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HomeMy WebLinkAboutR-2021-033 Authorize Mayor to Sign Violence Against Women Grant ApplicationA RESOLUTION RESOLUTION NO. R-2021-033 authorizing the Mayor to sign documents related to an Office on Violence Against Women Grant application to seek funds to improve the City of Yakima response to domestic violence. WHEREAS, the Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) is a component of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) to administer grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act and subsequent legislation, and provides national leadership on issues of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and WHEREAS, OVW grants support coordinated community responses to hold offenders accountable and increase the safety of victims; and WHEREAS, on September 11, 2018, the Yakima City Council, after a presentation on the Coordinated Community Response Team (CCRT) to Domestic Violence, voted unanimously to direct staff to inventory the City of Yakima response to domestic violence and to add a DV Advocate position for consideration in the 2019 budget; and WHEREAS, the City Staff has inventoried the response and believes the City would benefit from a City of Yakima CCRT; and WHEREAS, the OVW funds CCRT training and victim services; and WHEREAS, units of local government, including the City of Yakima, are eligible to apply for such grants and the documents, including a Memorandum of Understanding with our partners, must be signed by the Mayor; now therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF YAKIMA: The Yakima City Council authorizes Mayor Patricia Byers to sign an Office on Violence Against Women Grant application, Memorandum of Understanding with our community partners and other related documents required to complete the grant process prepared by staff. ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL this 9th day of March, 2021. ATTEST: 7(9 1) PatriciaByers. Mayor 1 BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL YAKIMA, WASHINGTON AGENDA STATEM ENT Item No. 6. For Meeting of: March 9, 2021 ITEM TITLE: Resolution authorizing the Mayor to sign documents related to an Office on Violence Against Women Grant application to seek funds to improve the City of Yakima response to domestic violence SUBMITTED BY: Cynthia I. Martinez, Senior Assistant City Attorney SUMMARY EXPLANATION: This item was considered by the Council at the regular Business Meeting on March 2, 2021. However, the item was tabled due to Council's concerns regarding lack of communication with the Yakima YWCA (YWCA), a non-profit organization that provides services to victims of Domestic Violence in the City of Yakima. Staff was directed by Council to communicate with Cheri Kilty, the Director of the YWCA, and share our plans to apply for The Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) grant. It was always staff's intention to meet with Ms. Kitty with the goal of enlisting YWCA as a partner in this effort as evidenced by the draft MOU document. The YWCA and the services they provide are critical in the response to Domestic Violence. Staff spoke with Cheri Kilty on March 3, and scheduled to meet with her on Friday, March 5. The proposed MOU has been forwarded to her in advance of the meeting. This item will be reconsidered by Council on March 9, 2021. The Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) is a component of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) to administer grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act and subsequent legislation, and provides national leadership on issues of domestic violence (DV), dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. OVW grants support coordinated community responses to hold offenders accountable and increase the safety of victims. Units of government may apply for the grants, which means the Mayor will have to sign the grant application with the Council's approval. The goal of the application will be obtain funding for Coordinated Community Response Team (CCRT) training and a second Prosecution Division DV advocate. Each of these requests will be discussed below. The Council has previously embraced the idea of initiating a City of Yakima Coordinated Response to Domestic Violence Team (CCRT)(Council Business Meeting, September 11, 2018). CCRT is a team comprised of staff and Community partners who are involved with DV incidences, from the 911 call taker to the probation officer, who coordinate every link of the response by understanding the role of each party and developing shared goals. The result is a 2 transparent response that can be understood, examined, and improved. Once this result is achieved, the circle of responders is enlarged to include other agencies, community, and faith based groups. Our initial City of Yakima CCRT partners will include City Communications, YPD, City Prosecutors, Yakima Municipal Court, Yakima County Probation and the YWCA. We are seeking grant funds to provide training to a City of Yakima CCRT (the team). In 2020, crimes of domestic violence comprised 29% of the City of Yakima Prosecution caseload, or 886 cases. This percentage is high when compared with other communities in the state. These cases take the most resources in the Division because the stakes are high for the victim and the defendant. With the exception of a few cases, most rely on the cooperation of the victim and developing a positive relationship with the victim takes time and a special skill set. Fortunately, and thanks to the initiative of the City Council, the Prosecution Unit now has a DV advocate on staff. The DV advocate, Maria Rosales, has improved our victim outreach. Her bilingual skills ensure that we are reaching most of our victim population. At any given time we have 250 domestic violence cases pending. Ms. Rosales performs the following tasks for those cases: a) Provide support and case management to DV victims during criminal proceedings; b) Assess and address victims' safety needs and other concerns related to prosecution; c) Provide crisis support and ongoing safety planning; d) Explain legal processes, options and potential outcomes to DV victims; e) Work cooperatively with community -based DV advocates and advocacy programs; f) Convey DV victim input to all system -based professionals; g) Ensure victims' rights are understood and honored (RCW 7.69.030); h) Accompany DV victims to joint interviews, defense interviews, and court hearings; i) Consult closely with prosecutor on victim issues and case concerns; and j) Provide advocacy for children similarly involved in the DV criminal case. The variety and complexity of the tasks performed by our sole DV advocate mean our resources are stretched thin. In addition, she is tasked with coordinating the City of Yakima CCRT. This project will take time, especially initially, and will impact her ability to perform advocacy. We will seek grant funds to add a second Domestic Violence Advocate to the Prosecution Division staff. The Grant application is due the end of March and decisions are announced by October 1, 2021. For Council's consideration is a resolution that will authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of