Harris County Sheriff''s Office Victim Advocates

The purpose of this award, funded under the OVC FY 2019 Law Enforcement-Based Victim Specialist Program, is to develop or enhance and sustain crime victim specialist programs within law enforcement agencies and better coordinate services to victims to more quickly and more effectively serve the victim assistance and compensation needs of all crime victims and inform them of their rights as crime victims.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office will hire three additional Victim Advocates to supplement the four Victim Advocates currently employed. The goal for each new Victim Advocate is to make two victim contacts per day, which would result in assistance being provided to approximately 4,320 crime victims over the course of this project. The Victim Advocates will provide a range of services to crime victims, including advocacy, referrals, education about the criminal justice system, crisis intervention, safety planning, and court accompaniment. In addition, a portion of grant funds will pay for overtime hours worked by an Assistant District Attorney assigned to domestic assault cases. CA/NCF