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VICTIMS OF CRIME ACT VICTIM ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAM 2002 OREGON STATE WIDE ASSISTANCE REPORT Prepared By: Oregon Department of Justice 1162 Court Street NE, Room 240 Salem, OR 97310-0000 tel: (503)378-5344
STATE FUNDING INFORMATION
A. THE ANNUAL AMOUNT ALLOCATED TO THE VICTIM ASSISTANCE PROJECTS: 1. Appropriations $ 760,545 2. Criminal Fines and Penalities $ 6,021,849 3. Assessments $ 0 4. Other $ 3,182,255 TOTAL:$ 9,964,649
B. TOTAL NUMBER OF AGENCIES FUNDED FROM THE FEDERAL GRANT: 101
C. NUMBER OF SUBGRANTS FUNDED FROM THIS FEDERAL GRANT: 192
VICTIM STATISTICS
A. THE NUMBER OF VICTIMS SERVED BY TYPE OF VICTIMIZATION:
NO. OF NO. OF VICTIMS SERVED VICTIMS SERVED 4,264 1. Child Physical Abuse 1,648 7. Adults Molested as Children 6,766 2. Child Sexual Abuse 7,540 8. Survivors of Homicide Victims 1,236 3. DUI/DWI Crashes 0 9. Robbery 33,792 4. Domestic Violence 1,943 10. Assualt 4,165 5. Adult Sexual Assault 21,467 11. Other 252 6. Elder Abuse TOTAL: 83,073
B. THE NUMBER OF VICTIMS WHO RECEIVED THE FOLLOWING SERVICES:
NO. OF VICTIMS SERVED 33,663 1. Crisis Counseling 66,959 2. Followup 2,159 3. Therapy 13,922 4. Group Treatment/Support 8,973 5. Shelter/Safehouse 44,509 6. Information/Referral (in-person) 80,117 7. Criminal Justice Support/Advocacy 4,059 8. Emergency Financial Assistance 6,504 9. Emergency Legal Advocacy 12,680 10. Assistance in filing Compensation Claims 40,216 11. Personal Advocacy 87,360 12. Telephone contact Informational/Referral 114,654 13. Other TOTAL: 515,775
A. EFFORTS TO PROMOTE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AID TO CRIME VICTIMS: Oregon continues to promote coordinated public and private efforts to strengthen collaborative approaches to aid crime victims. Many of the thirty-six counties within Oregon have either individual teams or a combination of teams, councils and task forces that focus on elder abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault and other victim service issues. As part of the procedure for conducting site visits with VOCA and State funded grantee programs, our grant monitors review and discuss the level of community collaboration with each grantee. Grant monitors encourage grantees to incorporate a coordinated approach to the collaborative involvement with partner agencies and allied professionals to increase the quantity and quality of services to victims of crime. Grant monitors offer technical assistance to community partners in resolving conflicts between agencies that may impact or prevent services to victims. In addition, the VOCA application includes a section for the grantee to identify the efforts to incorporate community support in their grant-funded project. When making recommendations for a grantee program to receive a VOCA grant award, the VOCA Advisory Committee takes the level of an agency's collaboration with other community partners into consideration. This office has collaborated with the Crime Victims' Assistance Network to offer the "Basic Victim Advocacy" training program as part of the effort to promote professionalism within the direct victim service providers. This forty hour basic advocate training program has been made available to volunteer and staff advocates alike. The Crime Victims' Assistance Section has an ongoing commitment to partial sponsorship of the annual Crime Victims' Assistance Network conference. The conference brings together both public and private victim services providers and provides education, training and networking opportunities to enhance services to victims of crime. Six major areas where these efforts have been visible during the past federal fiscal year include: 1. Homeland Security: Since the World Trade Center attack, Oregon has been actively engaged in efforts to be better prepared for future large-scale incidents of destruction. These efforts have included collaboration between public and private entities. Crime Victims' Assistance Section was active before 9/11/01, as well as after, in providing crisis response training for volunteers. While this training and development of a crisis response network, in and of itself, is a collaboration of public and private efforts to better serve victims of crime, the state has since developed a plan for a more extensive behavioral health response, in the event of an incident of mass destruction. With the approval of the Governor's Security Council, a behavioral health work group has been created. Members include representatives from the state health and mental health departments, CVAS, the Red Cross, Oregon VOAD, Office of Emergency Management and members from various religious communities, along with others. Together the work group will be developing a training and outreach plan as well as defining a response protocol for the delivery of immediate and longer- term behavioral health services. As currently crafted, CVAS would be assuming the lead for the deployment of these services when the large scale incident is criminal in nature, however, the deployment would utilize the public/private partnerships and collaborations that have been developed and will continue to be developed in order to respond to such an incident. 2. Oregon Domestic and Sexual Violence Services Fund: The 2001 Oregon Legislative Assembly appropriated General Fund dollars for the first time, for services for victims of domestic and sexual violence. While it was not a great deal of revenue ($2.5M), it is a start. In order to determine the best method of allocating this funding, a House Bill 2918 Allocation Plan was developed by a public/private planning committee. Development of the plan was a lengthy process that ultimately determined four funding priorities for the 2001 - 2003 biennium. Each applicant for funds had to document efforts they have made, and will continue to work collaboratively at the local level for coordinated service delivery, in addition to meeting other criteria for funding. A copy of the Allocation Plan is available upon request. The planning committee itself was composed of 16 persons representing private enterprises or acting as citizen representatives, and 13 individuals representing the public sector. Following the completion of the Allocation Plan, this group was disbanded, and a formal Advisory Council was established. This Advisory Council will continue the collaboration of the public and private sector in developing the future direction for the allocation of funds and development of domestic and sexual violence services in the state of Oregon. 