COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING COMMITTEES ON PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE and COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY - - - Room 696, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday, April 22, 2003 10:15 a.m. - - - RESOLUTION 020613 - Resolution authorizing the City Council's Committees on Public Safety and Public Health & Human Services to hold joint hearings to investigate the unmet needs of domestic violence victims in Philadelphia, the current response of Philadelphia agencies to domestic violence, and the full range of options to enhance that response through the implementation of a coordinated community response... - - - PRESENT: COUNCILMAN ANGEL ORTIZ, Chair COUNCIL PRESIDENT ANNA C. VERNA COUNCILMAN FRANK DICICCO COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILMAN RICHARD MARIANO COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN COUNCILMAN FRANK RIZZO - - - V A R A L L O, INCORPORATED 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 215.561.2220 215.567.2670 I N D E X RESOLUTION 020613 CAROL TRACY, Women's Law Project ............ LOUIS J. PRESENZA, President Judge, Philadelphia Municipal Court ........... 27 KATHLEEN RAPONE, Deputy Court Administrator, Municipal Court ....................... 32 BARBARA PITMAN, Advocate ................... 46 PATRICIA GIORGIO FOX, Police Dept. ......... 55 FRANCIS HEALEY ............................. 65 THOMAS LYNCH, Police Dept. ................. 67 ROB HESS, OESS ............................. 80 LETICIA HINTON ............................. 87 HAL GINDROW ................................ 96 RAYMOND HEARTFIELD ......................... 99 3 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Good morning. A quorum having been established, this is a continuation of hearings of the Committee of Public Safety and Health and Human Services regarding domestic violence. Will the Clerk read the heading of the Resolution, please?
Authorizing the City Council Committee on Public Safety, Public Health and Human Services to hold joint hearings to investigate the unmet needs of domestic violence victims in Philadelphia, the current response of Philadelphia agencies to domestic violence, and the full range of options to enhance that response through the implementation of a coordinated community response, and further authorizing the Committee to issue subpoenas and such other process as may be appropriate to compel the attendance of witnesses in the production of documents in furtherance of the investigation to the full extent authorized by Section 2-401 of the Home Rule Charter.
Thank you. These hearings have been ongoing. The other day -- just to give some update -- I met with 4 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Judge Massiah-Jackson, who is the President Judge of Common Pleas, and some of the judges from Family Court. I also took a tour of 11th Street, 11th and Market and Chestnut site where women or men -- but mostly women -- go to file for a Protection From Abuse Order. They said to me at that time that, within a couple of weeks after my visit, they would have that area totally fixed, that they were going to move the glass structure that they had, that they were going to move it so that it would be sort of -- a chair would be available, people can sit; that the shouting will not go back and forth between the inside and the outside. They assured me that this is just an area in which no details as to the reason for the person's visit will be gathered, that it was more or less just a gathering of name and address and filling out of that type of form. So there would be no privacy issues involved in terms of the discussions that took place. I haven't been back since then, so I don't know whether the construction has taken place, but the President Judge gave me assurances that it was going to be done. And I think it was going to 5 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 be done either by mid-April or -- and it is now the 22nd, so I would hope that it has been done. I don't know. Maybe some of the advocates that are here will tell me whether that is so or not. We also sat down at a meeting, which I was joined by Blondell Reynolds, Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds, and we had a very good discussion among the judges and the judicial staff of the center as to what is transpiring, what needs to be done. There are certain needs that are present there. And I was encouraged by the commitment of the President Judge and the other judges, Judge Field, Judge Fox, and the interest and commitment that they demonstrated. So I believe we are on a good road to really reforming and restructuring the system. It is not a one-day thing. A culture has developed over the years in terms of how we treat women and how we investigate the cases that happen to women. It's long ingrained. It almost goes back to Biblical times. As we know, those things that come through from Biblical times are very hard to reform because they have a certain jurisdiction basis on our cultural background and 6 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 history. But we hope that in the City of Philadelphia we will be able to come to some good suggestions, good recommendations to the court system and the Administration of the City as to what needs to be done, so that women or men who go through this process can have at least a sense and an assurance that, as they go through the system, they will not feel as abused by the system as they were by the perpetrator. And if we can begin to give them that sense of comfort and security, I think we would have achieved a change that has become significant. We've been joined by Councilman Mariano, Councilman Frank Rizzo, Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds. Councilwoman, I was talking about the meeting we had the other day with President Judge Massiah-Jackson and Judge Fields and Judge Fox. I feel encouraged as to the direction that we are going. I feel this hearing today will really put us, again, more or less in the right direction. Carol. Carol Tracy, Women's Law 7 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Project, please. Thank you. Please identify yourself for the record.
I'm Carol Tracy. I'm the Executive Director of the Women's Law Project. Councilman, I just have a few introductory remarks to bring you up to date on some of the areas we've been working in. The first actually involves the Sex Crimes Division of the Philadelphia Police Department on which you have had so much experience and work. As you know, we have a new facility. I was at the Sex Crimes Division last Thursday --
Captain Darby gave me the move date. They expect to be there by June 15.
No, we haven't moved in yet. Construction is well underway. Captain Darby indicated that they take weekly trips to oversee what is going on. And he said it is also an incredible morale booster for the staff there, that 8 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 they are even more overcrowded since they added 20 new officers. So it can't come too soon. And we will be organizing our review of cases again for the year 2002. I don't know if we're going to wait to do it in the new facility or do it one more time up in the arsenal. I think it's been a long time coming, but it appears --
Well, the change -- for the record, because sexual assault cases have generally, previous to our hearings and the discussions we've had, they really were not given that credibility. The women really almost had to prove themselves first to the Police Department in order to be able for the police to begin investigating. And that has changed. That cultural perspective has changed, has it not?
Can you detail to me how that's changed? Because I think, if anything, besides adding staffing, that cultural and psychological change as to how we view sexual assault cases is a key issue.
I think first and foremost 9 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 sex crimes no longer -- the category of 2701, investigation of persons, is not used in the Sex Crimes Division. It's used in other places in the Police Department, but no one, none of the sex crimes get dumped into that category again. And that, of course, is the massive change that took place. It appears that all of the sex crimes are investigated. We have the opportunity to review the files. We look at the unfounded files from the previous year and we look at 100 random open cases. The review team consists of the Women's Law Project, Women Organized Against Rape, the Penn Women's Center, the Support Center for Child Advocates and the Philadelphia Children's Alliance. We have not gotten a new protocol for investigation, nor has the training that we believe needs to take place actually been implemented. Part of that is waiting for the move to the new facility. We've certainly gotten a commitment that that will take place.
The training is on-the-job training. I don't think we do, actually, Councilman 10 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Ortiz. You've been up there, haven't you?
-- and so difficult. I understand that we have one of the highest arrest rates now in the country for rape cases. I think we will probably be revealing those statistics pretty soon.
We have arrest rates, but does it translate into convictions?
That would be the next step, to see whether that actually then translated into actual convictions of the perpetrators.
We at the Women's Law Project have gotten fewer complaints. Now, I don't know if it's because we're not in the news so much anymore, but we have had fewer complaints. And whenever we did have a complaint, we would take it immediately to the captain or to the inspector, and usually there was adequate resolution of it. So I 11 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 think there's been a significant change, but I also think it requires ongoing monitoring and ongoing involvement. We're pleased that they continue to -- there's no question about our doing the case review. And, again, I'll remind you, I think that we are the only citizens' group in the United States that actually reviews police case files. And it's been a positive interaction. What we noticed last year when we did the case review is the files were in much better shape than they had ever been before. We had been told early on in this process that, although training is an important component, supervision is the critical component. And there is more of a supervisory structure in place. And that was quite apparent as we looked through the files, that they were better written. They were complete. And it was clearly noticeable. It was remarkably different from the two previous years in which we had done them.
I have to say this because Craig is here, that, actually, this issue made national news, and it was featured on Dateline 12 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 on NBC. The whole perspective of the unit and how it started to get reform was shown on national TV. We were -- it's not good to make national news in that manner. But the fact that we did and we made the change, I think, tells a lot about the department and the willingness of the force to change.
There's no question. At the same, I think that public oversight by City Council and the ongoing coverage by the Philadelphia Inquirer are critical components, both in exposing this and in resolving it. So we're very grateful for that, as we are grateful for you having the hearings on domestic violence. After the last hearings, we started going through all of the testimony that was presented, and we're developing a work chart. It's not complete. I just wanted you to see where we're looking at what each agency is doing, where there are still unmet needs and where we may have recommendation for change. And after this hearing, we will complete this and we will present it to City Council, because I think it will become a blueprint for what we need to do in Philadelphia for domestic 13 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 violence.
I think that will be the basis for our report and recommendations.
In addition, the Women's Law Project independently has just completed and is having printed a major study that we have done of the Domestic Relations Branch of Family Court. And we are heartened to hear what you said and heartened that the court is more open to discussions. On the other hand, there is an immense amount that needs to be done in Family Court. As we are aware of, the 5 1/2 million dollar courtrooms that have been constructed with First Judicial District budget, we still see an extraordinary lack of resources that exist in Family Court. These courts, of course, are for complex court litigation, not for families. We have information about that in the report, and all of City Council will receive a copy of the report as soon as it comes back from the printers.
