1. 24 Hour Contact DV Initiative Jaime Esparza District Attorney 34 th Judicial District of Texas 6.3 NOTICE SOME OF THE MATERIAL PRESENTED CAME FROM OTHER WORKS AND IS INTENDED TO BE USED UNDER THE FAIR USE GUIDELINES ALL CLIP ART © MICROSOFT, INC THIS MATERIAL WAS PREPARED UNDER CONFU GUIDELINES THIS MATERIAL IS RESTRICTED FROM FURTHER USE OTHER THAN THE CURRENT PRESENTATION

2. WHY DOES SHE STAY? FEAR GUILT SOCIETY IMMIGRATION ISOLATION FRIENDS MISPLACED COMPASSION JUST LEAVE HIM!!

3. Identifying the Challenges: Domestic Violence Prosecution in Texas  The dynamics of the crime are different.  Defendant and victim often live together even after the crime.  Defendant and victim often have children.  The couple’s finances are intertwined.  Love.  The defendant and the victim already have a relationship.

4. Culture No deviation from recommendation without prior approval or day of trial No deviation from recommendation without prior approval or day of trial These cases will be tried- even without the victim These cases will be tried- even without the victim Non prosecution affidavits Non prosecution affidavits Changing the culture! Changing the culture!

6. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE POLICE RESPONSE PREHISTORIC TIMES   Separate for the night   Who gets arrested   What happens to the kids   What happens to the case

7. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE POLICE RESPONSE Moving forward   Zero Tolerance- arrest made   What happens to the kids   What happens to the case

8. Addressing the Challenges: The 24 Hour Contact DV Initiative

9. MISSION Victim contacted within 24 hours to ensure her/his safety Victim contacted within 24 hours to ensure her/his safety Victim educated on community resources Victim educated on community resources Defendant aware of the District Attorney Office’s importance and involvement in the case Defendant aware of the District Attorney Office’s importance and involvement in the case

10. 24 Hour Contact Team District Attorney Jaime Esparza Chief of the DV Unit Patricia Baca 2 Clerk 2 Secretaries 3 Victim Advocates 2 Investigators

11. Weekly Guests Commander from El Paso Police Dept Victim Advocate from EPPD Representative from CAFV Representative from MHMR

12. DIMS

13. DIMS DIMS- Victim Contact Information Charges Accepted (By DA) No Bond Posted Bond Posted Released (3 hours/case) Jail Booking Bond Set By Judge’s Schedule  Bond schedule approved by judges expedites bond and improves consistency.  Defendants preferring bond set at magistration will see the judge within 24 hours of arrest.

14. CLERKS Clerk (DIMS) – –Arrives at 7:00a.m. everyday (including weekends/holidays) – –Runs the DIMS list – –Inputs all the data – –Prints cases – –Request judgments/pen packets – –Requests all photos – –Runs criminal histories Clerk (Warrant Cases) –Arrives at 7:00a.m. –Runs Jail Rooster List –Inputs all the data –Prints cases –Runs Criminal histories –Request Judgments/ pen packets –Go to the 911 Call Center –Download all 911 calls

15. INVESTIGATORS Investigator- Goes to home visits Safety of the victim advocate Order medical records Works on Weekend Investigator- Goes to home visits Safety of the victim advocate Downloads the jail recordings

16. VICTIM ADVOCATES There are 3 assigned to this unit Rotate their schedules to fit the weekend work Advise victims of services such as VAWA, CAFV, and protective orders Take photos of injuries Have victims sign medical release forms Enter their notes into the system (Ipads)

17. DISTRICT ATTORNEY Attends every meeting Makes a recommendation for each case (red writing or blood cases) Cannot deviate from that recommendation without prior approval of either himself or Chief of the DV.

