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Mahoning County Domestic Relations Court secures grant
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: December 29, 2016
With over 700 civil protection order requests this year, Mahoning County Domestic Relations Court Judge Beth A. Smith is focusing on what can be done to assist domestic violence victims to get lives back.
“Mahoning County has statistically ranked near the top of all 88 Ohio counties in the number of domestic violence civil protection orders filed each year,” said Judge Smith. “Mahoning County Domestic Relations Court hears approximately 800 petitions for civil protection orders annually.
“We have been grappling with what can be done to stop the numbers from growing.”
That’s why news that the court will again receive a $60,000 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) grant is so important.
The funds are provided through Ohio’s Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS), a division of the Ohio Department of Public Safety. The OCJS administers state and federal dollars for criminal justice funding every year.
The grant will be used to hire a new full-time licensed social worker for 2017.
It’s the second year in a row court officials have applied for and received funding.
“We applied for the grant in the fall of 2015 the first time,” said Magistrate and Court Administrator Don Hepfner. “We had never applied for a grant before so it was a novel concept. We were thrilled to receive the funding the first time and fortunately the procedures were in place so that we did not have to reinvent the wheel the second time.”
The initial $60,000 grant was used to hire social worker Valerie Flanigan.
“I spent the past year working with domestic violence victims to develop personal safety plans, connect them with resources, as well as assisting them with any questions about how to file a civil protection order,” said Flanigan, the court’s domestic violence coordinator.
“Sometimes people are not sure what the next step should be once they leave the courthouse,” said Flanigan. “I refer victims to social services agencies and help them develop plans about where they will live and how they will take care of their children.”
Flanigan said filing for an order of civil protection can put the victim at greater risk.
“An abusive person is trying to control the situation and when that control is resisted, it can lead to escalated violence,” said Flanigan.
“It can be very hard to break the cycle of domestic violence, especially if the person has limited resources,” said Judge Smith.
The judge said the court is collaborating with a number of partners who provide services and refer victims, including the Sojourner House, Community Legal Aid Services Inc., Help Hotline Crisis Center, Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene and Mahoning County Children Services.
“Law enforcement often sends people to the court and Community Legal Aid provides volunteers daily between the hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. who help survivors fill out paperwork,” said Flanigan.
The court is accessible from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Court officials are currently looking for a licensed social worker to replace Flanigan who will be leaving at the end of the year.
“The way it works is that VAWA will provide up to $60,000 and we match 25 percent of that amount,” said Hepfner. “The funding is distributed quarterly. This year we did not need the entire amount because our social worker had her own health insurance.
“The next person we will hire may need insurance so we may spend the entire amount.”
Anyone interested in applying for the social worker position should contact Michele Cercel at the Mahoning County Domestic Relations Court at (330) 740-2208 or send an email to msalvino@mahoningcountyoh.gov.