3. Sexual Assault Task Force: The Attorney General's Sexual Assault Task Force was very active in 2001-2002. Created in 1999 at the request of local and statewide leaders in the field of victim services, the Task Force has grown to include over 70 participants that are both official appointed members of the Task Force and ex-official members, active on various committees. The Task Force has made a priority of creating a working group that represents a coordinated community response to adult and adolescent sexual assault. CVAS has been active in the work of the task force. One of the (partially) VOCA funded grant monitors is a member of the Task Force, sits on the Task Force Steering Committee and serves as the chair of the Victim Response Committee. The mission of the Task Force is to develop and support an effective, consistent, and collaborative approach to the response and reduction of adult and adolescent sexual assault in Oregon. For its purposes, the Task Force defines "sexual assault" of adolescents as acts of forced or coerced sexual conduct by perpetrators over 14 years of age against victims over 14 years of age. The main focus of the Task Force in 2001-2002 was to present a multidisciplinary training for law enforcement, prosecutors, medical professionals and non-profit and prosecutor based advocates. The training was held in Eugene, OR April 15-16 and was offered to counties on an invitation basis to county teams comprised of a combination of advocates, law enforcement, prosecutors and medical personnel. Over 200 people involved in the field participated in the training with teams representing 35 of Oregon's 36 counties. The training was the first of its kind in the state of Oregon and was the first conference where the advocacy tracks combined both non-profit and prosecutor based advocates. The conference received high marks from participants and served to jump start the creation and further development of Sexual Assault Response Teams in Oregon's 36 counties. As an outgrowth of the conference, the Task Force has developed draft SART protocols in an effort to give counties a starting point to create their own individualized protocols. (SART protocols available upon request.) VOCA training funds contributed to the conference by funding video vignettes of sexual assault victims that were shown throughout the conference in order to ensure that the voices of the victims were heard and to remind participants of the human toll of sexual assault (for further details, please refer to Question D, page 14). The current work of the Task Force includes fostering the organization of Sexual Assault Response Teams in every county, organizing trainings for professionals in the field, addressing public policy issues and needs for statutory changes, compiling a library of resource materials, identifying data collection needs, and developing model protocols and procedures for the criminal justice system, advocates, and forensic medical professionals. This will continue to be a collaborative effort from both the public and private sector. 4. Senate Bill 81: The 2001 legislative session brought about the passage of Senate Bill 81 (see Attachment A) creating a law that charges the Oregon Department of Justice with establishing statewide standards for batterer intervention programs. In early 2002, Attorney General Hardy Myers assembled a diverse group of professionals from the domestic violence field to form the SB 81 Batterers' Intervention Advisory Committee. The Committee was created to craft the standards that will become Oregon Administrative Rules (OARs) governing the new statute. The Committee is representative of law enforcement, batterer intervention programs, communities of color, rural providers, judges, victim advocates, parole and probation, prosecutors and defense attorneys. CVAS staff has been active in this process providing technical and organizational support as well as one partially funded VOCA grant monitor serving as chair of the Interface Standards Sub-committee. The Committee used a document that was created in 1996 by the Batterer Intervention Work Group of the Oregon Domestic Violence Council as a starting point for the new standards. Four sub-committees were formed to address each major area. The subcommittees are: Fundamentals of Batterer Intervention Services, Interface Standards, Structural Components of Intervention Programs and Ethical and Personnel Standards. Currently, the Committee is finalizing drafts of the OARs. The Committee anticipates completing its work by the summer of 2003, if not before. 5. CAMI: The Child Abuse Multidisciplinary Intervention Account (CAMI) program was transferred from the Department of Human Services to the Crime Victims' Assistance Section of the Oregon Department of Justice. This transfer took place effective January 1, 2002. The transfer of this program brings both public and private child abuse programs under the administration of the Crime Victims' Assistance Section of the Oregon Department of Justice. These programs include: * Thirty-six county multidisciplinary teams for child abuse, child sexual abuse and child fatality review. These teams provide a coordinated community wide response to child abuse investigation, services and staffing. Teams are coordinated by both public and private agencies. The teams are required by statute. * Eighteen child abuse and child sexual abuse community intervention centers. These centers provide for child friendly intervention and assessment in suspected cases of abuse and sexual abuse. The centers are generally private non-profits, however, a few are linking with a public entity, usually the District Attorneys Office. * Three regional child abuse and child sexual abuse centers. The regional centers provide training, technical assistance, complex case referral services, education and consultation to the other intervention centers and multidisciplinary teams. The annual expenditure limitation for the Child Abuse Multidisciplinary Intervention Account is a $3,740,000 limitation for the state fiscal year. A summary of the uses of the Child Abuse Multidisciplinary Intervention Account is provided below. Summary of CAMI Fund Uses for 2002: COUNTIES 36 counties plan to use part of their CAMI funds to train MDT members and others that will provide victim services in their county. 