Environmental Scan of Family Justice Centers, Final Report

• NCJ Number: 251561
• Date Published: February 2018
• Length: 111 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2014-ZD-CX-0013
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Evaluation; Program/Project Description

Annotation

This examination of Family Justice Centers (FJCs) nationwide considers the services they provide, the communities they serve, and the existence of an infrastructure to support their evaluation.

Abstract

In the early 2000s, the FJC movement started with the opening of the San Diego FJC. It brought together in one centralized location representatives of government and non-government service providers to deliver multiple services for survivors of domestic violence. In 2004, the President's Family Justice Center Initiative (PFJCT) further institutionalized the FJC movement by providing federal funding to support the implementation of FJCs in 15 communities across the country. The PFJCT model is to coordinate support for all relevant services (medical, law enforcement, prosecution, social services, community-based organizations, and other resources) under a central administrator, the FJC. The FJC ensures that survivors of domestic violence are aware of and can access the services they need under a structured, multi-agency institution. Given the high degree of autonomy among the initial FTC grantees, the current scan of the existing programs focused on identifying their commonalities and variations. The research to date indicates positive results regarding the number of clients served and service needs met, the benefits of the co-location and multi-agency services, and the lack of barriers to accessing needed services. FTCs have also shown their ability to facilitate holding offenders accountable; however, more systematic evaluation research is required. This scan identified 87 operational FJCs; however, the scan was limited to FTCs that were operational at the time of data collection, and those who provided self-reports. The findings confirm that the PFJCT has ignited a national movement, with FTCs operating in every region of the country. Recommendations are offered for the structuring of a national evaluation. 41 exhibits and appended list of centers and the data collection instrument