NCJ Number
84204
Date Published
1980
Length
105 pages
Annotation
The systemic case flow for the current handling of family-violence cases in San Francisco is described, and recommendations are offered for improving the system to facilitate service delivery to family-violence victims and offenders.
Abstract
The description of the systemic flow of family violence cases is derived from data collection activities that included interviews with representatives of the police department, the district attorney's office, the adult probation department, the courts, and service programs. The primary data source for identifying domestic violence cases is the police department, so it is important that the capability be developed to use 'DV' as the designation for all incidents of domestic violence. Further, it is important for the Family Violence Project and the system as a whole to know the criteria used by dispatchers to determine the legitimacy and seriousness of the calls. This requires considerable information exchange between dispatch and the support services. A Family Violence Project staff person should review all misdemeanor cases in which no arrest has been made to determine the needs of the victims and offenders before the report is administratively filed. The district attorney's office should have at least one staff person assigned to domestic violence cases, and various diversion alternatives should be developed. The Family Violence Project can play an important role in the Adult Probation Domestic Violence Diversion Project in at least three areas: (1) specialized training for investigative probation officers and supervising probation officers, (2) assistance in the development of a data collection system for domestic violence cases, and (3) assistance in developing an additional resource for offenders in such cases. Laws, forms, and services for domestic violence cases are appended. Flow charts are provided.