10 counties will train medical providers regarding child abuse examinations. 11 counties plan to contract for medical examinations of potential child abuse victims with local physicians or nurse practitioners. 13 counties will contract with child advocacy or child assessment centers to provide services for potential child abuse victims. 5 counties will purchase medical supplies and equipment to supplement these services. 5 counties will hire special prosecutors for child abuse cases. 12 counties will use CAMI funds to pay for expert witness testimony in child abuse cases. 1 county will contract for crisis intervention services. 4 counties will provide advocacy services through the District Attorney's Office. I county will provide a bilingual interpreter/advocate for children and families. 5 counties plan to fund child abuse investigator positions. 6 counties will pay overtime for law enforcement officials. 2 counties will maintain interview rooms outside of a center. 6 counties plan to purchase audio or video equipment to be used for child interviewing. 2 counties plan to purchase computers or software to support MDT functioning. 3 counties plan to hire bilingual interpreters for children and families. 1 county funds a DHS/Child Welfare domestic violence liaison/risk assessment consultant. I county will purchase a colposcope in the coming year. 1 county will use CAMI funds to pay for respite housing. 13 hire a coordinator for their county's multidisciplinary team. CENTERS 5 centers contract for medical examinations from local physicians or nurse practitioners. 4 centers fund a medical director on staff. 1 center provides crisis intervention services for child abuse victims. 0 1 center funds a child therapist position. 5 centers fund positions for child interviewers on staff. 11 centers fund a director or coordinator position. 5 centers fund a victim's advocate position. 7 centers use CAMI funds to hire administrative or office assistants. 2 centers use funds to pay for transcription. 6 centers use CAMI funds to pay for the cost of equipment. 9 centers use funds to pay mortgage or rent payments. 6. VINES: During the Spring of 2000, the Oregon Department Of Justice and the Oregon Department of Corrections formed a partnership to provide a statewide automated victim notification system (VINE) for Oregon. This partnership has allowed the two agencies to pool their resources in order to produce and sustain a much better system than either could have done alone. It has also allowed both agencies to gain the support of all the constituent elements of the criminal justice system in Oregon. The VINE System is a free, anonymous, computer based system that uses public education, state-of-the-art technology and a centralized Call Center to connect victims and concerned citizens with vital offender information, and to assist that person in preparing for an offender's release. The system accomplishes this goal by offering two important features: information and notification. Information: For offender custody and community supervision information, victims or concerned citizens can call the toll-free number for Oregon (1-877-674-8463) and follow the prompts. Callers use basic information to search the VINE database, such as offender name, offender date of birth, or offender's state ID number. VINE will quickly provide the caller with offender status information such as custody status, inmate location, release and/or transfer information and sentence expiration. Notification: This feature allows victims and concerned citizens to be proactive by allowing them to register for automatic notification when an offender's custody status changes. When calling the same toll-free number, callers will need to provide the VINE System with the following information: 1. A telephone number, including the area code, where they can be reached for notification; and 2. A four-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) to confirm the receipt of the notification call. The VINE System is designed to allow every opportunity for persons to be notified. If there is no answer or the line is busy, VINE will continue to call a minimum of 24 hours. VINE will leave a message on an answering machine, but will continue to call for 24 hours or until the PIN is entered. Examples of a status change that would generate a notification call to a registered person would include: * General release * Escape * Death * Transfer to different facility * Work release * Parole hearing * Probation - abscond The Oregon VINE service is available in English and Spanish. A live operator is available around the clock to anyone calling the toll-free number for any reason. Anyone may call this number to access offender status information 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As of November 22, 2002, VINES installation is complete in 25 of 30 county jails in Oregon, all of the Department of Corrections facilities in Oregon, which includes all offenders currently incarcerated in any Department of Correction Institution or under Community Supervision on Parole, Post-Prison Supervision, or Probation. The remaining county jails and the Oregon Youth Authority are expected to be online within the next 3-6 months. NOTE: Oregon is the first state to include the Parole/Probation piece as part of their statewide VINE System.
