The training and services to end abuse in later life (abuse in later life) program funds training for criminal justice professionals to improve investigation and prosecution of crimes involving…

The Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women awarded $357,683 to Region II Commission On Services To The Aging (doing business as Wellwise Services Area Agency On Aging) on August 1, 2026, under the Enhanced Training and Services to End Violence and Abuse of Women Later in Life program (CFDA 16.528).

The recipient will deliver training for criminal justice professionals, including law enforcement officers, prosecutors, court personnel, and nonprofit staff, to improve investigation and prosecution of crimes involving abuse of people age 50 and older. Training will cover recognition and response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, neglect, abandonment, economic abuse, and willful harm. The project includes development and review of policies and protocols for identifying, investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating abuse-in-later-life cases and will establish coordinated community responses and victim services in Jackson County, Michigan. Performance runs through July 31, 2029, with work based in Brooklyn, Michigan. The award is a Project Grant, structured as a multidisciplinary partnership that includes law enforcement, prosecution, victim service providers, and organizations with experience serving older adults.

The training and services to end abuse in later life (abuse in later life) program funds training for criminal justice professionals to improve investigation and prosecution of crimes involving abuse of people age 50+, training for professionals who work with older victims, coordinated community responses, and services for victims. The recipient will work with its project partners to address abuse in later life in jackson county, michigan, through training, collaboration, and services. The OVW-sponsored training curricula aid law enforcement officers, prosecutors, other personnel from governmental agencies, staff of nonprofit organizations, and officers of federal, state, tribal, territorial, and local courts in recognizing and addressing abuse in later life, serving victims of such crimes, and working together to make their communities safer for older adults. The project will also involve development and review of policies and protocols for identifying, investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating cases of abuse in later life, including domestic/dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, neglect, abandonment, economic abuse, or willful harm committed against victims who are 50 years of age or older.