The Salt Lake Tribune
Funding May Limit Legal Aid for Victims of Domestic
Violence
Ashley Broughton
Friday, October 18, 2002
Low-income domestic violence victims may find long-term legal
help -- representation in divorces or child-custody disputes --
hard to come by, if two organizations now providing such help can't
replace their lost funding.
The Legal Aid Society of Salt Lake and Utah Legal Services are
already facing cutbacks after they were refused a federal grant of
more than $450,000 in September.
The board overseeing the state Office of Crime Victim
Reparations [CVR] has voted to deny a stopgap funding request from
the two organizations. While describing the request as a worthy
cause, board members agreed Tuesday that funding divorces or
custody disputes was outside their focus -- providing direct
services for crime victims.
The $175,000 requested would have allowed the legal aid groups
to maintain a skeleton staff to continue providing help beyond
emergency protective orders for victims, completing existing cases
and offering services in limited cases.
The groups also plan to enlist more pro bono attorneys through
coordination with the Utah State Bar.
"We don't have a lot more options," said Anne Milne, executive
director of Utah Legal Services, after learning of the CVR refusal
Wednesday.
The organization has already lost some staff through attrition
and has turned away some cases, she said. Milne said she may ask
the board overseeing her organization to give her until November to
seek funding from additional sources.
Without additional funding, the outlook for longer-term legal
help is unclear.
For two years, the groups had received 18-month civil legal
assistance grants from the
U.S. Department of Justice and had used them to provide such
assistance. But last month, a third request was denied.
Funding used to help victims obtain emergency protective orders
remains in place, said Milne and Stewart Ralphs, executive director
of the Legal Aid Society of Salt Lake.
Although an order's requirements that an abuser stay away from a
victim may remain in effect for years, protective orders only
settle issues such as child custody, child support, custody and
property arrangements for 150 days. Many judges are reluctant to
address those issues in emergency protective orders, since the
decrees stay in effect for such a short time, Milne and Ralphs
said.
"The likelihood a victim will return to her abuser increases if
she cannot permanently sever the relationship and establish
workable support, custody and property arrangements," the funding
request to CVR said.
The Department of Justice said it denied the grant application,
in part, because evaluators did not see enough collaboration
between the organizations and victims' advocates, Ralphs and Milne
told CVR board members. While the two said they believe their
organizations coordinate well, the organizations cannot appeal the
grant denial.
Although CVR board members considered giving the money as a
loan, not a grant, their vote on the funding request -- taken after
Milne and Ralphs left the meeting -- was unanimous.