B. EFFORTS TAKEN TO SERVE FEDERAL CRIME VICTIMS: Tribal Relations Task Force: There are nine federally recognized Indian tribal governments located in the State of Oregon: 1. Burns Paiute Tribe 2. Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw 3. Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde 4. Confederated Tribes of Siletz 5. Confederated Tribes of Umatilla 6. Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs 7. Coquille Indian Tribe 8. Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians 9. Klamath Tribe Oregon State law requires that state agencies develop and implement tribal relations policies. The purpose of formalizing the government-to-government relationship that exists between Oregon's Indian tribes and the State is to establish a process which can assist in resolving potential conflicts, maximize key inter-governmental relations and enhance an exchange of ideas and resources for the greater good of all of Oregon's citizens, whether tribal members or not. Working with the Native American Affairs Coordinator for the Oregon Department of Justice, a representative from the Crime Victims' Assistance Section helped formulate the department's official tribal relations policy. CVAS has presented training during the Government-to- Government, Public Safety Cluster Group Meeting with representatives from the nine recognized tribes in attendance. The Cluster was presented with an overview of the section and the six different programs that it administers. Ultimately, these collaborative developed policies will improve and enhance services to Native American crime victims. HHOPE: We have been funding Harney Helping Organization for Personal Emergencies (HHOPE), a crisis intervention service aiding victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Harney County. The second largest minority population in this largest county of Oregon (eighth largest County in the United States) is the Native Americans. HHOPE has a very good working relationship with the Bums Paiute Tribe, as the staff and Board of Directors have worked c diligently to foster this relationship. They have provided services to domestic violence and sexual assault victims and provide cross training and shelter services to these victims. We have recently granted them VOCA funding to continue this work with this tribe, as the project will provide a full time person to be out-stationed on the Bums Paiute Tribe reservation. The Bums Paiute Tribe has agreed to provide office space for this bilingual outreach coordinator. This person will be providing one-on-one advocacy and peer support for drop-in visitors, with the hope of also beginning support groups. Another effort that will help serve federal crime victims is to increase the knowledge base of our grantees as to types of federal crimes. With high turnover in small programs, it is not uncommon for them to become focused on individual needs and forget the importance of also maintaining coordination with the federal victim assistance system as well as local systems. We have produced a friendly flyer that lists the different examples (see Attachment B), as we believe that some may have been under-reporting the actual victims of federal crimes. We will continue this education and technical assistance to our new Directors or new VOCA recipients through phone calls, meetings, or during site visits. Restoring the Sacred Circle: While federal VOCA dollars have not been used for the "Restoring the Sacred Circle" project, it is a noteworthy project. This project shows yet another way many aspects of the victim assistance community in Oregon are working to better serve underserved populations, particularly federal crime victims who are Native Americans. State dollars, administered by the Oregon Department of Justice, have been used to begin addressing elder abuse issues in Native American communities. As this project unfolded many parts of the Native American community in Oregon came together to develop a video of elder abuse. The video addresses the dynamics of abuse, the rights of elders, and how a multidisciplinary response can be of value. The project has met with overwhelming interest and support from all aspects of the Native American community. The video won an award for the Best Public Service Video, from the American Indian Film Institute. One complimentary copy of the video will be distributed to each tribe in the United States. Oregon tribes will receive more copies and a more focused roll out of the video and service approach. Federal Training and New Legislative Concept: Representatives from CVAS have also attended training meetings facilitated by the Victims' Assistance Unit of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Portland. This group consists of all Victim Assistance Officials from various federal agencies (i.e., Corrections, Bureau of Land Management, FBI, etc.) Assistant U.S. Attorneys have also been addressed regarding their role in assessing and collecting Federal Unitary Assessment and other various fines and fees that ultimately find their way into the VOCA fund and back to Oregon to provide assistance to victims. One recent outcome of such a meeting was the recommendation from the FBI Victim Specialist to amend the Oregon compensation statutes to allow the Oregon Crime Victim Compensation Program to provide counseling costs for family members who are residents of Oregon, and have an immediate family member who is being held hostage in a foreign country. This recommendation has become a legislative concept for the Department of Justice and is scheduled to be introduced in the '03-'05 Oregon Legislative Session.
C. ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE DELIVERY OF VICTIM SERVICES: Program Monitoring & Evaluation: The functions of the CVAS (partially VOCA funded) grant monitors have expanded tremendously since the first position was created in 1996. At that time, CVAS was disbursing funds to victim service providers primarily through VOCA along with some state unitary assessment funds. An initial goal was set to complete a site visit with each grant recipient at least once every year. At that time, site visits were not formalized and there was no instrument for consistent monitoring of fiscal and programmatic issues. As the Grant Section has grown and more grant monitors have been added, along with increased VOCA funds and additional funding sources for disbursement, it became apparent that a more uniform system was necessary to track grantee progress. In 2000, the first site visit checklist was created. The checklist has been used as a tool to provide consistency in the site visits and to serve as a roadmap for the grant monitors. The checklist has been used exclusively while conducting in person visits and has been a work in progress since its creation. Recently, after another growth spurt in the Section, it was decided to pilot a new way to conduct site visits combining a telephone audit with an in-person visit when possible. The in-person site visits are to be completed once every 18 months. The process being tested requires that the grant monitor set up a telephone audit with the grantee to go over the checklist. The checklist is forwarded to the grantee ahead of time so there is opportunity for the grantee to ask questions if needed. Completing the checklist over the phone allows for a more efficient use of grantee and grant monitor time and provides the opportunity to more thoroughly cover technical issues. it also gives the grant monitor the option of asking for further clarification or documentation of any issues that might arise during the telephone audit that can be resolved during the in-person visit. Ideally, an in-person visit would follow the telephone visit sometime in the following month. The in-person visit serves to make a personal connection with the program, meet VOCA funded staff and follow up on any issues of concern. For those grantees that have been in good standing in the past year, the grant monitor can have the option of only completing the telephone audit if circumstances make an in-person visit unfeasible. Grantees report that they feel fiscal and programmatic issues are covered thoroughly even when the telephone audit is conducted without the in--person visit. Grantees also report appreciating the efficiency of the phone audit and viewing the checklist prior to the visit. To date, the grant monitors have had great success with the system. The Section will continue to use this system in the 2002-2003 funding cycle and will revise the Audit Instrument periodically. (See Attachment C.) During this reporting period 30 in-person site visits and 11 telephone/desk audits were conducted. Technology: On the (sub)grantee level, a project which began in October of 2000, is in its final stages of implementation. DACMS (District Attorney's Case Management System) has been upgraded in its capacity to enhance the current system of tracking victim contacts, personal information, crime victim compensation requests, statistical reporting, and other exciting additions for the victim advocates in District Attorneys' offices. They can better devote their resources in serving the needs of crime victims by providing them with more personal contact. Twenty-six of Oregon's 36 counties are part of this project. Regional trainings for all District Attorney staff, conducted by consultants, have just recently concluded. Basic Victim Advocacy Training: "Basic Victim Advocacy" Institute & "Train the Trainer" Sessions: In response to a statewide need to develop a set of standards for victim service providers and allied professionals, 2001 VOCA funds were used to support providers participation in Basic Victim Advocacy (BVA) Institutes and/or "Train the Trainer" sessions. The intent was to fill in some of the needs for basic-level victim assistance training and education for those entering the growing victim assistance field and for those who need the skills to train others. We have worked in partnership with the Crime Victims' Assistance Network (CVAN) to sponsor these trainings. Our goal is to have CVAN completely take ownership of these valuable trainings and be directed by their membership board. All 57 of the VOCA 2001 grantees (totaling $89,600 of the general VOCA funds) were offered the opportunity to send staff and/or volunteers to the BVA Institute/'Train the Trainer" sessions. The BVA Institute was held in two locations throughout the state, one being in the metro Portland area and the other one was held in central Oregon. Both trainings were taught by Marlene Young, the Executive Director of NOVA (National Organization for Victim Assistance). A total of 75 participants from 41 different agencies attended the Institute. The two "Train the Trainer" sessions in the metro Portland area were taught by an instructor from Clackamas Community College, and a total of 40 students attended from 23 different agencies. These sessions were particularly valued by the agencies, especially for those who were interested in learning how to develop their capacity in training their own volunteers. We find this an extremely successful turnout and understand the importance of continuing these sessions for this growing field of professionals. CVAN was recently awarded an OVC grant to establish a Basic Victim Advocacy Training Academy. CVAS will continue to support Basic Victim Advocacy Training until the Academy is firmly established. Training Efforts with Use of Federal VOCA Funds: 1 .Crisis Response Training: VOCA Training dollars were used during this reporting period to assist staff in crisis response training following September 11 th. Attending the National NOVA Conference " Lessons Learned - The Aftermath" was very helpful for staff. The section is actively working on preparedness for an incident of mass destruction. 