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Grant could supply victim advocate
By Kelley Chambers, kchambers@acnpapers.com
The Collin County Sheriff's Office is applying for a 12-month grant that could provide specialized crime victim advocate services to the department beginning in September.
In a 3-2 vote at its Jan. 23 meeting, the Collin County Commissioners Court approved the office's request to apply for the 2013 Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant, which would be administered by the Frisco Police Department. The grant would provide 80 percent of the funding for the position, with the remaining 20 percent -- or approximately $14,000 -- being split between the county and the city of Frisco.
The grant could, however, provide 100 percent of the funding in its first year and, if awarded, would require the combined county and city match to increase by 20 percent each additional year for up to three years. If the application is approved, it will then be routed back to the court with the actual costs, where the joint effort will be approved or denied.
The sheriff's office has leaned on the Frisco Police Department's full-time victim liaison, which has proven to be a very efficient method for adequately linking individuals to important resources in the aftermath of traumatic situations, Allen said.
"We feel like it's money well spent," he said. "We had a homicide last year and a suicide, [in which] the family member showed up [on the scene]. We had no advocate, no one to steer them in that direction. We did what we could do, but we didn't really have training to have these people comforted ... and how to compassionately send them to the next direction, so to speak."
Commissioner Duncan Webb made a motion to deny the application request, stating he was told by the budgeting department the expenditure was not included in the budget. County Judge Keith Self sided with Webb, as both felt there were other ways in which the county could bridge the gaps without spending funds not budgeted for such a purpose. Commissioners Cheryl Williams, Joe Jaynes and Matt Shaheen voted to allow the sheriff's office to apply for the grant and revisit the issue at budget time.
"This grant gives me heartburn," Webb said. "I'm really not interested, me personally, in taking on another position or part of a position where the funding amount continues to grow, especially right now when we don't even have the $7,000 budgeted in. From what I can tell there is no money for this position. I see it as additional budget creep and I'm not willing to do it, I'd rather just cut it off now."
A crime victim advocate is a first responder position of sorts and would go much further than the very minimum of handing out brochures to crime victims, Allen said, which is typically as far as the sheriff's office goes when there is a crime.
"We don't have anyone to bridge that gap who has training to specially lead them in their time of need," Allen said. "Right now we give them the information and leave."
Jaynes asked Allen what the difference was between this position and a chaplain, to which Allen responded by saying part of the former's job is following up with the victim and keeping in touch with them periodically.
"A chaplain can go but they're not trained in disseminating the information and the networking of getting people lined up for compensation packages, if needed in that sense," Allen said. "There are also other forms and other arrangements made to connect a network of programs for these people to follow. Chaplains are good to come out to comfort people in their time of need but then they're gone."
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