Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Shelter for Both Genders Breaks New Ground

In what is possibly a national first, the Sexual Assault Crisis Team (SACT) of Washington County in Vermont in October, 2002, opened a shelter for male and female sexual abuse and domestic violence victims. Bobbi Gagne, SACT's Executive Director, was quoted in the New York Times as saying, "we're trying to create a safe space where survivors can have control over their environment and are treated with respect and dignity." The shelter can house up to five victims and one or two friends or family members, and is staffed by Keith Goslant, who is also president of SACT's board of directors, and other volunteers.

Out in the Mountains reported that the shelter is set up with two separate living areas, "so that if there are both male and female residents, they need not cross paths." Male sexual assault victims access the shelter the same way women victims do, by calling the program's hotline (802/223-7755). Out in the Mountains reports, "Male victims of domestic violence, however, need to be referred through another agency -- such as SafeSpace or another domestic violence group -- to ensure that the person seeking help is not an abuser in search of a sheltered partner." About 25 people have used the shelter so far, roughly half of them men.

Although SATC receives funding for all its various services to female victims, "the group is providing services to male victims with an all-volunteer staff because no one will fund them," Out in the Mountains reported. The Crisis Team is staffed by only five to seven "advocate-volunteers."

Shelter residents must be adult, nonsuicidal, free of mental health or medical concerns that need constant monitoring, and not have sexually offended. Average stays are usually no more than three days, but "can be extended." It was not clear from the articles if the shelter is wheelchair accessible.

Services are also offered in the victim's home: "The three employees of the team and volunteers can visit a woman's house and remove the bed where she was assaulted or place posters in a man's bedroom, to change the atmosphere."

Two other unusual features of the shelter are that it also serves past victims of childhood sexual abuse, and its location is public. One 36-year-old client the Times interviewed had been sexually and physically abused by his mother from ages 6 to 12 and had engaged repeatedly in treatment. "Working with Ms. Gagne...has helped him discover a person who is not defined by his childhood," the Times reported. About the open location, Out in the Mountains said, SATC decided "instead [of secrecy] to cultivate positive and watchful relationships with neighbors, the police, and local mental health agencies."

Elder Abuse Forensic Center Opens

In another national first, Santa Ana (California) in May opened an Elder Abuse Forensic Center that provides meeting space for ten Orange County agencies to collaborate on elder and dependent adult abuse.

The center is funded by a three-year, $850,000 grant from the Archstone Foundation. The county is also devoting $50,000 per year to the project. Dr. Laura Mosqueda, an associate professor at University of California -- Irvine's College of Medicine and director of geriatrics at the university's medical center, and Dr. Kerry Burnight, also from UC Irvine, will manage the center, which is housed in the same building at the county's Adult Protective Services.

Representatives of the ten agencies involved (which include the District Attorney's office, the Sheriff's Department, the Chapman University School of Law, and the non-profit Human Options) will meet Tuesday and Thursday mornings to discuss cases. Already one case that came to the center's attention during its formation has borne fruit: the week before the center was opened, as a result of a rumor that had reached the center staff during an organizational meeting, a bus driver was arrested on suspicion of assaulting two disabled women he transported.