2. Support of New Training Coordinator Position: A new Training Coordinator position was established during this reporting period. While the salary for this position was not supported by VOCA administrative dollars, the VOCA training dollars did assist with the purchase of equipment and materials necessary for the design and presentation of training conducted by this position. The newly created training coordinator provides training to crime victim's service providers and allied professionals on the nature and type of assistance available in Oregon. The position also organizes recognition awards, crime victims' rights week ceremonies, and works with the Crime Victims Assistance Network in the development of Basic Victim Advocacy Training. The position was only filled for several months of this reporting period. 3. Sexual Assault Training Videos (project of the Sexual Assault Task Force): Other related training services have included the filming, editing and duplication of sexual assault videos and the special sexual assault vignette training videos. The videos were created with the intention that they be used for future training and are being further refined by Task Force staff in order to make them available as training tools for specific disciplines. The video was presented as a promising practice at a national VAWA conference by our Oregon VAWA partners. Since the conference, the Task Force Staff has responded to numerous requests to use the videos for training. 4. Grant Writing Trainings: For the second year, CVAS sponsored two grant-writing trainings for sub grantees. One training was held May 3, 2002 in Medford and the other on May 13, 2002 in Portland. The training was free to grantees. Following the grant writing trainings in 2001, a marked improvement in the quality and clarity of the grants was apparent. Unlike the previous year, which dedicated part of the training to specific VOCA and VAWA issues, this year's training was more general, following feedback from grantees about needed skills. These skills include developing appropriate performance measure and outcome statements for their grant applications and reports. The sessions allowed for "practice" where the attendees were able to create a statement of purpose, for example, and receive feedback from participants as well as the trainer and CVAS staff. Attendees were given access to a plethora of information regarding applying for federal grants as well as strategies for soliciting funds from private foundations. The trainer also offered to review "real life" work of the grantees following the training to further increase participant skills. The result once again, was VOCA grants that were much higher in quality than in past years, and as administrators, we are better able to assess outcomes. 5. A small amount of VOCA training dollars were used to support the activities of Crime Victims Rights Week. It was a wonderful event, highlighted by recognition of advocates from across the state. State Funds for Training and Development: State funds have been used to sponsor two multidisciplinary team training days within the state and to pay for strategic planning for the CAMI Advisory Council. While these activities are not supported with federal dollars, the planning and results are intended to complement those activities that are supported with federal dollars. It provides an important opportunity for the many disciplines that serve child abuse victims to communicate, collaborate and address emergency issues to better serve this population. Needs Assessment: A significant 18-month project will be drawing to a close in December 2002. CVAS, through Portland State University will have completed a comprehensive crime victims' needs assessment project. With the goals of assessing gaps in services, the barriers resulting in underserved and unserved victims, identification of partnerships and models that work well for serving victims of person crimes, the report will serve as the first major step in the development of a crime victims' services strategic plan. The project was not funded with federal dollars but will be of assistance in planning the use of federal dollars for victim's services in the future. The results will be shared with providers and funders across the state. Other State and Federal Grant Funds: State and federal (Children's Justice Act) grant funds were used to provide for projects within the Child Abuse Multidisciplinary Intervention (CAMI) grantees. These funds provided for evaluation, development and implementation of a strategic plan for the three CAMI regional centers, the enhancement of the telemedicine project, an update, including revision, of the interview guidelines and a project facilitating the inclusion of domestic service providers in the county multidisciplinary child abuse teams. All of these grant projects are focused on providing better direct services to children victims of physical and sexual abuse. In 1998 the CAMI program sponsored the development of a manual on the Interviewing Guidelines for Center Based Interviewers. A collaborative effort including experts from across the state in the law enforcement, child protective services, victim advocacy, mental health counseling and related fields resulted in a manual which has been published and sold to centers around the country for use. In June the CAMI program received a CJA grant to provide funding for an update and revision of these interview guidelines. An effort is being to re-assemble members of the original team and other interested parties to collaborate on this project. The intended outcome from this project will result in an updated interviewer guide to be used within the state and made available for publication and purchase. (See Training Expenditures on following page.)
