Grant Details

Established by the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, the STOP Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Program seeks to develop and implement law enforcement and prosecution strategies to effectively decrease violent crimes against women. These grants also help to develop and enhance services provided to the victims of violent crimes.

In Alabama, the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), Law Enforcement and Traffic Safety (LETS) Office is responsible for coordinating VAWA funds with local agencies. Funds through VAWA must be committed to four specific areas in the State: prosecution, law enforcement, victim service, and courts. 

In FY 2024, VAWA funds may be used for multiple purposes in the identified funding areas, including

• Training law enforcement officers and prosecutors to identify and respond to violent crimes against women;
• Developing, training or expanding specialized law enforcement units;
• Developing and implementing more effective police and prosecution policies, protocols, orders and services specifically dedicated to preventing, identifying and responding to violent crimes against women;
• Developing, installing or expanding data collection and communication systems that link police, prosecutors and courts or identify and track arrests, protection orders, violations of protection orders, prosecutions and convictions of violent crimes against women;
• Developing, expanding or strengthening victim service programs, programs that address stalking and programs that address the needs and circumstances of Indian tribes dealing with violent crimes against women;
• Supporting formal and informal statewide, multidisciplinary efforts, to the extent not supported by state funds, to coordinate the response of state law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, victim services agencies, and other state agencies and departments, to violent crimes against women, including the crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking;
• Training of sexual assault forensic medical personnel examiners in the collection and preservation of evidence, analysis, prevention, and providing expert testimony and treatment of trauma related to sexual assault;
• Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs to assist law enforcement, prosecutors, courts, and others to address the needs and circumstances of older and disabled women who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including recognizing, investigating, and prosecuting instances of such violence or assault and targeting outreach and support, counseling, and other victim services to such older and disabled individuals.;
• Providing assistance to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in immigration matters. Maintaining core victim services and criminal justice initiatives, while supporting complementary new initiatives and emergency services for victims and their families;
• Maintaining core victim services and criminal justice initiatives, while supporting complementary new initiatives and emergency services for victims and their families.;
• Supporting the placement of special victim assistants (to be known as Jessica Gonzales Victim Assistants”) in local law enforcement agencies to serve as liaisons between victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking and personnel in local law enforcement agencies in order to improve the enforcement of protection orders;
• Providing funding to law enforcement agencies, victim services providers, and state, tribal, territorial, and local governments (which funding stream shall be known as the Crystal Judson Domestic Violence Protocol Program);
• Developing and promoting state, local, or tribal legislation and policies that enhance best practices for responding to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking;
• Developing, implementing, or enhancing Sexual Assault Response Teams, or other similar coordinated community responses to sexual assault. Developing and strengthening policies, protocols, best practices, and training for law enforcement agencies and prosecutors relating to the investigation and prosecution of sexual assault cases and the appropriate treatment of victims;
• Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs addressing sexual assault against men, women, and youth in correctional and detention settings;
• Identifying and conducting inventories of backlogs of sexual assault evidence collection kits and developing protocols and policies for responding to and addressing such backlogs, including protocols and policies for notifying and involving victims;
• Developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs and projects to provide services and responses targeting male and female victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, whose ability to access traditional services and responses is affected by their sexual orientation or gender identity, as defined in section 249(c) of title 18 of the United States Code;
• Developing, enhancing, or strengthening prevention and educational programming to address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, with not more than 5 percent of the amount allocated to a state to be used for this purpose.