Two things struck me. One is security at the 11th Street site, or the lack thereof. It surprised me that, actually, the Sheriff's Office is not the department that really 14 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 takes care of the security, that they are hired.
There's some sheriffs there. They're hired. It's part of the complexity. And who reports to whom. And it's one of the issues documented in my report.
That to me seems to be a problem that we have to address. But, however, the one issue my colleagues will hear about, the Sheriff's Department keeps on getting cut back in terms of people. And right now they're really extended. And one of the problems, it seems to me, that also the Clerk of Quarter Sessions has been cut back in terms of personnel. So there is a lack of really the ability to get timely information available to the different judges at certain times. And the lack of representation for the women who come before the court, she is usually there by herself before a judge.
Eighty to ninety percent of all litigants in the Domestic Relations Branch do not have counsel present, nor does the court provide them with any written information to help them learn 15 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 how to represent themselves.
That struck me. And I asked the President Judge Massiah-Jackson about that, and it seems that Public Defenders nor Community Legal Services are available. Councilwoman, go ahead.
Good morning. I was also struck by that, as well, because they shared with us a folder of pamphlets that are available for the type of women we're speaking of here. So I'm concerned because I can't figure out how that information ultimately gets to those women who end up there in court. At what juncture?
Thousands of dollars are spent on very well-presented, informative brochures, but when does it get --
None of us know about them, and certainly the litigants don't know about it.
We saw the brochures and we saw the videotape that is given.
Are you aware of the videotape? You're not aware of the videotape? 16 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Rainey Poppa Dimitri (ph) from Women Against Abuse Legal Center is here, who is in court virtually every day, and I think this is -- I'm looking at the reaction on her face. I think this is news to her. If you have copies of these documents, we'd like to see them. There are some documents that the court provides for Pro Se litigants. They do not explain in any detail how they are to be filled out, what they mean, what the litigants need to know, so we're sort of perplexed about what you're telling us exists.
That struck me, as an attorney. I went to a couple of courtrooms.
Yes. I went to -- Ida Chen, Judge Chen, she's fantastic. She's an incredible justice. She actually sat, stood, and gave me a lecture really as to what really transpires. And she said Hawaii seems to have a system that works. I think we might take a trip to Hawaii to see how that works.
It seems that the court system there works. As an attorney, I was 17 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 struck by the lack of legal assistance to women as they enter into this process, which is -- courtrooms are -- I remember the first time I went into a courtroom after going through law school and all that. They can be very intimidating places, especially if you have been subject to a relationship in which you have been beaten and subjugated and oppressed and so on down the line. Those places can be incredibly intimidating and oppressive themselves because you don't know how to react. And the lack of legal assistance available is nonexistent, and that shocked me.
Women Against Abuse has four attorneys and Philadelphia Legal Assistance has three. They are the public interest lawyers that are in that courtroom. That's all. There are 14,000 Protection From Abuse Orders filed each year.
It's up to 15 this year. So that -- and then there's custody proceedings, divorce proceedings and child support proceedings.
I found out from President Judge that actually 7,500 actually make it into the courtroom. 18 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
I have no idea what happens to the other 7,500 and neither does the court system have any idea. We have very little knowledge of what happens to that 75 that do make it because, like I said, there is no legal representation that can create a file and follow that.
So given the progress, if you had to identify one, two, or three next steps that matter to you, what would they be?
In the court? Actually, we have a very long list of recommendations in the report that's being printed. It includes a reallocation of funds from other sources in the court to Family Court. We don't think the court is appropriately funded in the first place.
Yes. It's a 145report, so it is extensive. It's hard to right now just to give you a thumbnail sketch. But we need more money in that court. It certainly should have available to it what commercial litigation has. 19 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 This, after all, is the court in which life-altering decisions are made regarding families.
Without any legal advice, by the way. Life-altering decisions without any legal advice.
Yes. The court remains unconstitutionally closed to the public. This is an issue that the court knows about. The Bar Association has dealt with them on it. Access is very limited. That's why I asked Councilman Ortiz how he got into the court. I ask any of you to walk over to 34 South 11th at any time and try to get into a courtroom.
It's easy to go in when you're with the President Judge.
Exactly. Go over at 9:00 some other time and try to get through that gauntlet. It's unlike any other court, except the Dependency Courts at 1801 Vine, which are closed by statute because of children. And courts are -- the judges are permitted to close the court on a case-by-case basis once they do an analysis of the need. But part of our report to the community, including to City Council, is a report of an 20 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 extensive court observation project that we have engaged in where our observers have been allowed into court, and we have developed a survey to try to find out what is going on in those proceedings in the most objective way possible, primarily when lawyers aren't present.
When you speak to some of the support services, or lack there of, for women once they come downtown, who in the middle of the night have to go back home, are services provided for taxicab fees, tokens or that kind of thing?
Nothing. Actually, what we don't know about -- and I don't know if the emergency filing site -- if Judge Presenza is presenting testimony today.
No. He's not scheduled, right, Ray? Judge Presenza? JUDGE PRESENZA: I'm here.
There's an awful lot of information that we do not know about the emergency 21 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 filing site.
Let me tell you, I had a call yesterday, and I can't give you too many details about this call because I think this woman and her children are in severe danger. I did give a copy of the information to Deputy Commissioner Fox before this hearing. To the extent that I can describe what happened -- because this is a public forum and I do not want to place this person in any more danger than she's in. This woman has dealt with the court, with 34 South 11th, with the emergency filing site, numerous police visits to her house, an abuser who is on probation. She's dealt with the Probation Department, with the police, the courts and DHS because her children have been harmed. They have either all responded in the most minimal way, or in a totally inadequate way.
Each of them. They have responded. Most of the time she said that the court personnel and the police have been very kind, but 22 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 there's no resolution for her. The lack of coordination does not allow any one of these systems to understand the full gravity and totality of this situation because nothing's coordinated. You have a 911 responder. At no time was she ever given a domestic violence hotline number, nor was she visited or called by a Victims Assistance Officer. She doesn't know the system at all. I got a call from a person in law enforcement. She knew someone, who knew someone, who knew someone, and that person called me to say, "Can you talk to this woman and help this woman," having no idea that I was coming to a hearing today. But the lack of capacity, the lack of integration and the lack of fully understanding the gravity of the situation. A week doesn't go by that we don't read about a homicide in the Delaware Valley. It just brings to light the critical nature of why we have to have these hearings, and why we must develop a coordinated response. Each system has to improve what it's doing. In the meetings we have had with the police, with the courts, with DHS, with the Health Department, we've met no resistance. There's no 23 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 question that people want to do something. It's just that we don't have the policy table to bring everyone together to make this happen.
So you're saying that there's never been an opportunity where all of those stakeholders you just mentioned were at the same table at the same time reviewing two or three specific issues?
Absolutely. We have talked about this before. There is no locus in City government that really coordinates all of the efforts. So each one tries to do the best that they know, but their knowledge basis is limited. And in a case like this, there's a little response here, a little response there, bad response here, no one to respond to that. And, fortunately, this person also contacted Women Against Abuse Legal Center and, hopefully, there at least will be some representation for her. But the problems are much bigger.
Well, hopefully we can bring the type of communication that we brought before to the Special Victims Unit, in which we 24 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 actually started interdepartmental conversations and finally a co-location at one point of all the services up at Episcopal Hospital. Hopefully, that will happen. Hopefully, DHS will assent and move personnel to those offices so that we can have a total coordinated effort for each one of the units, and hopefully, we can come to the same solution to this problem. And hopefully, with the Judge Presenza here -- and I know President Judge Massiah-Jackson is very committed to fixing the problems. And it is going to come down to some resource allocation that are going to have to be changed, which I know the judges will tell us more about that.
As you know, at the last hearing, at the end of the hearing, then Managing Director Estelle Richman said she was appointing a Domestic Violence Task Force. That has not yet happened.
I think that virtually everyone involved -- she asked Commissioner Johnson 25 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 and me to co-chair it. I think everyone involved, particularly from the City agencies, heard that with enthusiasm.
That is disappointing. Because now -- it's been, what, two --
So I don't know exactly where that is, but I think that it's an important first step. Again, as we've said in our testimony, it is absolutely critical to have the advocates and the service providers working with government on these issues.
I will ask Mr. Goldsmith today why that hasn't happened and when is it going to happen. I will call him as soon as these hearings are over. I expected, actually, for this hearing to have some sort of report by the task force and what they have been doing and what direction they were taking. That is not to be, I guess.
Thank you. 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Judge, what's your time line? JUDGE PRESENZA: I have to be in court at noon. Ms. Pitman, let me get the judge on the stand. Judge. Thank you for coming, by the way. JUDGE PRESENZA: My pleasure. And if I could introduce Kathleen Rapone. She's the Deputy Court Administrator of the Criminal Division of the Philadelphia Municipal Court.
Identify yourself for the record. JUDGE PRESENZA: I'm Louis J. Presenza, President Judge, Philadelphia Municipal Court. Councilman Ortiz, it's my understanding that there was a hearing back in November, I believe, at which time some questions were raised concerning the Emergency Protection Unit in the Criminal Justice Center. And subsequently I received a letter from you dated April 11th requesting my presence here today. And the letter set forth -- I think there were 10 questions that required information, answers, et cetera. With the 27 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 major work being done by Ms. Rapone, we have a packet of information to provide to you which addresses each of those questions and, hopefully, answers them. Also attached is the protocols that are followed by the unit, all the forms that are utilized, the pamphlets that we have. So I believe it's a complete packet to the extent of the information, the data we have.
