Individual

1
Police
CPS
Courts
Probation Probation Perpetrator Tx
Substance Abuse Services
Community Programs
Victim Support Services
SafeHouse, Safeguard, PAVE, DOVE, VOA Brandon,
CLS, DCCV, DDFL (Animal Cruelty Investigator),
Asian Pacific, DVI, DIHFS, VSN et al

Police
CPS
Courts Civil Legal Advocacy
Community DV Advocate Specialist DV Support
Services Substance Abuse Services Human
Services - Benefits Agency Health/Mental Health
Other Victim Support Employment
Specialist Safe Shelter
Extended / Transitional Housing
Long-term Housing

Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference
Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements
Local Safeguarding Children Boards
Social Care Education Schools CAMHS
Health Specialist DV Services Voluntary
Community Sector Housing Police
Probation Courts CJS
Community
Coordination Equality
Friends
Perpetrator
Individual
Family
Child
Schools Public Sector
Juvenile Services Nursery/Child Care
Educational Welfare Child Protection Services
Educational Psychology Childrens Mental
Health Faith Groups
Youth Groups Health
Colleagues
Immediate Network
Primary Agency Contact
Neighbours
Individual Agency Risk Assessments
Safety Planning Process
Coordinated Community Response to IPV
2
In the Beginning -

• 1976 - Denver DAs Office is one of a few sites
  nationally awarded LEAA grant money to develop
  victim services. The office initiates a system
  which victims and witnesses are notified of case
  status and are on call for hearings. One full
  time advocate works with families of homicide
  victims, victims of assaults, aggravated
  robberies and sexual assaults. A Victim/witness
  area is established in Room 492 of the City and
  County Building.
• 1978 - The first shelters for battered women
  their children are opened in Colorado 2 in the
  Denver area.
• 1982 - Denvers Crime Victim Compensation Board
  is started.

3
Onward into herstory

• 1982 - Statute creates Domestic Abuse
  Restraining Orders allow for specific
  provisions like exclusion from a shared
  residence, listing of addresses and distance to
  stay away from, etc. provided some relief for
  non-married partners options besides petitioning
  for divorce. Amended in 89 to clarify
  jurisdictional issues and in 91 to add
  provision of temporary care and control of
  children.
• 1984 Denver establishes a probable cause /
  mandatory arrest policy in domestic violence
  cases in part motivated by a threatened class
  action lawsuit on behalf of battered women.
  Note PC / Mandatory arrest did not become state
  law until 1994.
• 1985 The Domestic Violence Unit is formed in the
  City Attorneys Office to assist victims of
  domestic violence crimes filed at the municipal
  level. For the first time, domestic violence
  defendants are held in jail until the next
  session of Court so the judge may set bond after
  reviewing the defendants history. Court is held
  every day except Sunday.

4
Cut to the Chase The Real Work Begins

• 1986 Denver Domestic Violence Task Force is
  established creating an on-going forum for
  system and community based organizations to
  address concerns and find solutions regarding
  domestic violence policy and intervention.
  Published the first Manual containing the
  policies for police, prosecutors, probation and
  the courts.

5

• 1986 The Denver DAs Office establishes a
  specialized DV Unit, which includes a victim
  advocate, to allow for vertical prosecution of
  felony domestic violence and child abuse crimes.
• 1988 Legislative creation of a State Commission
  to establish a code of standards for treatment
  of domestic violence offenders mandates that
  anyone convicted of a DV crime shall be ordered
  into a treatment program certified in accordance
  with the standards.
• 1989 The DPD Victim Assistance Unit expands
  services to victims to 24 hours a day, 7 days a
  week.
• 1991 Denver city ordinance is passed that
  prohibits domestic violence crimes from being on
  the bonding schedule and personal recognizance
  PR bonds are banned without the agreement of
  the prosecutor.

6
And The Beat Goes On

• 1991 Violation of a restraining order is made
  a crime, as opposed to a civil contempt action.
  In addition to the state statute, Denver also
  passes a city ordinance to allow for criminal
  prosecution of violation of restraining orders at
  the municipal level.
• The Denver Domestic Violence Manual is revised
  and specifies the determination of primary
  physical aggressor. The Manual is printed and
  distributed to anyone everyone who potentially
  has contact with either a domestic violence
  victim or offender (or both). We receive many
  requests for the Manual from all over the
  country because very few jurisdictions have
  effective and enduring Domestic Violence Task
  forces
• 1992 - 93 Colorado passes the Victim Rights
  Amendment, providing Constitutional rights to
  certain crime victims. Denvers Protective Orders
  Courtroom (303W) opens one of the nations first
  dedicated courtrooms issuing civil restraining
  orders and providing on-site legal advocacy for
  victims.

