Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Victim Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Victim advocate reports services and demographics for July–December period
Summary
The city’s victim advocate presented quarterly service tallies covering July–December (quarter 1 and 2 reporting window described). Maria, the city’s victim advocate, reported case counts, victim demographics and the types of services provided; she clarified reporting limits related to the VOCA grant.
At the April 22 meeting Maria (identified in the staff agenda as the city victim advocate) presented a summary of services she provided for the July–December reporting window and described client demographics, types of victimization, and services and referrals.
Why it matters: The victim‑advocate role supports crime victims with court notifications, protective‑order assistance, restitution and advocacy at prosecution interviews and law‑enforcement interactions. Quarterly reporting helps the city track service demand and ensures compliance with VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) grant reporting rules.
Maria told the council her internal count for the reporting period was 48 total services provided but that her VOCA grant requires reporting only 70% of that volume (she reported a VOCA‑covered figure of 33). She described client demographics: the reported counts included a range of ages (children through seniors), and she said a number of clients identify as Hispanic/Latino though some intake forms record race as “white” without a separate Hispanic ethnicity field. She provided a breakdown of victimizations and services, including domestic/family violence, physical assaults, identity theft/fraud, vehicular victimizations, stalking/harassment and child‑abuse cases. Maria also listed services provided: notifications of criminal‑justice events (80 instances noted), assistance with victim impact statements (17), prosecution interview accompaniment (46), law‑enforcement interview advocacy (28) and criminal‑justice advocacy (11); she said many clients receive multiple types of service during their case.
Maria explained the VOCA reporting constraint when council members asked what the parenthetical numbers in her report meant: VOCA covers about 70% for her grant match, so some case counts are reported in parentheses to show total contacts versus VOCA‑eligible contacts. She asked whether council had questions; none were raised beyond expressions of appreciation for her work.
Next steps: Maria will continue quarterly reporting. Council members thanked her for her service and asked staff to distribute her full report to council members if requested.