Do you have copies of that, please? JUDGE PRESENZA: Sure. Absolutely.
Could you begin giving us an account of the answers? JUDGE PRESENZA: Sure. I think I need to start with, hopefully, if you permit, a little historical background.
Sir, we want to establish as full a record as possible and as complete a record in terms of historical perspective as we can. JUDGE PRESENZA: Prior to 1991, anyone who wanted an emergency petition had to go to the, quote/unquote, Round House, now Police Headquarters. 28 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 As a judge, I sat there, so I can tell you firsthand what happened. And then when the judges no longer presided, their bail commissioners did. But what would happen is -- again, mostly females, as you indicated, would come in. And it was kind of difficult. Because in the process of doing arraignments, you're arraigning defendants, you're setting bail, you're going through that whole process. Police are there with arrest warrants, search warrants, et cetera. And the women are coming in -- again, primarily women for these petitions. It really wasn't a very fair situation to them or to the Police Department or the defendants because there was too much going on. In addition to which, issues were raised concerning that arraignments were being slowed and delayed because of this process. So it was decided that perhaps there was some other forum to do this. If we could extricate or remove the emergency situation to another arena where they would have full attention to their needs. In 1991 Senator Fumo introduced legislation which basically allowed for masters to be appointed by the President Judge. And these 29 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 masters were certified and so forth. They're law trained. And they would, in fact, do the work that a judge did or a bail commissioner did and would conduct these hearings. He also secured $200,000 in state funding that pays for this program, which is still true today. This is a line item budget in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. I think last year it was $204,000. It really doesn't cost the City anything. It's coming directly from the state. As a result, the program in 1991 was moved to 116 City Hall. When we move into the new Criminal Justice Center in 1995, September of '95, it was decided to construct a unit and a site just for this purpose. And that's B-03, which is in the basement. And that's where these petitions are filed. Again, this is a situation, we're talking 5 p.m. to 9, a.m. We're talking 24/7 on weekends and holidays. That's basically the historical background. In terms of the specific questions, I believe the first one was data for the last three years on the number of persons who seek emergency petitions. The numbers are here. I don't know if you want me to recite them. 30 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
They're quite striking. JUDGE PRESENZA: I don't know how much of this you want me to read or address.
Well, they're quite striking, the numbers. And I think it would be good for us to put at least those numbers on the record. JUDGE PRESENZA: Okay. In 2000, the total visitors to the unit was 8,401.
Can you explain that, total visitors, the phrasing of that? JUDGE PRESENZA: Well, what happens is, you have to understand -- and this is not to denigrate the Police Department or anyone else. When someone has a problem, they don't know exactly what to do. It's 2:00 in the morning. It's midnight. You go to the Criminal Justice Center because there's a bail commissioner there and there's a master that's going to be there. And they potentially could be of assistance to you. So what happens is, of the 8,431, a lot of them really don't qualify for the emergency protection. And reasons vary. It could be a prior criminal complaint. It could be a custody matter. It could be a civil 31 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 matter. It could be that there was a relationship that doesn't exist anymore. There's no imminent danger, so forth and so on. So these are people who are then told by the master and by the staff where to go to address their issues. Of that 8,431, the total petitions that were filed, that were accepted, were 3,378; approved, 3,642; denied, 136.
When you say filed, 3,700, and then approved, 3,642, what does approved mean and what are the criteria for approval? JUDGE PRESENZA: Approved means that the petition was granted, that the petitioner met all the criteria by law to have the petition granted. The 136, though they may have technically qualified, at least in terms of filing a petition, it was denied because the master felt it was not appropriate. And there's varying reasons for that.
Do you have records for those reasons available anywhere? JUDGE PRESENZA: They're recorded. If you go through the packet, there's a form there the master has to fill out to indicate, if he or she is denying the request, they have to set forth the reasons why. 32 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
And then you see a growth and a decline in terms of approved. A growth in 2001 to 4,300 and a decline in 2002 to 4,172. JUDGE PRESENZA: Yes.
Do we have any record as to what happens to these petitions that are approved? JUDGE PRESENZA: I don't know for sure because what they're supposed to do is then go to 34 South 11th, over to Family Court to follow through with this. They're given a date for a hearing and they've got to follow through it. Kathleen could have an answer to that.
Kathleen Rapone, Deputy Court Administrator, Municipal Court. The only thing I would submit on that, Councilman, is that every approved petition is hand delivered to Family Court on the next business day. And then it goes before a Family Court Judge.
And then that's where the trail has to be picked up? JUDGE PRESENZA: Correct. 33 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
One of the issues that did come up is the lack of personnel or maybe the available personnel at the area of the Justice Center, that there seems to be a lack of social workers and other type of personnel that may assist a woman that comes in at 2:00 in the morning. And it's kind of a tragic sort of situation. A woman obviously at that point with kids must feel incredibly deserted and totally separated from any reality that she's ever known, and placed into a courtroom atmosphere. And then she has to go before this master by herself, in essence? JUDGE PRESENZA: That is correct.
And there's really no 16 other assistance, other than fill out the form? JUDGE PRESENZA: That's incorrect. Going back historically, when you're back at the Round House, the detectives used to do this for the women, or whoever the petitioner was. In that case, too, it was not the right thing to do because the detectives had other things to do. Then Women Against Abuse did it. They were there on site. They filled out the petitions. They helped assist in completing the petitions and brought them before 34 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 the judge or bail commissioner. When we came to Room 116, City Hall, again there were Women Against Abuse that were represented there. We moved to the Criminal Justice Center and they were no longer there. My understanding is -- and this is hearsay -- it was funding issues. In terms of the actual assistance today, the staff is trained to help and assist the women or the men fill out the forms.
What is the staff? How many masters? JUDGE PRESENZA: We have masters and 14 15 clerks, and they're all trained. 15 The initial point of contact would be the staff person, the clerk. They would assist in filling out the forms. Actually, the petitioner is given the forms and is supposed to fill it out. If they cannot, that clerk will assist them. If there's a language problem -- it used to be a Language Line. What is it now?
It used to be the AT&T Language Line. Now it is Certified Language Interpreters. 35 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
How many translators do you have available down there at this time? JUDGE PRESENZA: There are none there. That's why we use this -- I'm going to call it a language line. It's not what we're using now, but it's the same concept. They may have 200 different languages that we can use. So if someone comes in, for example, with some form of Chinese or Vietnamese or whatever, we have access to that. Which to have someone on site, forget about it, it's impossible. It would never work. So the language line is very good and assists us in many ways take care of those people.
How does that work? JUDGE PRESENZA: There is an interpreter on the other end of the line who is trained -- obviously knows the language -- and is trained in legal issues. What they do is, the clerk then explains what's going on. The interpreter translates to the petitioner, and they go back and forth. The clerk, meanwhile, fills out the form in English, okay, so the form is complete so that when it goes to the master, the master can understand it, read it. And then when the master has his or her 36 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 hearing, the language line is there also to assist that petitioner.
I've had cases in front of judges in which I've used translators, specifically Spanish. In one case a Russian translator. It's quite difficult to really give an understanding and give a feeling to the client, the person that is testifying, that what they're saying is really being translated correctly and so on. That's kind of an awkward situation. JUDGE PRESENZA: Quite frankly, we use it in the court system. So if you come to Municipal Court and go into a criminal courtroom, we have that same situation. The only standard on-site translators or interpreters are Spanish, Spanish speaking. Everyone else, we use this language line service. Like I said, you know how diverse this community is. I can't begin to think of how many languages there are. You cannot. It's not fiscally sound or responsible to think that you can maintain all these interpreters for all these languages.
I agree. JUDGE PRESENZA: Quite frankly, I've used it personally and I can tell you, it's not 37 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 really a problem. It works very well. I think the people feel more comfortable that there is someone on the other line that really understands what they're doing. As I said, these people, not only can they translate, but they're legally trained.
So, Judge, in essence we have a clerk who's been trained to fill out a form? JUDGE PRESENZA: Correct.
But that clerk has not been trained in terms of the other issues that may be impacting. That clerk is not a trained social workers, is not a trained individual. So the issues that may be going on with this person that comes at 2:00 in the morning, this lady or this man may be going a little bit nutsy and needs some maybe psychological -- more or less some direction. But the clerk is just there. That's what we were talking about, that there is no other personnel that is there to take care and direct those feelings of anxiety and fear that are present at that time. JUDGE PRESENZA: And that's why I raised previously, that when you had Women Against Abuse working at the Round House and in Courtroom 116, 38 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 that was part of their role, not just to complete the forms and assist in completing the forms, but I guess they gave aid and comfort to the petitioners, especially since, I assume, they were trained in that field. These clerks are trained to the extent that we can train them to make them more sensitive to the needs of people, more cognizant of what's going on. But are they social workers? No, they're not.
Usually they come with their kids to these places? JUDGE PRESENZA: Correct.
