Agencies join the Domestic Violence Initiative | News

Vermilion County State’s Attorney Jacqueline Lacy said the community isn’t alone in seeing many incidents of domestic violence.

“I think domestic violence is something that has historically plagued every community across the United States,” Lacy said.

She said she applauds the Danville Police Department for getting the COPS grant and assigning special constables to specific crimes, such as domestic violence.

Lacy said people often try to sweep domestic violence under the rug.

The link with his office, the victims and the police department is to make sure they get the evidence they need to pursue the case.

Having a police officer assigned to domestic violence cases will be a benefit to the state’s attorney’s office and ensure they don’t let anything slip through the cracks, Lacy said.

“Victims are scared and don’t want to come forward,” Lacy said.

She said she wants to pursue domestic violence cases all day, but if a victim says nothing happened, the victim cannot be saved from herself.

Lacy said she is also proud that Vermilion County now has a Child Advocacy Center, ensuring children are protected.

Cher Pollock, Director of Y Programs at Crosspoint Human Services, said, “Chief Yates’ initiative is something we are participating in and looking forward to. We have a positive relationship with the police department and they are very responsive to our needs.

“It will only strengthen that and our working relationship,” Pollock added, saying that greater collaboration translates into better services they can offer.

It has been a difficult time for the services during the coronavirus pandemic. Crosspoint has struggled to keep staff and the people it serves safe, but they have been creative, Pollock said.

“We do a lot over the phone and through Zoom and other means so people don’t feel exposed,” Pollock said. “It’s difficult to enter an establishment like ours when you’re afraid of covid.”

Crosspoint and its women’s and children’s shelter have seen demand for services rise and fall in recent years.

At the start of the pandemic, they thought they would be inundated with people seeking shelter and other services.

“It was very quiet,” Pollock said, adding that doesn’t indicate things weren’t happening, but they didn’t hear people on their hotline.

“People were taking shelter at home seriously, and we didn’t have groups and things were happening at first,” she also added of the support and counseling sessions.

As Crosspoint became more creative and groups began to meet again, the demand for services increased.

One area where Crosspoint has seen greater demand is the domestic violence intervention program. It’s a group meeting format, for people to get support from their peers. It deals with violence and abuse, whether financial, emotional, verbal, spiritual or otherwise.

The group program helps partners recognize abusive behaviors, learn non-violent interaction skills, and teaches them to take responsibility for their abusive behavior and the effects of their abuse on their partners and children.

There has also been greater demand on the Crosspoint hotline which people can call 24 hours a day. The Crosspoint domestic violence hotline is: 888-549-1800.

Trained helpline staff provide supportive counselling, crisis intervention, advocacy, information and referrals. Crosspoint can provide emergency or hospital response to provide information and emotional support to someone experiencing domestic violence or homelessness.

“So many people have been laid off and unemployed,” Pollock said. “The abusive part was now at home all the time and it was difficult for a person to flee or get help. A person can call in the middle of the night.

Earlier this month at the Danville Martin Luther King Jr. Parade/Motorcycle, when the group stopped for a brief ceremony at the MLK monument at Jackson and Williams streets in Danville, the NAACP president, Ed Butler said part of the MLK dream is alive today, with people embracing each other.

“But the journey is not over. We still have a long way to go. We still have domestic violence. We have murders. We have shooters. We have black on black crime,” Butler said. “If (Martin Luther King Jr.) was here today, he wouldn’t be happy with what we’re doing today.

“So it’s very important, whatever the situation. We must put aside all malevolence. We have to put all anger aside. Yes, we could disagree. But we have to disagree to agree; and come to common ground that we’re all in this race together,” Butler said.


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