The improving criminal justice responses to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking grant program is authorized by 34 U.S.C. 10461-10465 and implemented through regulations at…

The City of Omaha, Nebraska was awarded a $575,000 Project Grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women under the Grants to Encourage Arrest Policies and Enforcement of Protection Orders Program (CFDA 16.590). The grant will be used by the City of Omaha, in partnership with the Women's Center for Advancement, Omaha Police Department, Douglas County Sheriff's Office, Douglas County Attorney's Office, and the Nebraska Probation Office, to implement a coordinated community response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Key activities include: conducting victim safety assessments, enhancing protection order services, increasing victimless prosecution, expanding victim services for underserved populations, exploring co-responder models, and improving access to reporting for victims with limited English proficiency or disabilities. The project also involves participation in mandatory Office on Violence Against Women training and technical assistance, as well as efforts to sustain the implemented activities beyond the grant period. In addition, the grant funds a Domestic Violence Unit Attorney and Liaison position in the Douglas County Attorney's Office, as well as a part-time Domestic Violence Probation Officer and Domestic Violence Warrant Sweep Operations in the Nebraska Probation Office. The Women's Center for Advancement will use sub-award funding to support a part-time bilingual advocate and a part-time shift advocate to provide direct client services.

The improving criminal justice responses to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking grant program is authorized by 34 U.S.C. 10461-10465 and implemented through regulations at 28 C.F.R. Part 90, subpart D. The program fosters victim safety and offender accountability in cases of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking by encouraging state, local, and tribal governments and courts to work collaboratively with community partners to identify problems and share ideas that will result in effectively responding to these crimes. An integral component of this program is the development, revitalization, or enhancement of a coordinated community response that brings together criminal justice agencies, victim services providers, and community-based organizations that respond to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The grantee, in collaboration with its project partners, will use this continuation award to continue improving the jurisdictions criminal justice system response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Specifically, the project will: 1) implement activities focused on victim safety and offender accountability; 2) participate in mandated OVW training and technical assistance; and 3) work toward sustainability of project activities. Through this continuation grants to improve the criminal justice response project, the city of omaha in nebraska, in partnership with womens center for advancement, omaha police department, douglas county sheriffs office, douglas county attorneys office (DCAO), and the state of nebraska probation office-district 4A will implement a project addressing the following purpose areas: 3, 5 and 19. This project will serve douglas county, nebraska. The project will address OVW priority area 2. Specific activities will include: 1) completion of a safety assessment utilizing the praxis model, with a focus on marginalized communities to increase access to justice for all victims/survivors, 2) continued protection order service; 3) increasing dcaos use of victimless prosecution in domestic violence cases, 4) increasing the number of latina and african american victims served by the womens center for advancement, 5) exploring the use of a CO-responder model, 6) increasing investigative follow-up for cold cases with tested DNA evidence, 7) improving access to reporting for victims with limited english proficiency, victims who are deaf or hard of hearing, victims who are visually impaired and blind, and victims from underserved populations, and 8) annually updating the CRT/sart three-year plans, based on best practices for each agency.