So maybe DHS should be involved in terms of what -- because what we're looking at is, how do we reform this system, Judge, in order to make it a system that changes the way we deal with this situation. As Carol was talking about, there are too many homicides and injured persons involved coming out of these proceedings, and we have no way of grabbing that and preventing that. We're not going to be able to prevent a hundred percent of these things. At least we should be able to identify, look at and take those cases that are 39 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 maybe so obvious that we take them out and do something very different with that individual. So what we're looking at is, you have a master -- and I don't know what training the masters have in terms of domestic violence cases, other than just being assigned and appointed a master, other than what experience gives them. JUDGE PRESENZA: Well, I will say this. They're law trained. Most of them have been criminal defense attorneys. Some have done mediation. Some have educational backgrounds in the domestic field. In addition to which, annually we have a training session to keep them abreast of changes in the law, to be more sensitive to what's going on. That's usually done by one of the judges in Family Court, and perhaps one or two other people, including myself, to the extent that I just reinforce the positive and make sure that they're doing what they're supposed to be doing. But they're all law trained. I believe all of them at least have been there for three or four years at a minimum, and some much longer that.
Given what you've 40 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 shared with us, do you believe that the system is operating at an optimal level? JUDGE PRESENZA: Well, I hate to say yes or no, but I think it's working well. Could anything be improved? Absolutely.
What would those things be? If you had to name three things that you would want us collectively, the stakeholders that Carol Tracy spoke about, to talk through collectively, what would they be? Because it's clear that we have to get all the stakeholders on the same page willing to deal with at least one, two or three issues before we can move to a tangible goal resolution. JUDGE PRESENZA: The first thing is -- and I've chaired many a committee and many a meeting -- is communication. And much too often I find there's a lack of communication. And without knowing who can do what, what the issues are, it's pretty hard to address them. And what I do not like to hear is that, "Well, there's a problem and Presenza didn't address it." Well, if Presenza was not aware of it, there's nothing I can do about it. So the first thing is communication. 41 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Is that synonymous with the earlier statement which was, lack of integration of services? Would you put those two in the same sentence? JUDGE PRESENZA: Yes. The second thing I think is that, if someone were there who was a social worker or trained as a social worker to really assist the petitioners, that would be wonderful. We have no 11 problem with that at all.
And the third item? JUDGE PRESENZA: And I guess the third item would be, that if someone has a problem with the unit or a person in the unit or an issue that they think maybe is not working well, just bring it to my attention, and I'll gladly address it.
Is there a process in place for that? Are there protocols in place for that? JUDGE PRESENZA: I don't have any written protocols, but I've been a judge for 21 years, and I think a lot of people know me. If they have a problem, you just send me a letter or give me a phone call, and we'll sit down and chat. 42 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
So often in huge systems for what you described, for that to happen, it has to be transparent of the personality. So the trading has to happen on the issue, but also what I call SOP, standard operating procedures, for them to be in place so that all the stakeholders you mentioned know that these protocols are required, if we want these communication issues to be addressed. Has that ever been discussed or dealt with? JUDGE PRESENZA: Okay. When did we have that meeting?
If I may. In 1991 I believe Pat Dubin reached out to Judge Presenza, and to me, and a very large meeting was conducted with all the victim advocacy groups. It was a forum where they basically came and addressed openly the issues that they had. The judge was more than willing to help them. We made changes.
So it was beneficial? There was certainly value in bringing the stakeholder together? 43 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Absolutely. Absolutely. I believe some of the faces and the names have changed, but clearly we are available and we certainly welcome advocates in any spectrum. It would be extremely beneficial to everyone, I believe, if they could have volunteer staff and assist us at the emergency site.
Who was the catalyst for bringing that group together? Who was the spark?
We are going to be that. We're going to be that spark. I think what is coming out from what Carol said and what the judge is presenting is that -- we're going to get a group together, Judge, and I hope that you will participate. We already started meeting with the President Judge and Judge Fox and Field. So I figure that it's time that we call a group together between the advocates and the courts and we sit and we go through this and talk back and forth in an honest way in which we can come to some sort of resolution and look at what resources are needed. Because you know that nothing can get done -- and people keep saying, well, money is not 44 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 needed. Those people who say money is not needed are the ones who have it. And sometimes resources need to be reallocated. This is too important. As Carol said, it's about life, death and family, family continuation. So I want to thank you, Judge, for coming and giving me this package. And we will call the meeting very soon. I will sit down and call your office, see what time you have available and what you recommend of who we have and we will have a meeting of the different sectors and bring us all together. JUDGE PRESENZA: That's fine, Councilman. As I said, whatever we can do. We want to make access to justice as open and as fair to everyone. That's our role here, quite frankly. And the other point that I would add is in addition to the meeting that Ms. Rapone discussed, I know I met with Patricia Dubin on at least two or three other occasions when she had some concerns and some issues. So there was some ongoing dialog, but it has continue. Because as I said, if I'm not aware of an issue, I can't address it. Now, that doesn't mean that sometimes the issue may not be there. It may be perceived as one, but again 45 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 there's got to be communication.
What we have to do is build a mechanism so that the communication continues. And if you build the mechanisms and you put the structure in place, then we're assured that that communication is going to continue when you're gone and when I'm gone and so on, when other people come into place. So I think we need to be able to put those structures into place, those mechanisms that will facilitate this communication and this ongoing. Because things change and needs change and we need to be able to make adjustments with the times. So, Judge, thank you very much for coming, and I really appreciate it. By the way, good going on that Drug Court. It is something that we had recommended in the '90s after we saw Manhattan and what they did. We're going to have some hearings to talk about that. JUDGE PRESENZA: I'll just throw in one thing here about domestic violence, since you mentioned the drug court. Steven Balenko (ph) works for the 46 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Treatment Research Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, probably the foremost expert on drug court in the United States. He has one statistic that stands out, that 50 percent of the cases of domestic violence involve substance abuse.
We will have to talk to Mr. Balenko. JUDGE PRESENZA: Thank you.
Yes. My name is Barbara Pitman, and I am an advocate for battered women. On New Year's Day, 2003, my life changed dramatically. It has changed many times since 1968 to 1981. I am a formerly battered woman and a cancer survivor. Since leaving my abuser with my three children, I have received a degree in mental health technology, became a domestic violence counselor on the state and national level, and I assisted in starting the national toll free Domestic Violence Hotline in Washington, D.C. I have also won many awards, including the Points of Light Award from President Bush, the Liberty Bell Award from the Pennsylvania Bar 47 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Association, and the Challenging Mind, Body and Spirit Award from Women's Way. I've also been featured in a book, "The Courage to Give." When Women Against Abuse actually participated in the Emergency Services Program at the Round House and at Courtroom 116, I was the supervisor of that program. On that day in January when everyone was supposed to be celebrating, I was lying in an emergency room at a local hospital trying to determine why I was there. Not knowing exactly what had happened to me, I woke to a nurse trying to insert an IV into my arm. My veins had collapsed and they were unsuccessful. I have was barely awake, and frightened. A nurse started asking me questions. Did I know who I was? Did I know why I was there? I didn't remember going to a hospital, and I didn't even remember leaving my house at all. Sometime later I saw a familiar face, my present husband, the wonderful man who has helped me leave my domestic violence situation behind. I was still confused. A little while later my three grandchildren appeared at the hospital, and finally I felt safe. 48 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 I spent most of the day in the emergency room with doctors rushing in and out, trying to decide exactly what happened to me. They questioned my husband and he told them that I started talking in circles, that I was shaking, foaming at the mouth and I passed out. They diagnosed me as having a seizure. Time passed slowly. I had many tests and I was admitted to intensive care, where I spent a week. The doctor asked me how come I had so many skull fractures. And he told me in the past he counted -- that I had 17 skull fractures, that I 13 was bleeding on my brain and that calcium deposits 14 had formed along the skull fractures. 15
Needless to say, I was told I was going to be on seizure medication for the rest of my life. I've been away from my abuser for 20 years. Never did I think something like this was 21 going to happen to me after I had been gone so long. 22 I tried to think what brought me to this time and place. I had been married for two years when my husband hit me for the first time. He asked me, "Why did I make him do that?" I should have 49 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 left that night, but I thought I could change him. He blamed me for his behavior from the very beginning, and I believed I could change him if I just tried to please him harder. Not too long after that, I became pregnant with our first child, and I thought things would change when he had a baby to love. But this is the first of three children that died before they had a chance to live. They died because I was physically abused. He inflicted severe blows to my pregnant body. While pregnant for the fourth time, the physical abuse stopped, and I was able to give birth to a healthy baby boy. When my second son was born, I was only six-and-a-half months. And when my daughter was born, I was seven months pregnant. Both were born premature because of abuse. My son stayed in the hospital for four months and was hospitalized repeatedly for the first three years of his life. The effects of domestic violence on him lasted through his children and into his adolescence.
