The grants to support families in the justice system program (referred to as the justice for families program) was authorized in the violence against women reauthorization act of 2013 to improve the…

The grants to support families in the justice system program (referred to as the justice for families program) was authorized in the violence against women reauthorization act of 2013 to improve the response of the civil and criminal justice system to families with a history of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, or in cases involving allegations of child sexual abuse. The program supports the following activities for improving the capacity of courts and communities to respond to families affected by the targeted crimes: court-based and court-related programs; supervised visitation and safe exchange by and between parents; training for people who work with families in the court system; civil legal services; and the provision of resources in juvenile court matters. Projects supported by the justice for families program are those that focus on keeping victims and their children safe from further abuse and holding offenders accountable. Through this continuation justice for families project, the domestic violence action center, in partnership with the hawaii state judiciary first judicial circuit, will implement a standard project addressing the following purpose areas: 3) training for court-based and court-related personnel; 5) court and court-based programs and services; and 6) civil legal assistance, on the island of oahu, HI. Specific activities under this project include: 1) supporting a 1.0 FTE advocate to provide critical services to petitioners and survivor respondents at both stages of the protection order process (EX parte and order to show cause hearings) and other victim advocacy and safety planning; 2) supporting 1.0 FTE staff attorney to provide legal representation to survivors of domestic violence; and 3) coordinating at least three trainings for approximately 45 judges on trauma-informed response for domestic violence survivors. This is a continuation of 15JOVW-21-GG-00213-jffx.