The response to a domestic violence incident in San Mateo County is comparable to that of law enforcement in lots of other places: officers show up, investigate, possibly take motion and connect survivors to a domestic violence hotline for help if needed.
But soon a trained domestic violence advocate will accompany officers on DV calls in three areas of the county as a part of a pilot program designed to assist domestic violence survivors get out of dangerous situations and find the support they need.
“We believe this program will save lives,” said San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus. “We didn’t want to have any more statistics.”
The program is in response to a spike in homicides in domestic violence incidents in 2023, when five women were killed in domestic violence incidents within the county, said Karen Ferguson, CEO of Community Overcoming Relationship Abuse, the organization that may employ the attorneys.
Between 2010 and 2017, there have been between one and two homicides per 12 months related to domestic violence incidents, in line with a Report compiled by San Mateo County. The 12 months 2021 was the identical as last 12 months, with five such murders, in line with the district.
“There is a really small window of time in which we can reach a survivor and offer them support and help and give them reassurance that they will not be alone, that they are protected and have the resources they need.” Corpus said.
In response to the rise in domestic violence-related homicides in San Mateo County, Supervisor Noelia Corzo mobilized a task force to review domestic violence interventions within the county. Inspired by an analogous program in Queensland, Australia, Corpus developed a co-response model that gave rise to the Domestic Violence Emergency Response Team.
The model will initially be tested on the San Mateo and Daly City police departments, in addition to the North Fair Oaks Sheriff's Office branch, in line with a county news release. The 30-month contract includes about six months of ramp-up time, Ferguson said. CORA is within the technique of hiring attorneys and searching for candidates who speak multiple languages and have experience working with survivors of domestic violence, it said Job commercial.
The attorneys can be hired and supervised by CORA but anchored inside police departments because this system also goals to “learn from each other,” Ferguson added.
“Have [the co-responder] Being a part of CORA and really understanding the cycles and the trauma and the resources that it takes to help someone – because they're an expert in working with victims of domestic violence – we thought that automatically the would be the best partnership there is.” Corpus said.
When they receive a call, police officers will arrive first to secure the scene, Ferguson said. Then the co-response advocate will arrive in their own vehicle to speak with the survivor and provide them with support resources and will follow up the next day.
“We want to get there as often as possible, and we want to get as close to the crisis as possible,” Ferguson said. “When we bring these two things together, we have a better opportunity to help someone mobilize and make meaningful change in a safe way.”
Ferguson pointed out that many factors come into play in a person's decision to leave an abusive relationship: how to pay for housing, what impact it may have on children, how long it has been since last work.
“There are many, many complicating factors,” Ferguson said. “There are many explanation why people find yourself reconciling and deciding to remain, and that's why we frequently need to knock on their door just a few times.”
Because the attorneys will be employed by CORA, they will provide domestic violence survivors direct access to CORA's other services, which include case management, free legal and mental health services, emergency housing and long-term rental assistance, Ferguson said. They can also help connect survivors with services offered by partner agencies.
Before implementing that program, police referred CORA to those involved in the incidents and had advocates and survivors “play phone tag,” Ferguson said, increasing the chances that families would reconcile. Advocates only have a 30% to 50% success rate when it comes to connecting with survivors through day-after outreach, she added.
“If we’re standing right there, at least 100% have chatted with us now,” she added. “Many assumptions and fears can be dispelled immediately. But you know, if we try to make contact the next day, they might be more cautious about taking that call.”
For calls outside of work hours, the program works in parallel with the emergency response program, where police connect survivors with a CORA hotline 24 hours a day.
To resolve whether to expand this system, law enforcement and CORA will monitor whether it has a positive impact, Ferguson said. A research and evaluation advisory group will help develop the metrics to be measured.
Initially, they are going to primarily take a look at three metrics, Ferguson added: the services customers use through ERP versus those through a co-responder, the prevalence of repeat offenders and whether law enforcement higher understands the mentality of victim advocates and vice versa.
“I’m really looking forward to the success of the program and I’m really an advocate for other law enforcement agencies and other sheriff’s offices to model this program,” Corpus said. “The most important thing here is to save lives and help the victims’ families.”
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