No. This was back in the 50 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 early '70s. Even today I find it hard to believe that I had stayed with this man for years. He 5 beat me. He kicked me. He slashed me with a razor 6 on my nose. He knocked out my teeth. Put lit 7 cigarettes out on my body, pushed me through a 8 window, and cut me inside with a broken bottle and 9 raped me at gunpoint. Each time he attacked me I 10 thought I couldn't live through it one more time. 11 In 1981, the children and I left with the clothes on 12 our backs, but he stalked us for 10 years. 13 Two years later I started college. It wasn't easy raising children, going to school, especially with no child support. I received no 16 child support all through the years that I raised my children and put two of them through college. After graduating from college, I went to work into the Battered Women's Movement. I taught workshops, worked on a hotline and have spoken out against domestic violence on television and radio. I have facilitated workshops for women who are in prison, only for the fact that they fought back against their abusers in self defense. For the past several years, I have had the opportunity to work 51 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 with Verizon Wireless on their Domestic Violence Initiatives, including the HopeLine and the Packs for Pride program. The corporation is committed to stopping violence against women and children. It is critical that the City of Philadelphia improve services already provided and increase services to battered women and their children. In my opinion, we need more shelter space, more transitional housing, and a hotline that is answered hours a day by a live person. A 12 hotline that could connect callers to all the 13 domestic services the City has to offer. I am happy 14 to say that with my work with Verizon Wireless, they 15 are interesting in receiving a proposal to see how 16 they may help with this hotline. 17
We said four months 18 ago that I was interested, this Committee was 19 interested in getting from you and the other 20 advocates what would be the cost of a hotline. And 21 we are in a budget period. And at that point, 22 $900,000 was given, but what we need is more or less 23 a detailed aspect of what it entails, because we 24 need, first of all, multi-cultural personnel, at least a couple that speak a few of the languages, 52 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 not a lot. But we also need to find out what the cost would be so that, as we enter into the next couple of weeks, in terms of the budget, we're able to have a very full discussion among City Councilmembers as to certain priorities we need to give to this and see where we find the money for it. It's of the utmost importance that I get that number as quickly as possible.
I also see a need for improved screening and medical attention for abused women. I was afraid to seek medical attention most of the time because no one ever asked me if I was a victim of domestic violence, or if I needed additional medical attention. My abuser was permitted to be in the same room with me when I did go to a hospital. Needless to say, I never felt safe talking about the abuse. And when I decided not to have any more children, I needed his permission to have a tubal ligation. My story continues on April 4th of this year, I was diagnosed with a neuromuscular disease. The pain in my legs is constant and sometimes unbearable. Sometime I question, why me. I am now more determined than ever to tell my story. If it 53 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 helps just one women escape from an abusive relationship, then it's well worth it. Maybe if I were properly screened for domestic violence-related injuries back then, maybe if I would have had long-term care, maybe then I wouldn't be suffering as I am now, years after leaving my abuser. 8 I ask that you provide safe transitional 9 housing for battered women, to form a domestic 10 violence task force in the City and to coordinate a 11 system for the agencies that serve victims. We need 12 to have a better way to communicate. Help me to 13 help other women. No one deserves to be beaten. 14 All battered women deserve the right to be heard, to 15 have access to services, to find safe housing and to 16 be given screening and adequate medical care. By 17 improving domestic violence services, you're 18 ensuring that no other woman must again suffer the 19 way I did over 20 years after the abuse has ended. 20 Please use me, use my story, use my expertise to 21 find a solution. On behalf of all battered women in 22 the City and across the United States, I thank you for listening to my story and my concerns.
Ms. Pitman, let me assure you that that is I think what we're trying to 54 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 prevent here. Your case is really what these hearings are about. These hearings have been a long time coming. The fact that even today we have this lack of communication among the different agencies -- Mr. Hess is here and he will talk as to the lack of transitional housing that we have in the City. The fact that four months ago we only had one safe house in the City for women. That is an incredible fact in a City of 1.5 million people, the fifth largest City in the country. The fact that we still don't have a -- women and citizens still don't have a full understanding of the processes that have to happen, and information is not available. The fact that they have to go to court and face a judge and a judicial process without having any legal advice, any legal counseling whatsoever. The fact that there's no social worker available to them when they do go to Municipal Court. These are issues that, as a society, we have to face. If we can spend the monies we spend on the Defense Department and other aspects in this country, I think we need to be able to look at internally where our priorities are. I want to thank you for coming forward. 55 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Ms. Patricia Giorgio Fox, Deputy Commissioner, Strategic Crime Control and CompStat process. That sounds very intriguing and complex. Good morning. Identify yourself for the record, please.
Patricia Giorgio Fox, Deputy Commissioner, Philadelphia Police Department. I am here this morning to answer some questions concerning the new Victim Services Division, and I thank you for an opportunity to explain that division to you. In February of 2003, the Police Commissioner determined that he would like to create a division specifically for victim services. That vision of his was actually caused by two specific things. He had had meetings with community people when he would go out; as we all know, he frequently does. And they expressed to him some concern about the ability to get information following either the death of a relative, the homicide of a relative or the injuries of a relative. That really impressed him as a problem. Coupled with that was a meeting 56 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 that we attended concerning victim services generally, and domestic violence specifically, and after that meeting the Commissioner decided we had a hole somewhere. And so it was discussed, and he determined that what he needed to do was form this division. The purpose of the Victim Services Division is to do exactly that, to provide assistance for victim services generally. Domestic violence being one form of that service. We looked at the situation, and as Judge Presenza said, one of the first problems that we found was a problem with communication. There are six divisional Victim Services offices throughout the City, and the primary concern that they had was that some areas of our City would receive one sort of service and another area would receive something else. So part of the division's initial responsibility was to ensure that all the state laws were being followed, that all the victims assistance officers in the districts were trained. That was the second issue. It was a communication/training issue. We needed both. We also became aware that the District 57 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Attorney's Office hosts a monthly meeting of all service providers, which we currently were not attending. We will do that now. So they were the three primary responsibilities; to get our VAOs on track, to ensure that the treatment was consistent, followed state law and that we had some active liaison and communication with groups that somewhere along the line had fallen through. We also did a survey of our current victims assistance officers, of which we have 25; 12 in the districts, one in Special Victims and one in 13 Homicide. And after that review, we determined that 14 approximately better than 50 percent of them have 15 never received state training. That's been set up 16 to be done in June. 17
There are state requirements 20 for the receipt of crime victims compensation 21 material. And originally my understanding was that 22 our VAO, our Victims Assistance Officer position was 23 created to satisfy that state requirement, so that the VAOs, in theory, would review every incident that occurred in the district the day before. Would 58 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 call from that every victim, and then ensure that a crime victims' compensation discussion was held. Right now our directive --
How is the person trained? What type of training goes into -- for him to get sensitive and directed, what type of training does he or she get that gives them the level of skills that are necessary, and what are those skills that you're trying to inculcate?
The original training that I know is scheduled is with PCCD Crime Commission. Pennsylvania Crime Commission will come down here and train the officers so that the state laws are complete. In addition to that, years ago when we first got this position within the Police Department, there was a woman in the Managing Director's Officer, who has since passed away, who did the training.
As that person passed away, has that person been replaced? Has the position been kept? Has the training continued?
So she died and the training ceased? 59 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
And that was our responsibility to ensure that our VAOs were trained. What we released was, because of promotions and transfers and retirements, people went into the position with no understanding of what their responsibilities were.
Let's go back to the Managing Director's Office. The person was there. When did this person pass away?
My recollection is, a woman by the name of Barbara McPherson -- do you any of you remember Barbara? Was that the Managing Director's Office? My recollection -- and I'm going way back -- my recollection is Barbara McPherson was providing training to all of our Victims Services Officers and provided it for a number of years. When she passed away --
Mid '90s. '97. We received a training manual, I know that. And I know that for a period of time there was training that was ongoing as soon as an individual got this position. At some 60 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 point, and I don't know when --
No. After that we trained. We had the manual. We still have the manual.
But you don't have a staff person? You don't have a position that is to do this?
We do as of February 20, '03. We have a Victims Services Division. Their responsibility is to see to it that the state law is trained and that our Victims Assistance Officers and a back-up officer in every district is trained with the skills, with the interpersonal skills that are necessary with the help of all the victims groups that they now have on N advisory council. They will put together a curriculum that everyone is comfortable with, and every one of our VAOs will be trained.
Where this is this person located, this person who is in charge of this training. I just want to know the department.
It's within he Police 61 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Department?
Victims Services Division within the Philadelphia Police Department.
And will this person go to the Special Victims Unit, what is located at Episcopal Hospital?
The Special Victims Unit has a VAO assigned to it, and that VAO will go to Episcopal Hospital when the rest of the unit moves, yes.
So this person takes care of a broader sector of the Police Department?
There is a uniformed officer in every patrol district. In addition to that, there is one officer assigned to Special Victims just to handle the Victims Services needs there, and one assigned to Homicide.
In every district there is one officer that will take care of a woman who comes in with an order, protection from abuse?
Point of order. That's where I'm not clear. The Victims Services Officer that is assigned to each police district, is not necessarily 62 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 there for the purpose of dealing with abused women. It could be any kind of a victim; a victim from a beating on the street, a victim of robbery, a victim of physical assault, but not specific to --
Not specific to domestic violence. That VAO, or Victims Assistance Officer, has, in fact, been in each one of our districts since the early '90s. And they have been trained periodically. The purpose of the Commissioner forming this entire division is to ensure consistent and state mandated treatment of our victims, which at this point we have dropped the ball on. So this division will oversee the training so that in each one of our districts a victim can be assured that they will get proper training, will also be a liaison so that any one of the service providers who has a problem, tells us they never knew who to call or what to do, they will know who to call. They've met these people many times.
