Strength United's Domestic Violence Community Policing and Advocacy Project

Interpersonal Violence (IPV) continues to present a threat to victims, their significant others, communities and society. Impacts of IPV include chronic health problems, stress, anxiety, mental health challenges, employment loss, reduced educational success, trauma and community safety risks. Despite societal costs, law enforcement, mental health professionals and advocacy organizations continue to lack resources to meet investigative and victim needs.

Strangulation is identified as one of the most lethal forms of IPV. When IPV perpetrators choke (strangle) their victims, not only is this traumatic for the victim, it is also a felonious assault and might reach prosecutorial criteria for attempted murder. Nationally, evidence suggests that perpetrators with a prior history of strangulation acts are more likely to murder their victims and responding law enforcement. 

Strength United (SU), through this proposal, intends to increase law enforcement investigative capacity, augment current advocacy, case management and mental health services and provide continuing education to guarantee advocates, counselors, forensic nurse examiners, law enforcement and prosecutors receive current curriculum on strangulation crimes, trauma responsive care and well-being strategies to mitigate burnout.

SU will implement enhanced programming by expanding the capacity of the Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD), Major Assault Crimes (MAC) detectives housed at our Family Justice Center (FJC). LAPD’s ability to manage additional strangulation cases will be increased by hiring and partnering highly trained advocates with the detectives to assist with the management of their cases through outreach, advocacy and case management. The Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention will provide continuing education through a webinar series. The Program Manager will be responsible for program implementation and daily operations, coordination of training for the FJC team, and supervision of the advocates and master of social work and marriage of family therapy trainees. 

The primary advocacy activities are 24/7, 365 hotline services offering crisis intervention, emotional support, safety planning, emergency housing and resource linkages. Additionally, advocates will provide accompaniments to medical forensic interviews, investigative and prosecutorial proceedings, and case planning. LAPD through the support of additional advocates will augment their strangulation investigations and capabilities. Virtual based trainings will be provided to the LAPD officers, Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART) officers, detectives, forensic nurses, prosecutors and advocates.

Serving the San Fernando and Santa Clarita Valleys, Northwestern Los Angeles County, intended recipients are individuals of all ages who have experienced IPV.  

Outcomes include increased investigation of IPV where strangulation is an element of the crime, increased advocacy, counseling, and training.