7
And on and on and on

• 1994 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is passed
  federally, putting in place certain firearm
  restrictions for persons convicted of a domestic
  violence crime or under the provisions of a
  restraining order. Also provided for full faith
  and credit to restraining orders issued in any
  state and the ability for victims to sue
  batterers for civil damages. VAWA also
  establishes federal grant funds to encourage
  police and prosecution to develop policies and
  programs addressing domestic violence.
• Significant legislative changes also occurred in
  Colorado, including Crime of harassment by
  stalking distinguished from harassment
  considers a credible threat made directly or
  indirectly to another person. Mandates 60 day
  minimum jail when a restraining order prohibiting
  any behavior defined as stalking is already in
  place prior to the stalking crime.
• Redefined terms used in domestic violence
  statutes and clarifies definition of intimate
  relationship.

8
And on and on

• Established probable cause / mandatory arrest
  statewide to avoid inappropriate dual arrests,
  requires law enforcement to evaluate each
  complaint separately mandates police to remove
  arrested person from the scene and transport to
  station for booking authorizes police to use
  every reasonable means to protect victim or
  children in preventing further violence requires
  documents in a criminal case to indicate on the
  face of the document when it is domestic
  violence.
• Prohibits a defendant from entering a guilty or
  no contest plea to an offense which does not
  include the domestic violence designation, unless
  the prosecutor shows on the record that the
  relationship between the parties doesnt meet the
  DV definition.
• Prohibits deferred prosecution in domestic
  violence cases.

9
and on

• Extends testimonial privilege to private victim
  advocates.
• Clarifies admissibility of prior acts of domestic
  violence in the prosecution of domestic violence
  cases.
• Lists additional items the court may order in
  MROs, including vacating the victims home,
  prohibiting contact, possession of firearms or
  other weapons, possession or consumption of
  alcohol or controlled substances.
• Instructs the court to state to the defendant on
  the record the terms of the restraining order
  before they are released on bail.
• Requires treatment of a domestic violence
  offender, unless a treatment provider determines
  it to be inappropriate.
• Renders any person accused or convicted of a
  domestic violence crime ineligible for home
  detention in the home of the victim.

10
and on

• Prohibits an incarcerated defendant from making
  phone calls to anyone other than his attorney if
  the victim can show defendant has called in
  violation of a RO.
• Requires courts issuing restraining orders to
  report the content of such orders to a central
  State Registry maintained by CBI requires CBI to
  maintain that registry and provides that all
  state and local law enforcement have access to
  the data.
• Prohibits the court from issuing automatic
  mutual restraining orders requires opposing
  parties to each meet the burden of proof and the
  court to make separate and sufficient finding of
  fact.

11
And then ..

• Allows the court when issuing a restraining order
  to include parenting time, conditions of such
  time, including supervision by a third party.
  Allows court to deny parenting time if it finds
  that the safety of the child or the protected
  party cannot be ensured.
• Increases the crime of violation of restraining
  order to a Class 2 misdemeanor for the 1st
  violation and a Class 2 misdemeanor for a
  defendant who has a prior conviction for a VRO.
  Reiterates that any sentence imposed for a VRO
  run consecutively, not concurrently, with any
  sentence imposed for any crime which gave rise to
  the issuance of the restraining order.
• 1995 Clarifies that physicians have a duty to
  report immediately to the police any injury
  resulting from domestic violence.

12
Things are still changing

• 1996 Denver Police Department establishes the
  Domestic Violence Unit, with a Sergeant and 4
  detectives assigned to investigate misdemeanor
  and felony crimes.
• 1996 Denvers Domestic Violence Fatality
  Review Committee is established through a
  collaborative grant with Project Safeguard and
  the Denver Police Department, to review homicides
  and suicides that occur in a domestic violence
  related incident in order to gain better
  understanding of the dynamics.
• 1998 Denver District Attorneys Office
  establishes a Domestic Violence Fast Track
  program, to develop earlier intervention with
  victims and timely consequences to offenders.
• 1998 New statute allows for increased penalties
  on the second and all subsequent violations of a
  restraining order convictions obtained at the
  state level.

13
The Ball is in our Court

• 1998 Legislation provides state funding for
  domestic violence shelters Colorado was only 1
  of 2 states nationally that had not provided some
  level of state funding to DV programs.
• 1999 Domestic violence habitual offender statute
  is passed, providing increased sanctions for
  misdemeanor offenders with 3 or more prior
  domestic violence convictions.
• 1999 Legislation provides for enhanced sentencing
  in misdemeanor and felony domestic violence cases
  when the victim was pregnant at the time of the
  offense, and defendant knew she was pregnant.
• 2000 Legislation requires police officers
  responding to a domestic violence call to make
  note in their report if children may have seen or
  heard the incident also requires civil court to
  inform parties petitioning for parental
  responsibilities about domestic violence services
  and encourage the parties to obtain such
  services for their children.