You've heard Ms. Pitman's testimony. Is this officer trained to be sensitive? Because many women that are abused, as Ms. Pitman was and as she testified, she thought she could change the individual. Women many times give 63 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 very contradictory -- when an officer shows up, they may give a totally different story than what their reality is, and the cop might just say, well, the woman says that she's all right. It was just a misunderstanding. There are certain telltale signs that a police or an officer should have, some antenna, I guess, training that gives them that. Do they receive training -- because usually for a woman to come forward it really takes a huge amount courage. It takes one point in which she says, I'm not going to take this or I'm going to die.
I just recently had a discussion with the Women's Law Project about this. The 911 providers, the officers that respond to the scene, need to know what to do for an individual that you described, that they know needs help, but it doesn't have the wherewithal, the experience or the time to provide it. They need to be able to know what to do for that.
Some women may not have the courage to be able to say it.
And our goal has always been, even when the detective units formed domestic abuse, was to provide enough information and support so 64 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 when the readiness was there, they would know what to do. We would constantly provide a phone number, a referral. Years ago we gave out cards. The phone numbers became bad. We're aware of that. Our biggest help, as a 911, as a first responder is to provide enough information so that when the victim is ready to take that step, they know how.
Does 911 -- I know that they categorize priorities and they prioritize calls. If a woman calls and she says to the 911 operator, "My husband is getting violent on me," what priority level is that and how soon does the police respond to that?
I'm not sure of either answer. It used be a three. It's now a two.
That's it. That's immediate. One is a crime in progress, a robbery, a shooting, a homicide, something that is there right now. A two now becomes domestic violence. I imagine that there 65 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 is disturbance, crimes in progress.
What would be the three? Three's would be -- they used to be -- I'm not sure anymore.
My name is Francis Healey. I'm counsel for Police Commissioner Johnson. To the best of my recollection, a three level would be other crimes in progress, other than, like, part ones, which would be simple assaults, thefts in progress -- not thefts. Thefts are a part one. Crimes of those sort. The importance of elevating it the crime stat or the domestic abuse thing to a two, it's on the priority that it gets dispatched. It's instrumental that -- now, these aren't being pushed down. They're a number two. So there's very few cases that can get called in that would push a level two down, which is important. If you get down to lower levels, threes and fours, if a one or two comes in, it pushes it down automatically in sequence. So it's extremely important that we moved it up for the domestic violence response. The time that the first responders get to the scene, I think has been substantially enhanced by of the result of -- just the one level has meant a lot. 66 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Our new division right now will be working with the district VAOs. In addition to this 911 provider that goes out --
How many people are in the division? Is it a new division?
There is an inspector, a captain, and a total of three other people, two sergeants and a police officer. Their job will be to administer the program. The VAOs, however, will stay in the districts and all of these people still report to the chief of patrol.
The problem with our division is it was formed in February and we're still --
Councilman Goode is here and Councilman Frank DiCicco have joined the Committee.
Could you, to underscore my colleague's request, define training, how long it is. Does it mean actually sitting down with the advocate groups so that not only do you 67 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 read them what they do on paper, but you get a chance to put names with faces of advocate groups, talk through what training means.
Captain Thomas Lynch, Philadelphia Police Department, Victims Services Division. The training set up so far is -- in fact, I meet with the victims service agencies at the Philadelphia Coalition of Victim Advocates in the District Attorney's office. We've requested their input. We've gotten some training suggestion from them. We've agreed to work with the Senior Law Center, Women Against Abuse, to help develop training. I've asked them -- because a lot of this training has to get down to the officer level, the officer who is working the 911 calls, I've asked them to work with us so we can develop material that we can give out to officers at role calls. That way we can distribute it in a fashion that they can keep handy and refer to. The other thing we're trying to do is we're covering the subjects that are required by the state, which is Crime Victims Compensation. That training is going to occur June 4th. I've made that 68 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 arrangement with the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
You may want to come on 14th. That will be up the Best Western Hotel, and lunch will be provided. The first training is going to be at our Advanced Training Unit. Our first training will be at 990 Spring Garden Street. They're our Advanced Training Unit. The officers who have not had Crime Victim Compensation training, there's approximately 15 of those. Plus officers from the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel and Temple who also have Victims Assistance Officers.
I didn't think of them, but they're certainly welcome and I will invite them. I'll take care of that today. In addition, we will have training on June 17th. This additional training will talk about the Crime Victims Compensation law, victims services 69 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 available in the City of Philadelphia, some interpersonal communication skills, crime victimization information for the officers. We'll actually be bringing in representatives from the various service agencies to talk to the officers, to advise them of the services that are available. In addition, we meet monthly with all of the victims assistance officers. We've had three meetings with them. So far we've trained them in what I call the fundamentals; what reports they're to review; all the crime victims in the state; all victims of crime under Title of the Crimes Code 14 are entitled the information on; rights and services 15 available; crime victims compensation claim forms 16 and help with the claim form itself. We've gotten a 17 form from the state entitled, "Rights and Services." 18 We've developed it into our own form. It says, Philadelphia Police. It has Victim Assistance Officer on it. The officer's district, phone number, a contact person and a neighborhood referral agency is listed on there, the name of the neighborhood referral and phone numbers. In addition to that, they get a brochure that's entitled -- Philadelphia Coalition of Victims 70 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Advocate puts it out -- I'm sorry. I really forget the title of it. But that brochure includes the seven neighborhood victims services agencies and several on domestic abuse. The ones I can think of are Women Against Abuse, Lutheran Settlement House, Congreso De Latinos Unidos. Hopefully I got the name right.
I'd also like to suggest the video that Councilman Angel Ortiz and I viewed, at least have the conversation with Judge Frederica Massiah-Jackson to see if the content of that is appropriate for the training, as well. Again, to get to Carol Tracy's point, and that is integration of services available.
If you can get that tape to me, I will ensure that we provide that.
We'll ask the judge, president Judge to make it available.
In addition, our directive requires that Victims Assistance Officers should be trained in interpersonal communications, ethic awareness, crime victimization and interpersonal communication. Our Advanced Training Unit and I are working together to arrange for those courses to be 71 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 developed and instructed to the Victims Assistance O Officers. It hasn't been done for some time. We're going to resurrect that program and train all of the Victim Assistance Officers.
So what's your benchmark goal for completion of all of what you talked about?
The fundamental training for Victim Assistance Officers should be completed probably by early fall. Then we want to start on the Crime Prevention Officers. Those will be the officers who will interact with Victims Assistance Officers. And in the absence of a Victim Assistance Officer, they also will provide the services and the information that the Victims Assistance Officers are supposed to provide as well. We intend to integrate our activities with the domestic violence teams, the Care Unit, Special Victims Unit. In Homicide, we do have Victims Assistance Officers in those units. They're all part of the training.
Captain and Commissioner, could you give us that framework in writing so that we can make it part of the record? 72 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 What the unit is, and so. Can you give us that?
And your description seems to be very thorough. I'd like to look at it.
I was going to give -- the captain took care of giving most of my testimony. So, yes. We have an outline here which I will make sure we enhance and get to you.
Please do that. And we will -- I think out of this we will convene a meeting of the different stakeholders as we talked about, so we can bring Judge Presenza. We can bring Judge Fox and Field and the advocates together so that we can have a good understanding of the direction that we're going.
There's one more piece of domestic violence issues that the department has been involved in, and Carol Tracy had asked me to mention it today, and I think the Police Commissioner would feel it was important. About a year half ago, almost two years now, we embarked on a pilot program up in northeast police division. And we were working with the cop's office of the Department of Justice. They had a 73 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 rather nice-sized grant to do what was called the Best Practices Stalking Protocol, knowing that 85 to 89 percent of all stalking victims are a result of domestic violence. Carol Tracy became knowledgeable of this very early on. We ran a pilot project up in northeast police division, which has since been printed in a cop's manual and it's extremely --
Absolutely. I'll get you one of these. It was very complimentary to both the City and that protocol that we used. We have continued that project now to enhance it to a citywide project. And at our meetings are meetings of the victim provider groups, the Police Department, and DA's Office. And I have, in many years working on projects, never worked with that group together. And we've been meeting fairly consistent to put this project together. I do believe that the partnership may be a pilot program success, and I believe that's going to help us.
I see you oversee the CompStat process. Did you ever map out areas in the City for domestic violence into it? 74 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Actually, Sergeant Healey can get some maps and show you some. One of the things I do, and I think I've mentioned --
One of the things we do at CompStat when we look at aggravated assaults, we color code them differently. So I can look at a map to see which ones are domestic violence related and which ones are not. Because there is a different --
Absolutely. Those maps can be run in any number of ways, and Fran was nice enough to have those done. But at CompStat every week when we look at aggravated assaults, they're specifically color coded.
There are so many dots in there. What period of time does one map have?
You can make it as long as you want. That's one year. I can do it for a week, a month, a year, two years.
Well, these maps are one year. So if I ask you -- I didn't see the 75 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 numbers, but obviously most of those little dots never get to court, never get to Municipal Court, never get to file a --
Well, let's not jump the gun. All those dots also don't mean a crime occurred. It could just be a disturbance between related parties.
I didn't say that. But, obviously, where there's smoke, there's fire sometimes. A disturbance usually is the precursor to a more violent incident later on. To me, those yellow dots -- obviously, you have the numbers. How many yellow dots are in there, do you know?