18. CHIEF OF THE DV UNIT Attends every meeting Makes recommendation when DA is not present Notifies probation or parole of new arrest Notifies military of arrests involving Soldiers Notifies prosecutors of repeated offenders Discusses cases with prosecutors or defense attorneys in reference to recommendations

19. SECRETARIES Secretary-Recs Writes all recommendations “red writing” on the files Inputs all recommendations into Case Portal (paperless) Secretary-database Inputs all cases that come through our 24 hour contact unit into the database

20. EPPD COMMANDER Attends the Monday meetings Ensures all photos/videos are downloaded Helps with any follow up investigation Builds a strong collaboration between EPPD and the DA’s office

21. CENTER AGAINST FAMILY VIOLENCE (CAFV) Provides services to victims Help us move victims to the shelter when in danger Provide assistance with VAWA

22. Home Visits 2 teams- victim advocate/investigator 2 teams- victim advocate/investigator Clerk informs them if defendant is still in custody Clerk informs them if defendant is still in custody Make contact with all victims! Make contact with all victims! Homes, work, friends, 911 caller, hospitals, shelter, UBMC, homeless, and Mexico Homes, work, friends, 911 caller, hospitals, shelter, UBMC, homeless, and Mexico Since the Inception of this program we have reviewed over 9000 cases! Since the Inception of this program we have reviewed over 9000 cases!

23. 24 Hour Contact Meetings Every Weekday Every Monday the meeting starts at 10:30 since weekend cases from 7:00am on Friday to 7:00a.m. on Monday will be covered Tuesday-Friday the meeting will depend on when the home visits have been completed

24. What Happens at the Meetings We ensure that all photos are on the server We ensure that all photos are on the server We download all 911 calls We download all 911 calls Order medical records Order medical records Jail recordings Jail recordings Gather additional evidence Gather additional evidence Discuss all Victim communications Discuss all Victim communications Identify the repeat offenders Identify the repeat offenders Discuss the best outcome for that case Discuss the best outcome for that case Accept/decline the case Accept/decline the case

25. Benefits Victim Advocate Victim Advocate Law Enforcement Law Enforcement Prosecutors Prosecutors Culture Culture

26. Victim Advocates Safety of the Victim Safety of the Victim Empower the Victim with Services Empower the Victim with Services Establish a Rapport with the victim Establish a Rapport with the victim Let her/him know someone cares about them Let her/him know someone cares about them

27. Law Enforcement Collection of Evidence downloaded properly Collection of Evidence downloaded properly Tagged evidence Tagged evidence Better case preparation Better case preparation Hold offender accountable Hold offender accountable Keep the victim safe Keep the victim safe

28. Prosecutors Safety of the Victim Safety of the Victim Hold Offender Accountable Hold Offender Accountable Case ready to go to trial the next day Case ready to go to trial the next day More evidence: photos, 24 hour contact photos, medical records, jail recordings, notes from VA reference conversations with the victim More evidence: photos, 24 hour contact photos, medical records, jail recordings, notes from VA reference conversations with the victim

29. Cont’d Stronger Cases Stronger Cases Recommendation by DA Recommendation by DA Prosecute cases without the victim Prosecute cases without the victim

30. Comprehensive DV Unit Prosecutors trained on problems / challenges / issues – –Victim’s varied responses – –Victim’s non-prosecution statements/ recantations – –Evidentiary Issues (Crawford, forfeiture by wrong doing) – –Trial issues (recantations) Daily emphasis/ Importance

31. DV Videos Grant for server/cameras/case Grant for server/cameras/case

32. Evaluation: findings 2. The 24 Hour Contact program provides significant emotional support to family violence victims and increases their access to important community and financial resources

33. Evaluation: findings 3. Collaborations among key players in the criminal justice system and community victim service providers (e.g. law enforcement, local family violence shelter, probation, and BIPP) have been considerably strengthened as a result of the program.

34. Evaluation: findings 4. The prosecution of family violence has been significantly enhanced through the collection of better evidence, an increase in evidence gathering, improved preparation of case files, and on increase in preparedness and effectiveness of ADA’s in trial.

35. Evaluation: findings 5. Victims and professionals in the criminal justice system reported a range of mixed reactions to the district attorney’s stance on victimless prosecution.

36. TDCAA Resource Available TDCAA Resource Available Family Violence Investigating & Prosecution Family Violence Investigating & Prosecution

37. Points to Remember Proceed to trial without her cooperation Proceed to trial without her cooperation Complexity of the case-she continues to have a relationship with him Complexity of the case-she continues to have a relationship with him Changing the Culture Changing the Culture

38. QUESTIONS

39. Jaime Esparza District Attorney 34 th Judicial District of Texas District Attorney’s Office 500 E. San Antonio, RM 200 El Paso, Texas 79901 (915) 546-2059