Hope’s Door Awarded Federal Funding to Launch Immigration Domestic Violence Legal Alliance (IDVLA)

The Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women awarded Hope’s Door a $748,000 grant over the course of three years. The highly competitive award will fund the launch of the IDVLA. Led by Hope’s Door, the partnership is comprised of the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, Make the Road New York, and Victim Assistance Services, a Department of the Westchester Community Opportunity Program.

The newly formed IDVLA will provide free, trauma informed, culturally competent family, matrimonial, and immigration legal services, as well as criminal advocacy, to undocumented and immigrant victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and dating violence in Westchester County. The project aims to ensure access to the widest and most comprehensive legal relief available. Free civil legal representation in family, matrimonial and immigrations cases will ensure safety, stability, and financial independence. Informing victims about their legal rights in both the criminal and civil justice systems and how they interact with each other and immigration issues will help victims make informed decisions.

IDVLA will implement a coordinated program to include early engagement with victims in criminal matters and will provide risk assessments, safety planning, advocacy, legal advice, or representation, as well as other specialized services. The city of Yonkers will be a focus for the IDVLA as over 30% of the population is foreign born and it is reported to have the highest number of criminal cases involving intimate partner violence.

Hope’s Door is a non-profit, 501 (c ) (3) charity that seeks to end domestic violence and to empower victims to achieve safety, independence, and healing from the trauma of abuse. For more information, go to www.HopesDoorNY.org or call our offices at 914-747-0828. For free and confidential help, call our 24/7 bilingual hotline at 888-438-8700.

https://www.pr.com/press-release/918222