Okay. I'll find out. I'll get. But there's huge numbers in there.
And the green then -- explain to me the differences for the record of the three maps.
The first map is, what it maps out by Councilmatic district is the domestic-related part one crimes; robbery, homicide, 76 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 rape, burglary and theft, and arson too, I believe.
They'll be the yellow dots, yes. Just part one crimes. And the chart next to it identifies the number.
The green ones are just the domestic-related incidents that police officers responded to. What happens is, we get a call. It could be a disturbance. When the officer gets there, you realize it could be mother/child, husband/father, whatever the case, grandparent-involved. But that means there's no 16 arrest involved in that case. That's just a domestic-related incident that has been adjusted.
The third one is just the same map in a different format. It's done in a density format, versus us putting dots, because the dots get all confusing. What it does is, the darker the green shows where the highest density of dots went. So it's two of the same map. One is just 77 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 easier to read, that's all.
These numbers are given to any of the victims services group that want them. As a mater of fact, I think that the Science and Technology people print you up all the stats that we have. So there's nothing that we have that we don't make available.
In any police facility -- well, I shouldn't say that. In most police facilities, we have the ability to bring up maps and show you any of that. Actually, if you would like, we could, I'm sure, speak to the Police Commissioner about doing something with the mapping for all of you.
Because it would help us in terms of how we develop these hearings.
That would be fine. Anything you would like in terms of mapping.
That is very, very telling. That we have the ability to be able -- because I think it could be a prevention tool, actually. 78 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
In the districts, the captains or these VAOs will be able to go to their district and pull that up. The beauty of our system is that it's in real time, so when I come in in the morning, if I'm a VAO, not only do I read every incident that occurred, but I could conceivably print them out.
Because those incidents that, as you say, that no arrests occur may lead an agency to try to maybe communicate with the family somehow, whatever, and maybe follow-up on the issue.
We do have a system somewhat in place now. If an officer responds to an incident and it's domestic related and there's no 16 arrest, the officer is supposed to put in big letters, DOM, D-O-M, on the 48, which means that it's supposed to be follow-up with. So there is a process.
If we could put a process in place in which no arrest takes place, but that the precinct or the officer that you have in charge periodically can follow-up on the family and say, hey, what's going on, anything?
There is one piece of this 79 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 that we didn't discuss, and that is when this uniformed officer reviews these incidents every day -- Fran just touched on it -- and one is domestic in nature, that job is currently being sent to the detective division where we have what's known as a DOM team, a domestic violence team, which was started in 1993 and into '94. The theory of that team is that they have precursive contact. That they go out ahead of time when there is a DOM assignment. Part of the Victims Services Division's responsibility will be to ensure that the VAOs and those DOM teams in the detective divisions are not only communicating with each other, but with the service providers as well. We have six divisional victims service providers, in addition to the domestic violence providers. We had one of them with us today. They have constant contact with our police officers now, with these Victims Assistance Officers. That's a huge help. The next step is to get them to have constant interaction.
I used to have something that periodically told me to contact a client, just to find out how the client was and so on. 80 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 If you have incidents that do not lead to arrest, maybe we could have a system in place at every precinct to contact that family that reported that incident, just to keep in touch and say, what's going on. And maybe see if anything else has transpired. Thank you very much. Commissioner, we look forward to the documents. Mr. Hess.
Thank you, Mr. Hess. We had a conversation the other day, so tell me where are we now?
Great. Great. We appreciate the opportunity to be here today. As we discussed the other day, this is a huge issue for us. In fact, we don't even know how significant an issue it is. We know or we believe that at least 50 percent of the women that come into our shelter system have been a victim of domestic 81 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 violence or sexual abuse at some time. But we don't actually know what the real number is. We have seen some informal studies that have been as high as 70, 80, 90 percent. Part of the reason we don't know is because -- just like the absolutely tragic story we heard earlier today -- when folks get to the shelter door, they are already in crisis. And the level of trust is not great in many cases. And so it takes time working with social workers and others, over a period of time, sometimes months, sometimes years before the issue of domestic violence or sexual abuse will actually surface and we can begin to deal with it. Having said that, we do have professional social workers. We do ask the question at the front door of the shelter system if somebody has been a victim of domestic violence or sexual abuse. Most of the time the answer is no, and that tends to change, again, over time as relationships are developed. We know it is a huge and significant issue. We're concerned about it. We also recognize that housing is a critical issue.
Let me -- so that we can -- we discussed this. I want to be able to -- 82 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 the other day we discussed the number of beds that were available. And you said there were 2,300 beds available in the system?
And I want to get on the record, how many of those are for women and/or families?
How many of them are categorized as emergency and others as transitional?
All of the 2,300 are emergency. The transitional would be in addition to that.
600. And they are all presently occupied. And what are the standards, what are the criteria that places you in an emergency or places you in the transitional?
In most cases individuals will start in the Emergency Shelter System where 83 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 they will be assessed by social workers. A case plan is developed, a housing plan is developed, based upon the individual circumstances. And there will be applications made for either transitional or permanent housing.
Well, a combination of apartments that are scattered slate and have case management support attached to them and other types of support, and also some are congregate living arrangements.
Some might have a separate room, a bedroom, but might have common areas and may receive cafeteria kind of situations.
In these areas, when it's like that, is there a sort of case worker involved in those houses?
And when you place somebody in a transitional house, a case worker goes with that? 84 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
A woman comes to you, like Ms. Pitman, for example, what would happen? What would be the process?
If a family comes to us and makes us aware they have been a victim of domestic violence or sexual abuse, they automatically have a meeting with a social worker who begins to figure out the extent of the immediate threat and then we, on a case by case basis, work with the administrator and the directors to determine what is the best and most appropriate placement for that family. Often times that will not be the Emergency Shelter System, but som other alternative housing. It could be Women Against Abuse, if there's space available. It could be a placement outside the county. In certain circumstances, it could be a placement in one of our emergency relocation apartments. We have of 21 those that are scattered across the City, all of 22 which have case management support. The other thing --
What is the criteria for something like that, an emergency relocation? 85 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Last time you used the term, legitimate abuse issue. And how would you define legitimate abuse issue? Who makes that determination?
It would be determined by the social worker and the social worker's supervisor, who would review the particulars of that individual case.
Is there a time when -- remember we had the testimony here the other day. Is there a time when a clerk interviews someone and that family or that woman does not get seen by a social worker for the next 30 days? That was the issue that was presented to us.
If a women comes into the shelter system and indicates that domestic violence is an issue, she automatically sees a social worker that day.
The social workers does a case work-up, determines what the circumstances are, talks to their supervisor to determine what the best housing placement could be for that family.
He or she doesn't give them an appointment to come back in two weeks? 86 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
He or she takes care of the problem right there in terms of relocation and placement.
One the factors that are considered is that we do our best to ensure that they would not be placed in any housing that would be in close proximity to where they were living or where the abuse took place.
So that person immediately is -- it's like the 911 system. It's given a priority system in terms of relocating of the violent nature of the situation?
That's correct. It's going to be a day-long process, probably, if she goes through the process. But, yes, she's not going to be turned away and said to come back in three weeks.
You mentioned previously that there were three sites that you place individuals. The Luther House, Salvation Army Red Shield and Stenton Family Manor. Can you describe to us what other services are provided at these places, and the number of beds that are available? 87 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
I'll ask Lettie Hinton. Lettie is the Director of our Quality Assurance Unit. She can better answer those specifics.
Leticia Egea Hinton, Quality Assurance at Adult Services. Most of the services that are provided at these particular facilities include anything from -- well, includes case management and assessment. Most of the providers themselves conduct an intake when the family comes in where they try to assess where a family is. If a family comes in and they identified themselves as leaving a site where they were being abused, generally what happens is, at intake in particular, what we're going to try to do is try to make sure that, number one, we're not going to place them anywhere near where the perpetrator, where the abuser is, is first. Secondly, if we can connect them to appropriate services, which would be Women Against Abuse, then we're going to try to do that. If for some reason there's not enough space, which is generally the issue, then what we're going to try to 88 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 do is to try and move the family as quickly as possible away. One of the major reasons why we're really usually very protective of the places where the families are being placed, we try not to advertise where the facilities are located, because we recognize that many of the women are running from abusers. One other thing we try to do, or at least case management tries to do, is to get the woman, in particular -- or it could be a man that's being abused also -- is to submit for a restraint order against the abuser. So there are a number of steps that we're trying to do all at once. But the major priority is to get the family, if there are children involved, in particular --
Could you give us the number? If you don't have it right now, you can --
What is the length of time that a family can stay, or a woman stay at 89 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 these places?
They can stay as long as they need to, but I think the important fact is that emergency shelter is a point of entry, not a point of destination. And so we want to, as quickly as possible, move the family along with the appropriate support services to transitional or permanent housing. That is one of the reasons that we worked with the previous Managing Director and the current Managing Director to create the Housing Support Center, where we can have a central point of gatekeeping for transitional or permanent housing programs to be able to identify all the options that are available much faster and be able to move families in a faster, more efficient way to the appropriate transitional or permanent housing site.
Do you have a number of people over the last year that have gone through this system?
I would appreciate that. And where, how, what has happened, and what was the nature, and so on. If you can get us that. 90 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
We can certainly give you all the information we have on that. We have about 400 families at any given time in our shelter system. And so the average length of stay tends to be between four and six months. But we can get you the actual annual number for the last year.
