Since its inception, the Justice for Families: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Grant Program (Supervised Visitation Program) has helped more than 20,000 families by providing supervised visitation and exchange services for families experiencing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or in cases involving allegations of child sexual abuse. This website is dedicated to supporting Supervised Visitation Program grantee communities and allied professionals who are providing these important services.
The purpose of the Justice for Families: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Grant Program (Supervised Visitation Program) is to improve the responses of the civil and criminal justice system to families with a history of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, or in cases involving allegations of child sexual abuse.
What is the Justice for Families Supervised Visitation Program?
The Safe Havens: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Grant Program (Supervised Visitation Program) was established by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. § 10420) and then subsequently the Grants to Support Families in the Justice System program (Justice for Families Program) was authorized by statute 34 U.S.C. § 1246434 in the VAWA reauthorization of 2013 to improve the response of the civil and criminal justice system to families with a history of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, or cases involving allegations of child sexual abuse. The Justice for Families Supervised Visitation Program is operated by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).
History
The Safe Havens: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Program (Supervised Visitation Program) was established by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. § 10420). In 2002, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) developed and implemented a four-year demonstration initiative to examine promising practices in the field of supervised visitation and safe exchange.
The Safe Havens: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Program (Supervised Visitation Program) was established by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. § 10420). In 2002, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) developed and implemented a four-year demonstration initiative to examine promising practices in the field of supervised visitation and safe exchange.
OVW awarded grants to four demonstration sites: the Bay Area, CA; the City of Chicago, IL; the City of Kent, WA; and the State of Michigan. These demonstration sites identified and implemented promising practices for supervised visitation and safe exchange in situations involving domestic violence, developed national standards and protocols, implemented enhanced security measures, expanded community partnerships, and created specialized services for domestic violence victims and their children within targeted communities.
OVW
The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) is a component of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). Created in 1995, OVW administers grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and subsequent legislation and provides national leadership on issues of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. OVW grants support coordinated community responses to hold offenders accountable and serve victims.
Justice for Families Program
The Grants to Support Families in the Justice System program (Justice for Families Program) was authorized in the VAWA reauthorization of 2013 to improve the responses of the civil and criminal justice systems to families with a history of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, or in cases involving allegations of child sexual abuse. The program supports the following activities for improving capacity of courts and communities to respond to families affected by the targeted crimes: court based and court related programs; supervised visitation and safe exchange by and between parents; training for people who work with families in the court system; civil legal services; and the provision of resources in juvenile court matters. For more information about this program, see https://www.justice.gov/ovw/grant-programs and https://www.vawmei.org/grant-program/justice-for-families-jff-program.
This project was supported by Grant No. 2015-TA-AX-K023 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this website/publication/program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice or the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.