available for domestic violence victims -- all under one roof.
Darryl Evey, executive director of the High Desert Domestic Violence Program, proposed the idea and is currently meeting with county departments to gauge interest and explore options for funding the center.
The Department of Aging and Adult Services has already expressed interest, Evey said.
“Domestic violence is a dreadful crime that can be difficult to escape,” said David Zook, spokesman for San Bernardino County 1st District Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt. “It’s critical that we provide a support network to help victims get out of violent situations.”
In Evey’s model, victims of any type of family violence would benefit from the center, including victims of elder abuse.
“They are really strapped when they want to find help if they’ve been abused or people have stolen from them,” Evey said.
So far, Evey has about six community partners that are interested in the center. He is currently creating proposals for funding, which could come from the federal government or the private sector.
Speaking for himself as a Victorville family violence prosecutor and not for the District Attorney’s office, David Foy said, “It sounds like a very positive and serious idea that would create a safer environment for domestic violence victims and assist prosecutors in bringing perpetrators to justice.”
Foy is part of the District Attorney’s Family Violence Unit, which started in Victorville in 2004 as a pilot program and now stretches throughout the county.
Domestic violence court debuted in Victorville in October 2007, keeping abusers accountable for paying fines, obeying probation and attending anger management classes.
Evey based the model on the 11 family justice centers currently in California. The centers have reduced homicides and the number of victims that renounce their original stories out of fear, according to documented results.
Ideally, Evey would like the center to be located close to the Victorville Courthouse, since that’s where a lot of the interactions will take place. The onestop shop concept has proven useful to the county and is utilized in the business resource center and the employment center, Zook said.
“I think any time you can combine services to better serve the needs of those in harm’s way, we are doing the right thing,” said Assemblyman Anthony Adams, R-Hesperia.
Copyright 2008 Victorville Daily Press