Thank you very much. If you had to identify one, two or three gaps, based on all the information we've heard here today, what would they be, question one. And question two, what priority areas would you put on a one, two, three list, if given the opportunity for additional dollars?
I think the largest gap is the availability of safe, decent, affordable housing, of permanent housing. I would say that is the largest gap. I think probably the second largest gap would be our ability to provide the kind of comprehensive training that we would like to be 91 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 able to provide our staff and providers on an ongoing basis. And number three -- and it really might be number two -- I have to think it through a little bit -- would be the ability to do a better job of assessment at intake. We know that out of the 400 plus families in shelter at any given time, over 50 percent have been victims of domestic violence or sexual abuse, but it's a very, very small percentage that actually will tell us that when they enter the system. And so we would like to figure out a better way to do that assessment on the front end so that we can move folks faster to the kind of support services that they might benefit from.
In the last two that you mentioned, that's basically structuring a training system and getting people that knowledge as to the necessary training to be done available to them. Why can't we do that?
Well, I think we can. Part of it is knowledge. And it's really like you've said earlier, Councilman, getting all the right people to the right table at the right time. I was really pleased to hear how comprehensive the 92 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 training is that's available to the police. One of the notes that I made is that we need to touch base with them and see if we can share some of their training ability with some of our staff.
Well, that's what I'm saying. You mentioned three in terms of the gap. Two of them you said really is training based for the intake and then for the workers later on to be able to -- those two seem to be things that we could remedy almost immediately, don't you think? Just putting together the type of program and bringing in the people that can do that with your staff.
With respect to training, I agree. With respect to assessment, I don't know enough to know whether we can craft -- or whether there is an assessment tool that's available that we could train our staff that would be more effective than what we do now.
So is there an opportunity, then, with the professionals at DHS who could lend support and/or cross fertilize? No?
Absolutely what? 93 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Absolutely there is that opportunity to work with DHS, and that's the reason that Commissioner Martinez and I have worked to create our joint venture, being the Housing Support Center, to be able to do a much better job at coordination and facilitation of moving people through the process into permanent housing with the appropriate supports faster. It's important to note that one of the primary permanent housing vehicles available to victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse is the Family Unification Program, which is operated through the DHS Housing Unit. Commissioner Martinez has moved to the Housing Support Center so that we can process families faster. Now, that's dependent upon federal resources and federal certificates, obviously, but we now, for the first time, have a vehicle, a system, an infrastructure, if you will, that we're putting into place to be able to do this effectively and much faster than it was ever done in the past.
Could you detail the conversations and what the plans are between you and DHS? 94 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Yes. At this point, Ms. Martinez and I have crafted a structure for the Housing Support Center that allows the Housing Unit at DHS to be overseen by an Assistant Managing Director, along with the OESS transitional and permanent housing resources to also be overseen by the same Assistant Managing Director for the purpose of joint coordination. And so the staff members still remain DHS staff members and OESS staff members, but under the Managing Director's Office, those efforts are being coordinated in a way that has never happened before.
Well, I have to say I'm -- of the testimony I've heard, there's some bright lights here. Your office and DHS is talking. It gets back again to Carol Tracy's comments regarding the lack of integration of services amongst all the stakeholders. So we can expand that level of communication across the board and -- I'll save the editorial comment with a private 95 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 conversation with the Chair of this Committee. But if we could get that communication working across the board with all the stakeholders, it would move us much further along.
We think that's very important, and we look forward to being part of that dialog.
I think it's needed. I think -- in order to move forward, Councilwoman, I think we need to bring all of these pieces together.
I think it's time and we can't wait any longer. It seems to be increasing, given the maps and all of the situations. Commissioner, I will go over your -- because you answered, and we just got it. Let me go over all of the answers to my questions and we'll be back. I want to thank everybody for coming. PHA is here. I didn't know that. Are you going to testify?
Identify yourself for 96 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 the record, please.
My name is Lieutenant Hal Gindrow, G-I-N-D-R-O-W. I'm at the Housing Choices Investigations for the Housing Choice Voucher Program.
Okay. Were you here during the testimony of Deputy Commissioner Fox about the staff person or training professional -- the training that is happening for the Philadelphia Police along with the other college area police, and we want PHA police to be included in that as well.
Okay. So you'll make sure that the connect happens, correct?
I most certainly will. I have Captain Lynch's phone number, so we will be in contact with him. I think there were some questions --
Well, I work for Housing 97 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Choice Investigations, and I'm here to present -- I think some questions were asked of PHA Housing Authority. The first question was, a description of any special programs, preference or allowances which victims are eligible for. The answer to that is there are no special housing assistance program regarding domestic violence that's operated by the Philadelphia Housing Authority. In the Housing Choice Voucher Program of the Housing Authority has a preference for involuntary displaced families that includes displacement by domestic violence. There are four preference categories for the Housing Choice Voucher Program. The first one is a local preference for working families certified by Private Industry Council. The second is a local preference for all other working families.
You've got to be certified by the Private Industry Council?
From what they're telling me, Councilman. The third is a need-based preference. 98 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Transitionally-housed, homeless families. And the fourth is a need-based preference which includes all other families. All four preference categories have equal weight. The preferences include a ranking preference for the elderly and disabled applicants over other applicants with the same preference. Involuntary displacement is included in category four, but the preferences are slightly different for the public housing side of it.
Does PHA make any Section 8 Vouchers or set aside any Section 8 vouchers for persons or families who have been abused?
Well, me personally, I couldn't answer that question, but I could get the answer for you to that.
And if a family in a PHA housing development -- a woman in a PHA housing development has an abusive relationship going on, what happens?
She's already living 99 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 in a PHA housing development.
Well, she can changed. The criteria, from what I know in being in investigations, if she's being harassed or tormented or being abused, she can be moved. All she has to do is put in a request to be moved, which Lieutenant Heartfield will that go over that procedure.
Does PHA have any social workers, case workers, that deal with maybe women who have been abused or are in abusive relationships?
What I do believe -- I think Lieutenant Heartfield will speak on it -- they do have a Domestic Relations Unit. What they consist of and what they actually do, he can explain it. He has details on that, if you want him to answer for it.
My name is Lieutenant Raymond Heartfield. I'm assigned to the Community 100 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 Development Resource Social Service Department that houses the Domestic Violence Unit from the Police Department, the Housing Police Department. At present we have two officers dedicated to handling domestic violence-related incidents within PHA. These officers, as well as patrol officers, also receive training from the domestic violence project of the Lutheran Settlement House. The training consists of 40 hours; counseling, advocate, curriculum, and requires officers to man a domestic violence hotline before they receive their certification.
We don't have the hotline. But in part of their training, they are required to man the hotline through the training process.
Well, they get trained to man a hotline, and there's no hotline.
Each day these officers review the Police Department's incident reports and when they come across domestic violence, they will follow-up on it and contact the family. 101 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
Does PHA or does your department, obviously, do you have any figures any statistics such as the ones that we're seeing in this map of domestic violence incidents or domestic-related incidents in PHA developments that your department is called to?
Yes, sir. I have figures from 2001 and figures from 2002. I don't have the figures for 2003 yet.
Yes, I do. 2001 initial complaints received were 285. 2002, 395.
And when you say initial complaints received, what does that mean?
Those were domestic violence calls that came through our radio room.
Was there a follow-up investigation? 102 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613
That follow-up investigation is done by our Domestic Violence Unit, yes.
So is there any figures and data as to those investigations?
We have some, but I don't have them with me. I'll have to get them to you.
Could you make that available, please, for those two years?
And if those cases have gone on to court and through the judicial process, if you have that type of information, I'd like to see that.
Now, in my program, as I repeated before, I'm in charge of investigations for the Complaint Department for Housing Choice Voucher Program. We don't receive complaints of domestic violence, even though there might be some, because of the program, the way it's set up. Most of our 103 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 complaints are for unauthorized occupancy. It might be for nuisance complaints, complaints of that nature. Most of the time when the participants in the program, they're on the voucher program, what they do is, they have to report --
When you say they're on the voucher program, does that mean vouchers, Section 8?
That's correct. They have to report change of family composition. I would say about 80 percent of them are females with children. So when they do bring somebody else into the family structure, they have to report it to their service reps. And some probably don't. So I would say on that side, the Police Department sometimes will be called, rather that the PHA Police Department so that statistics might be involved in their statistics for our program.
Do you have anything else to add? Any questions from the panel? Thank you. By the way, did you have to get permission from Carl Green to come? I just wanted to know. 104 04/22/03 - PUBLIC HEALTH/SAFTEY - RES. 020613 I want to thank everybody for coming. It's been really informative. Carol, you and I and some of the people in the Committee will get together and make this meeting happen. We will call this meeting together expeditiously. Expeditiously. We will bring everybody together within the next two weeks, hopefully, and make some movement happen in this process. Make some movement happen. We will meet. We will call. We will get -- during the next couple of days and move forward with this process so we can have something to come back to. This hearing stands recessed to the call of the Chair. (Council adjourned at 12:25 p.m.) - - - 105 C E R T I F I C A T I O N I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of April 22, 2003, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. RE: COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY ___________________________ Lisa C. Bradley, RPR and Notary Public