D. WAYS VOCA FUNDS HAVE BEEN USED TO ASSIST CRIME VICTIMS: Attached are copies of letters, as well excerpts from grantee reports, that illustrate the impact of VOCA funds throughout the State of Oregon. It is evident that the needs of victims would go unmet if not for funding via VOCA. This is particularly clear in remote areas in the State where little or no services were previously available to victims. Samples included are directly from victims, letters written in thanks to a District Attorney's Office and case histories that illustrate programs' successes in serving victims of crime. Letters from Victims and Agencies funded by VOCA: * Jackson County Child Abuse Task Force - Victim of Child Abuse * Letter from Marion County Deputy District Attorney in thanks for Victim Coordinator Position * Letter of thanks to Marion County Victim Assistance Program from Deputy District Attorney upon his leaving his post * Klamath Crisis Center - Victim of Domestic Abuse Case Summaries from Programs funded by VOCA: * Curry County District Attorney - Victim of Child Sexual Abuse * Dougy Center for Grieving Children & Families - Homicide Victim Survivors * Marion County District Attorney's Office - Teen-age Victim of Sexual Assault * Marion County District Attorney's Office - Victim of Sexual Abuse * Klamath Crisis Center - Victim of Domestic Abuse * Liberty House - Victims of Child Abuse * Bradley Angle House - Victim of Domestic Abuse * Bradley Angle House - Victim of Domestic Abuse Article from a VOCA Grantee: "On the Scene after a Murder," The Dougy Center: The National Center for Grieving Children & Families (Update Newsletter, Fall 2002, Volume 21, Number 2), Joan Schweizer Hoff.
E. ISSUES OR TRENDS IMPACTING CRIME VICTIM SERVICES: Funding Issues: Domestic violence and sexual assault services have been the subject of renewed interest both on the part of legislators as well as criminal justice professionals and service providers. The 2001 Oregon Legislative Assembly appropriated $2.5 million in General Fund (GF) dollars for a new domestic and sexual violence program. This is the first time GF dollars have been appropriated for this purpose. Since the close of the formal legislative session, there have been special sessions to reduce state expenditures due to reduced revenue. The $2.5 million in GF dollars has survived the scrutiny and broad-sweeping reductions of most GF programs with only a 10% reduction, to date. This speaks to a new level of awareness and concern with protecting these much-needed services. A long awaited Oregon Supreme Court decision (DeMendoza v. Huffinan) was handed down in August 2002. Following a lengthy legal challenge that began in 1995, the Supreme Court ruled that it was constitutional for 60% of punitive damage awards made by juries to go to a crime victim's fund. It was in 1987 that the Oregon State Legislature put a statute into effect giving 60% of punitive awards to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Account. The remaining 40% goes to the prevailing party and their attorney. In a challenge to this statute it was argued that it violated the state constitution's guarantee of a legal remedy for injury to person or property. These punitive damage awards have been a significant revenue source for victim's services. It has allowed DOJ to maintain relative stability of compensation payments in spite of fluctuating state and federal revenues, as well as providing funds for special state grants. In the past three years special state grants have been issued to support Oregon's automated victim notification system, civil legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, and emergency services for victims. This decision is particularly critical in light of severe economic shortfalls for the state as a whole. The Oregon Criminal Fines and Assessment Account (CFAA), which supports the infrastructure of child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault and victim assistance services in the state is anticipating a 25% cut in the current service level funding for this current biennium as well as the 2003-2005 biennium. I cannot overstate the dramatic negative impact these cuts will have on services if dollars are not available from other sources to backflll these cuts. The anticipated reduction in federal victim assistance grants will be one more significant factor in reducing services if additional revenue is not available. Here are examples of the impact statements provided by local programs, in response to the 25% cut in CFAA funds: * Deschutes County Victim Assistance: The cut would eliminate the .5 FTE victim advocate serving the outlying area of Redmond. This advocate serves approximately 150 victims of crime each year. * Multnomah County Victim Assistance: The cut would eliminate 2 FTE victim advocate positions. Given that Multnomah County District Attorney's Office has been in a cutback mode for two years, this additional cut would mean that few services would be provided except for the most serious crimes. * Jackson County Child Abuse: The cuts would mean elimination of the training dollars that currently support the officer's child abuse training in 13 agencies throughout the county. There would also be a reduction of .8 FTE of a child abuse nurse who has been instrumental in the teen sexual abuse program. Rape Kit Exams: As referenced in Section IV, Question B, CVAS has been involved with the work of the Attorney General's Sexual Assault Task Force. One issue that has come to the forefront in the Sexual Assault field in Oregon is the need for a more uniform system for paying for forensic evidence collection (Rape Kit) exams in situations where there is acute sexual assault. Currently in Oregon, there is a statute that mandates law enforcement to pay for the exams. However, this mandate is unfunded and the result is inconsistent payment of exams, and in some situations, the victims are being billed for the evidence collection. A subcommittee of the SATF has been working diligently on this issue and hopes to craft a solution that allows law enforcement to request an exam without having to consider budgetary constraints, avoids billing victims for evidence collection, and reimburses hospitals at a fair rate for services. Hand in hand with the work being done on the payment issue is the reworking of the kit itself to provide uniform age and developmentally appropriate kits, complete with clear, basic instructions. In addition, web access will