intent, the grant application, MOU with partners, and any other documents required for the Grant. ITEM BUDGETED: STRATEGIC PRIORITY: APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL BY THE CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION: Adopt resolution. NA Public Safety ATTACHMENTS: Description Upload Date Type 3 D R+74,=-OVIti Grail ANlicahop 3x2n21 Resolution D Memorandum of Uncic7tanciing 3ix2n21 avirrdcl CITY OF YAKIMA COORDINATED COMMUNITY RESPONSE IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT AND EXPANSION OF PROSECUTION DIVISION VICTIM ADVOCATE SERVICES MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING The City of Yakima will direct an initiative to: 1) Implement a multidisciplinary Coordinated Community Response (CCR) to address Crimes of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence and Stalking occurring within the City of Yakima with the goal of: a. Comparing our response to effective evidence based model responses; b. Implementing an evidence based response that is consistent with our community needs and resources; c. Address gaps in response; d. Propose City ordinances and develop polices to support the response; e. Educate the community about the response; f. Measure results; g. Streamline process to protect victims and hold perpetrators accountable. 2) Provide CCR team members with training on CCR and expose them to ideas implemented across the country that increase victim safety, provide victim services, hold DV perpetrators accountable, and explore ways to measure results. Provide training to give team members a different perspective and expose them to fresh ideas. 3) Increase City of Yakima Prosecution Division victim advocate services for crimes of domestic violence against intimate partner, dating violence, and stalking. The below signatories will work in close conjunction with the proposal project and its staff in any manner that will help ensure its effective implementation through all areas of the City of Yakima. They agree to follow mutually agreed -upon protocols and policies responding to misdemeanor and gross -misdemeanor offenses of intimate partner domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, occurring within the City of Yakima. They commit to working together to ensure the success of the project. Members of the newly formed City of Yakima CCR will be dedicated to the ongoing evaluation of our services and to expanding membership to include representation from constituency groups that work to provide services to underrepresented communities. The City of Yakima representatives and partners understand that our elected officials support this project and the other signatories are essential to the success of the project. All signatories have reviewed and approved the proposed budget. Yakima YWCA: The Yakima YWCA is a non-profit non -governmental victim services organization located in the City of Yakima that has statutory privilege within the City of Yakima therefore no client information can be disclosed to any entity without the victim's consent. The City of Yakima has a Professional Services Agreement with the YWCA to provide crisis, counseling, and shelter services to City of Yakima victims of intimate partner domestic violence, Sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. This contract is funded by a STOP Grant and this relationship has existed for at least fifteen years. They currently host the Yakima County Coordinated Community Response which the City of Yakima is a member and participant. They have offered cross -consultation to our Memorandum of Understanding/City of Yakima OVW Grant Proposal/Page lof 3 program, and have shared pertinent information, statistics, and educational materials. They have also participated in professional training for law enforcement, prosecution advocate, and the community. The Yakima YWCA and the City of Yakima are committed to working together to ensure seamless service delivery of sensitive assistance to victims who live in the City of Yakima. The City of Yakima will work with the Yakima YWCA to ensure that victims receive comprehensive assistance. Yakima County Probation: The City of Yakima has a contractual relationship with Yakima County Probation Department to supervise City of Yakima probationers, including those ordered to be monitored for domestic violence, dating violence and stalking offenses. The City of Yakima's relationship with Yakima County Probation began in 2006 and they are committed to communicating a probationer's progress or lack of progress with the City of Yakima Municipal Court. The Yakima County Probation Department will participate in the City of Yakima CCR. Yakima County Probation and the City of Yakima are committed to working together to ensure that Domestic Violence offenders are held accountable for their probation requirements. SunComm Yakima 911 Communications, Yakima Police Department, and the City of Yakima Prosecution Division: Each of these agencies are City Departments/Divisions tasked with responding to incidents of intimate partner domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. SunComm Yakima 911 Communications handles all calls for emergency and police dispatch services within Yakima County. They are the first to interact with victims of intimate partner domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking who are located in the City of Yakima and dispatch a response that is sensitive to their safety needs. The effort to protect the victim and hold the defendant accountable begins with that initial response. The Yakima Police Department are staffed with 100+ officers who respond to calls for service from victims and witnesses of intimate partner domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. Yakima police officers are highly trained on issues of Domestic Violence and utilize the County Coordinated Response adopted DV Incident Report which includes a victim risk assessment. The Chief of Police has agreed to commit existing resources to the implementation of the City of Yakima CCR. The City Prosecution Division is responsible for the prosecution of all adult misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor intimate partner domestic violence, dating violence and stalking crimes committed within the City of Yakima. The appointed City Prosecutor has agreed to commit existing resources to implement the City of Yakima CCR. The City of Yakima Municipal Court has provided a Letter of Commitment in support of the project. Memorandum of Understanding/City of Yakima OVW Grant Proposal/Page 2of 3 COORDINATED COMMUNITY RESPONSE IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT AND EXPANSION OF PROSECUTION DIVISION VICTIM ADVOCATE SERVICES Signatories for the Memorandum of Understanding Teri Kilty YWCA Director There M .hy Date Yakima County District Court Manager Patricia Byers, City of Yakima Mayor CITY CONTRACT NO: ., 'On RESOLUTION NO: R�4r�V.It 03-a3^tea- / Date Mathew Murry Police Chief City of Yakima ay e antland Interim SunC; o,Ya Date ate A+ *ointed City Pro cu or/Prosecution Division Supervisor City of Yakima munications Director Memorandum of Understanding/City of Yakima OVW Grant Proposal/Page 3of 3