In October 2011, the Emmet County prosecutor’s office in collaboration with the prosecutor’s offices of Cheboygan and Charlevoix counties, and the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan received a two year federal grant from the Department of Justice, Violence Against Women office for $374,000.  The grant is designed to assist and enhance prosecution of domestic violence and sexual assault cases in the three county area by paying for a shared special prosecutor to work on these types of cases.

In the first year the grant also provided assistance to create local policies that implement pro-arrest programs in police departments including policies for protection order violations; develop procedures, and protocols for preventing dual arrests and prosecutions in cases of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence and stalking, and develop effective methods for identifying the pattern and history of abuse that indicates which party is the actual perpetrator of abuse.

During the second year the focus will be to implement the policies and train local police, prosecutors, probation, parole and the judiciary in recognizing, investigating, and prosecuting instances of domestic violence and sexual assault with an emphasis on victim support, and to recognize the threat to the community for repeat crime perpetration by such individuals.  Focus will also be to develop and implement risk/danger assessments to address issues of victims who are considered to be in high risk of lethality in relationships.

The perpetration of domestic violence and sexual assault are serious crimes that affect many throughout our communities.  In order to end this type of violence in our families and in our communities it is imperative that nationally accepted best practice models of policy, procedures and prosecution be implemented in our criminal justice systems.  Just like the social changes that happened around drinking and driving back in the 70’s, advocates for ending domestic violence and sexual assault seek similar social change.  The most effective way to do that is to prosecute and implement consistent practice throughout our communities that begins to make these crimes unacceptable.