14
Initial commitments

• Agency leaders, practitioners, victim advocates
  collaborating to write each participating
  agencys policies and protocols.
• Moving a case from one step to the next so that
  each person involved acts in a way that protects
  victims and contains offenders.
• Adhere to foundation principals (whatever that
  means to your community)

15
Getting Started

• Do you have the political will the commitment
  to take on such a project?
• The advocacy program agency leaders need to
  agree on a central role for advocates to comment
  on to help shape policies procedures.
• Determine who will coordinate the effort.

16
Keep Going

• Facilitate an exploratory (hunting expedition)
  meeting between stakeholders. Maybe invite
  someone from another Blueprint Community to do a
  briefing on their experience.
• If youre going forward you need a WORKING
  committee!
• Be inclusive! Youre not only going to work
  together youre kinda moving in together.

17
More

• Always factor in sustainability of the vision
  (and the bricks mortar.)
• Respect each representatives position
  experiences.
• Confidentiality rules!! (As in a verb.)

18
Denvers Triage Review Team

• History of DV Triage Review Team
• Started with the question, What if we could ALL
  talk about the DV cases on a daily basis?
• DV is a crime about context information on a
  police report will not provide a complete
  picture.
• Began in January 2006
• Funded by a grant from OVW

19
Triage cont

• The Triage team is a dynamic coordinated
  community response to domestic violence designed
  to enhance safety and earlier utilization of
  services for victims and to increase containment
  for offenders.
• Main goals better contain offenders and provide
  services to victims more rapidly regardless of
  case status.

20
(No Transcript)
21
The Triage Philosophy

• The intent of Triage is to collaboratively
• review cases for appropriate interventions,
• proactively and effectively serve victims,
• assess risk,
• enhance interagency communication,
• provide home visits to victims,
• refile cases at appropriate levels, and
• increase efficiency of all services.

22
(No Transcript)
23
Triage Partners From the System

• Denver District Attorneys Office
• Denver City Attorneys Office
• Denver Police Department, Victim Assistance Unit
• Denver Police Department, Domestic Violence Unit
• Denver Adult Probation

24
(No Transcript)
25
Triage Partners From the Community

• Denver Domestic Violence Coordinating Council
• Project Safeguard
• SafeHouse Denver
• University of Denver (for the research component)
• CO Legal Services

26
(No Transcript)
27
Daily Process Before Triage

• Triage Coordinator
• Receives new police reports from DPD
• Researches defendants criminal histories
• Enters information in database
• Creates triage assessment forms
• The District Attorneys Office
• Review cases to accept, decline, or refile

28
(No Transcript)
29
Daily Process Before Triage

• The DPD Victim Assistance Unit
• Contacts victims to provide outreach and informs
  them a community-based organization will be
  contacting them (if appropriate)
• The City Attorneys Office
• Identifies cases that need to be refiled
• Contact victims from new municipal cases
• Take to Triage cases in which victims are
  requesting community outreach services

30
(No Transcript)
31
Daily Process Before Triage

• The DPD Domestic Violence Unit
• Conducts further investigations on state-charged
  domestic violence cases

32
(No Transcript)
33
Daily Process

• Held Mon. Fri., 1030 a.m. 1200
• Cases are typically presented by a DPD DV
  Detective or Supervising Sergeant
• Cases are assessed for risk high-risk cases
  receive the most discussion
• Referrals are made based on the VAUs contact
  with the victim, assessment of risk, and services
  requested
• Home visits are recommended in high-risk cases or
  in cases where the VAU has been unable to make
  contact

34
(No Transcript)
35
Triage Outcomes

• Triage team can track patterns of abuse,
  recidivism, multiple warrants, and successful
  pick-ups on fugitive cases.
• Probation officers receive earlier notices of
  reoffenses, probation violations, info on
  fugitive arrests.
• The team identifies system and/or intervention
  challenges to find better solutions.
• Everyone works with the same information.

