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 Office on Violence Against Women awarded Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence six hundred thousand dollars on October 1, 2025, under the Justice Systems Response to Families program (CFDA 16.021) to deliver supervised visitation and safe exchanges for families impacted by domestic violence, court-based advocacy for victims of domestic violence, and outreach to improve court access for survivors across the state of Rhode Island.

This is a continuation award covering the period of October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2028. Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence partners with Rhode Island Family Court, Women's Resource Center, and Domestic Violence Resource Center to execute the project. Work is performed in Warwick, Rhode Island. The Justice Systems Response to Families program, authorized under the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013, supports court-based and court-related programs, supervised visitation and safe exchange services, training for people who work with families in the court system, civil legal services, and juvenile court resources to improve the capacity of courts and communities to respond to families affected by domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and child sexual abuse.

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, rhode island coalition against domestic violence, in partnership with rhode island family court, women'sresource center, and domestic violence resource center, will providesupervised visitation and safe exchanges for families impacted by domestic violence; court-based advocacy for victims of domestic violence; and outreach to improve court access for survivors for the state of rhode island. This is a continuation of 15JOVW-22-GG-00223-jffx.