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Police describe state domestic-violence grant and proposed analyst post; council invited to participate
Summary
Binghamton Police and county partners outlined a state grant (discussed as the 'Scribe' program) to fund domestic-violence services, a coordinator, and a lead analyst position; council members asked to be included in committee meetings and staff said much grant detail and program design remain to be developed.
Binghamton police and county partners briefed the City Council on May 5 about a New York State grant to expand domestic-violence services and data tracking, and the council discussed creating a lead domestic-violence analyst position funded by the grant.
Police Chief Joe Zakowski said the award comes through the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services and was described in the meeting as the "Scribe" grant (meeting participants used both "STRIVE" and "Scribe" when referring to the program). He said the county’s total award is approximately $750,767 and that the city’s share — presented in the meeting as $162,554 — would fund an analyst position, overtime, cell phones for patrol cars and other supports tied to victim services.
Chief Zakowski said the grant will fund a paid coordinator and that a lead analyst is strongly recommended by the state to track repeat victims and offenders, produce monthly reports for DCJS and to map patterns of need. "There's people repeatedly are victims, and nobody's really tracking that," Zakowski said, describing the analyst's duties as collecting data on repeat offenders and who is receiving services. He said the first year will involve a learning curve as jurisdictions set up programs tailored to local needs.
Zakowski described program elements that are planned or recommended statewide, including on-scene contact between victims and advocates using phones placed in patrol cars (the chief said short advocate calls at the time of incident can increase follow-up), a 24-hour hotline coordinated with local victim-service organizations, training, a soft interview room for victims, and funding for social-service providers. He said the county and municipal partners will form an executive committee (police, district attorney and crime-victim advocates) and a broader committee including social-service agencies; the city council was invited to observe and participate.
Council members asked for the grant’s 54-page guidance document and for the schedule of required meetings. Chief Zakowski said a crime analyst currently working in the center has expressed interest in the role; he also said the state expects funding to continue for multiple years but that long-term continuation is not guaranteed. No final municipal vote on accepting the grant or creating the analyst position was recorded at the work session; the items RL25-89 (grant acceptance) and RL25-90 (budget ordinance to add the analyst) were discussed together and will return to the council for formal action.
