Council committee approves Cuyahoga County VAWA grants to fund detectives, advocates and prosecutors
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Summary
The Cleveland safety committee approved Ordinance No. 26-2026 authorizing the director of public safety to apply for and accept three Cuyahoga County Violence Against Women Act grants to fund two detectives, victim advocates and prosecutors; council asked staff for ward-level prosecution and reporting data to inform finance committee review.
The Cleveland City Council safety committee on Jan. 21 approved an emergency ordinance authorizing the director of public safety to apply for and accept three Violence Against Women Act grants from Cuyahoga County to support domestic-violence investigations, victim advocacy and prosecution.
The ordinance covers three grant components: a law-enforcement piece intended to reimburse partial salaries for two Cleveland Police Domestic Violence Unit detectives (personnel $153,225.90; travel $4,500; supplies $3,727.67; total $161,453.57), a contract for a sexual-assault victim advocate with a crisis center (total $64,407.29), and a prosecution component that funds a portion of prosecutors’ and law clerks’ salaries and related costs (total $225,860.87). The director said each grant requires matching funds and that the award period runs Jan. 1 through Dec. 31.
“The grant pays for partial salaries of two detectives,” the director said in his presentation, and he confirmed the city will be reimbursed for the enumerated operating costs. Prosecutor Quayla Jordan told the committee that victims commonly disengage after initial reports, making evidence-based prosecution difficult, and argued outreach and advocacy funded by the grants are essential to sustaining cases: “after the initial report is taken, our victims are less likely to cooperate,” Jordan said.
Council members pressed for more data on how reports translate into filings and convictions. The committee requested ward-level breakdowns of reports, misdemeanor and felony referrals, and prosecution outcomes so members could assess the grant’s local impact before finance committee review. The chair directed staff to supply that information in a handout or part of the summary document.
Following the presentation and questions, the committee approved Ordinance No. 26-2026 "as read." The director and prosecutor said they would provide the requested granular data to council for the finance committee.