be available for hospital personnel who need more in depth information or consultation regarding the kit. SATF is working closely with the state crime lab, law enforcement and medical forensic personnel to ensure that the kit serves the needs of all parties involved. SATF is also offering training for medical forensic personnel on the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) procedures. Prior to the SATF taking on this issue, there was no formal training provide within the state of Oregon and few trained SANE nurses were not part of an organized effort. It is the hope of the SATF that its efforts to establish a clear payment system for evidence collection, to provide a high quality evidence collection tool and ensuring collect collection of that evidence by providing trained SANE nurses, will greatly impact the quality and quantity of Kits completed in Oregon. Subsequently, the likelihood of apprehending and prosecuting perpetrators of sexual assault is expected to increase. Program Issues: Third Party Reporting and Cross Reporting: Recently there was a double homicide involving two Oregon teens, Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis. It appears that the existing third party, non-familial, reporting process did not clearly identify the best practice and safest method for tracking, reporting, cross reporting and coordinating the third party allegations. The suspect in the murders is a local non-familial, adult, white male who also resided in the neighborhood. The result of the preliminary investigation into the circumstances surrounding the teens reporting of the allegations has been an opportunity to review, evaluate and revise present policy within child protective services and law enforcement. The Department of Human Services has released a cross reporting process for notifying law enforcement of all third party reporting of alleged child abuse and child sexual abuse. This release necessitated both the Department of Human Services and law enforcement representatives from across the state to reconvene and cooperate in an attempt to develop a draft policy that may be utilized statewide. There will be additional policy and protocol changes in the next year related to response to non- familial abuse. Sexual Assault Response Teams: The Attorney General continues to chair the Attorney General's Sexual Assault Task Force. A conference was held in April, with the goal of fostering the development of sexual assault teams in each county. The conference was a significant success, with approximately 20 counties developing plans and following through with training and partnerships back in their local communities. This coming year will see the implementation of training grants to specifically focus on training of law enforcement and district attorneys, in the area of sexual assault investigation and prosecution. Batterers' Intervention: In addition, Senate Bill 81 was passed during the 2001 session. This bill requires the Attorney General to develop administrative rules for standards for Batterer's Intervention Programs. The diverse work group assisting with this task has done an outstanding job struggling with a variety of issues, but ultimately reaching consensus. The rules will be finalized during the first quarter of 2003. Restitution: The Attorney General has convened a work group of 34 individuals who are reviewing the statutory and operational structure for restitution for crime victims. Encouraged by the significant piece of legislation passed by the State of Colorado, Oregon is committed to a similar review process over the next three years. This will span two legislative sessions. For the session that begins January 2003 the work group hopes to introduce the first piece of legislation that will begin to implement a more victim centered approach to restitution. The legislation will require judges to order the full amount of restitution, if certain elements are presented to the court. This varies from current practice where judges frequently order a reduced amount due to a perceived inability to pay on the part of the defendant. The ability to pay will be considered when determining a payment schedule.
F. USE OF VOCA ADMINISTRATIVE FUNDS: VOCA Administrative dollars have been used primarily to fund grant monitor positions as well as for administrative costs to support the fiscal management of the VOCA Assistance grant. Without the use of the administrative dollars, site visits, desk audits and technical assistance would be minimal. The VOCA grant monitors have conducted 30 site visits and 11 desk audits during this reporting period. Travel expenses to conduct the site visits were charged as VOCA administrative costs. In addition, indirect charges have supported the critical services provided by a fiscal coordinator and accountant. Not only does the fiscal coordinator assist with processing of payments, but when necessary the coordinator will go on a site visit to provide a more in depth look at the fiscal circumstances with a grantee. In addition, the funded positions are instrumental in promoting the professionalism of victim services. The grant monitors have provided grant management technical assistance as requested, supported the development of a Basic Victim Advocacy Institute just beginning in Oregon and assisted with collaborative activities with other funders. By collaborating with administrators of VAWA, Family Violence Prevention Act and others, the state has maximized the use of resources. Collaborative projects underway include development of a singe data collection instrument, development of a cultural competency training and technical assistance plan for grantees, and collaboration regarding funding priorities for each type of grant. VOCA administrative dollars have also been used to support professional development of victim assistance staff. Membership in the new National Association of Victim Assistance Administrators has provided a new level of access to the experience and knowledge of other VOCA Assistance Administrators across the country. Using the federal dollars for out of state travel has been the only means for victim assistance staff to attend the national conference and learn from sister programs across the country. Our new desk audit tool was in part the result of the attendance of staff at such a conference. Strategic planning and fiscal management have also been enhanced due to our ability to attend national conferences. (Details provided.)