36
(No Transcript)
37
Triage Assessment Form

• Insert sample form here

38
(No Transcript)
39
Confidentiality

• One-way flow of information to community-based
  organizations
• Frustrations arise when CBOs cant share outcomes
  of cases
• All participants signed a Memo of Understanding
  between agencies Confidentiality Agreement
• Statistics are reported in aggregate to preserve
  confidentiality

40
(No Transcript)
41
Role of Technology

• Database created by CiviCore to capture
  information on all cases reviewed in Triage
• Only those actively participating in the Triage
  process have access computer-specific
• Multiple firewalls and security measures were put
  in place
• Generates case reports used in Triage
• Can help the team see trends
• Multiple cases for one defendant
• Includes cases that werent filed

42
(No Transcript)
43
Role of the Steering Committee

• Representatives from each partner agency attend
  the monthly meetings.
• Topics addressed include training issues,
  communication flow, procedural issues, the
  research component, and more.
• Communication is key to the projects success
  the Steering Committee helps enhance inter-agency
  communication.

44
(No Transcript)
45
How Triage Can Mitigate Risk

• Triage process links victims with community
  resources sooner
• Networking systems and community resources may
  result in better meeting the victims needs
• Advocates, prosecutors, and law enforcement can
  all help victims better understand that they
  cannot control the abusers behavior all
  involved can help safeguard the victims and their
  children.

46
(No Transcript)
47
How Triage Can Mitigate Risk

• Charging cases at appropriate levels, considering
  the following
• Greatest containment of the defendant
• Dynamics of the charges
• Revealing the façade of the defendant
• Future charges
• Wrapping the victim in services, even if charges
  are dismissed or not filed

48
(No Transcript)
49
How Triage Can Mitigate Risk

• Identifying risk factors with police, prosecution
  probation can better protect victims, contain
  offenders
• Identifying warrant cases that merit special
  attention
• Identifying cases for home visits from law
  enforcement

50
(No Transcript)
51
Home Visits

• Utilized to add an extra layer of safety for
  victims
• Especially helpful for isolated, unreachable
  victims
• DPD VAU advocate accompanies detective whenever
  possible
• Exculpatory evidence revealed to DA/CA
• Information taken back to Triage team
• If requested, outreach services then provided

52
(No Transcript)
53
Benefits of Triage to Prosecution

• Stalking behaviors may be identified.
• May lead to more cooperative victims in court.
• May identify uncharged crimes that can be
  prosecuted along with current charges.
• May identify past criminal history, beyond
  domestic violence arrests.
• Can refile cases at higher (or lower) levels.
• May lead to enhanced sentencing.

54
(No Transcript)
55
Benefits of Triage to Victims

• They have fewer numbers to call.
• They dont have to tell as much of their story
  when the outreach is made.
• They are linked with services sooner and
  regardless of case filing.
• The process of accessing services for themselves
  their children becomes less overwhelming.
• Proactive outreach from a CBO and Home Visits can
  help break the victims isolation.

56
(No Transcript)
57
Unforeseen Challenges

• Revolving team members almost every agency
  involved has experienced some degree of staff
  turnover.
• Keeping the vision alive becomes more difficult
  with each personnel change.
• Making sure the right staff are attending from
  each partner agency

58
(No Transcript)
59
Unforeseen Challenges

• Initial resistance when trying to get all the
  right people to the table
• Balancing time spent between building
  relationships and staying on topic
• Project needs a strong coordinator to keep the
  group and process on track.
• Discussion can sometimes stray into CSI mode

60
(No Transcript)
61
Unforeseen Challenges

• Setting appropriate boundaries between team
  members helping everyone understand
  confidentiality limitations
• Having enough time to fully review all the
  high-risk cases on heavy volume days
• Determining which cases need home visits
  adequately relaying information learned at the
  home visits
• Balancing outreach versus intrusiveness

62
(No Transcript)
63
Unforeseen Benefits

• Increased cross-training between all the partners
  and their staff
• Collaborative training provided by partners to
  the community
• A unified response to issues raised, without
  sacrificing our ability to hold each other
  accountable
• Cross referrals beyond the realm of Triage

64
Unforeseen Benefits

• Raised consciousness of how CBOs can be more
  useful to victims AND of how the system can help
  victims
• Team members think about risk factors versus a
  unilateral response to all victims of domestic
  violence
• Less information is falling through the cracks.

65
(No Transcript)
66
Unforeseen Benefits

• Since implementing the Triage process, the Denver
  City Attorneys Office has achieved a 6 decrease
  in the dismissal of domestic violence cases.
• Volume in 2007, 3,568 incidents were entered in
  the CiviCore database.

67
(No Transcript)
68
Lessons Learned

• Anticipate turnover
• Build in an ongoing training component
• Different people will see the benefits of Triage
  at different times. If possible, help them
  connect the dots as early in the process as
  possible.

69
(No Transcript)
70
Success Stories

• I really was afraid to call the cops. He told me
  over and over if I did (call) they wouldnt
  believe me or theyd see that I was crazy or,
  worse, Id be arrested. They were very kind and
  took the time to explain what would happen. They
  were especially nice to my two boys who were real
  upset.
• Judy