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Show SAFE 2000: Ending Abuse and Violence in Utah Families: How to Get from Here to There Attorney General Jan Graham With the help of agencies and experts from a variety of disciplines throughout the state, the Utah Attorney General's Office is launching SAFE 2000 (Stop Abuse in Families Effort): a project designed to develop long-range solutions to end family violence in Utah. SAFE 2000 is a process for ultimately maximizing effectiveness in the three worlds of our community: the Official World, the Quasi World, and the Private World. The purpose of SAFE 2000 is to 1) identify our current effectiveness at all levels of those worlds (HERE), 2) identify the maximum possible effectiveness at all levels of those worlds (THERE), and 3) create a road map for how to get from HERE to THERE. Working groups within each of the worlds will carry out this process on key issues and the completed road maps will be our blueprint for creating systems that address domestic violence at every level with maximum efficiency. The Official World: The System of Government and Laws The vast majority of family violence efforts are in the Official World, yet most cases never reach this level. This world, which includes law enforcement, shelters, and courts, is set up for crisis response and intervention and is essential for providing justice to victims. We have made great strides in this world, including tougher penalties for abusers, better training for law enforcement officers, and innovative advocacy programs for victims. But despite these advances, the criminal justice system is far from operating at maximum effectiveness. As part of SAFE 2000, a number of questions have been identified: Are domestic violence reports being shared among agencies? Is the Division of Child and Family Services being notified when children witness a domestic violence incident? Do prosecutors proceed with trials, even if the victim recants or refuses to testify? Are courts determining self-defense issues before issuing mutual protective orders? These are just some of the issues that must be explored by the working groups who evaluate the Official World. For each issue, the groups will create a road map similar to the following example: What percentage of the courts statewide timely inform victims and police (and others who need to know) when an offender is not following through with court-ordered treatment? HOW TO: (Identify Training, Equipment Needed) COST: $125,000 HERE (Where We Are) Current Effectiveness THERE (Where We're Going) Maximum Effectiveness 0) S 80 m ¦ In 60 3> (A - ¦ Z u 40- ¦ ° 201 i 0 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 The above road map identifies current effectiveness at 17% (HERE) and sets the goal at 100% of all courts (THERE), to be achieved in four years (timetable) through the "how to" of training and new computer equipment, at a cost of $125,000. The reality is that agencies in some counties and cities are operating better than others; this process will require that we look at how two similar agencies in different locations can become as effective as possible, despite variances in resources, population, and demographics. It is hoped that we can work our way towards a uniform, consistent system where all courts use the same forms, all law enforcement officers receive the same training, and all information is accessible to all agencies within the system. "The Quasi-Official World": Systems Independent of Government but Influenced by It There are two major systems in this world: education and healthcare. Schools Schools are the major institutions in the lives of our children; they spend years learning about subjects that will help them grow and succeed. But we do very little to teach them about family violence-education which is critical to their future well-being. We also do nothing to identify and help children who are struggling with violence at home. As a result, these children display emotional and behavioral disturbances as diverse as withdrawal, low self-esteem, nightmares, self-blame and aggression against peers, family members and property (Peled, et al. 1995). In order to maximize the effectiveness of Utah's schools in responding to family violence, we must have an ongoing curriculum which teaches children about family violence and 90 |