Incoming advocates will bolster domestic violence response

Flathead County will soon have two new court advocates and one community advocate who collectively will be tasked with helping survivors of domestic violence navigate local law enforcement and court systems, while also connecting them to local resources.

One of the court advocates will be an employee of Flathead County and will replace longtime Victim Advocate Janiece Hamilton. She retired from her position in October 2020 after working for a decade with the Flathead County Attorney’s Office. Her spot has yet to be filled.

The other two positions, a second court advocate and a community advocate, are being offered by the Abbie Shelter, Flathead Valley’s primary resource for domestic violence survivors. As of Tuesday, the positions had not yet been filled, but Abbie Shelter Director Hilary Shaw said the applicant pool has been “incredibly encouraging” and she believes the roles will be filled by May.

Shaw said the shelter has had to find different fiscal avenues to support the positions, which in other areas of the state are typically embedded in, and funded by, the county.

The shelter launched a fundraising campaign several months ago to raise the money necessary for the court advocate, who will be expected to collaborate closely with local law enforcement, prosecutors, and other partners in the criminal and civil justice system that are critical in ensuring victims gain varying levels of protection.

Shaw said the shelter has raised about 50% of its $175,000 goal. That figure is expected to support the position, which will be housed at the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office in part because law enforcement is often a victim’s first point of contact, for at least three years until the nonprofit is able to secure more permanent funding.

As for the other open position, Shaw said the shelter has been slowly phasing out its in-house mental-health counseling program. Now, the grant monies that would have supported that job, are instead going toward a community advocate, who will help connect clients to various services throughout the valley.

While the phased-out service was highly utilized, Shaw said the shelter was offering a “duplicate service,” considering other providers in the valley are able to meet the mental-health needs of their client population — something she partially credits to the recent expansion of Medicaid, which provides extensive support for mental-health treatments. And for those not enrolled in Medicaid who can’t afford mental health services, the shelter also has secured scholarship funding that will grant those individuals up to 10 free sessions with a local provider.

“We didn’t want to just lose that piece of our services. It’s obvious how important that piece is to our clients,” Shaw said. “So now we are essentially outsourcing mental-health resources and are ensuring those that don’t have the ability to pay, can. The new community advocate will help coordinate this as part of their job.”

FOR SHAW, the importance of the three positions cannot be overstated. The new hires will help address gaps in the local system that have become more apparent in recent years — issues that became especially glaring last summer after a tragic murder-suicide in Olney left four dead.

The incident revealed communication between law enforcement, the Flathead County Attorney’s Office, and others is lacking when it comes to protecting victims from violent episodes of abuse by way of orders of protection, arrest warrants and other measures.

Shaw said she believes the new positions will help streamline communication and foster stronger relationships among the partners.The incoming staff will not only ease some of the workload associated with tackling instances of domestic violence, but also will help keep a sharp eye on situations that have the potential to become deadly.

“When we look at everything it takes to tackle domestic violence in a community and make sure survivors are cared for, here is what we know: you need a coordinated team, you need strong communication between law enforcement and the courts and others in that team, and you need to be able to locate most dangerous cases,” Shaw said.

She elaborated that the new advocates will be able to keep a constant pulse on cases, which will allow Flathead County a better chance of avoiding tragedies such as the one that unfolded in Olney last summer because the advocates and other partners will be able to prioritize high-risk victims.

In some communities, those dangerous cases are identified using a lethality assessment, an evaluation method that predicts the likelihood of the abuser to murder the victim.

Shaw has pushed for a lethality assessment for domestic violence situations for years now, but has yet to be successful. She hopes the work performed by the new advocates will prompt Flathead County to eventually implement some sort of a centralized assessment system of its own.

That might be accomplished after the Abbie Shelter is able to gather various data that would support the use of such a system. For example, Shaw expects the shelter will soon have a better understanding of how many individuals petition for orders of protection, the events that prompted them to petition in the first place, how many are specifically related to sexual and domestic violence and how stakeholders are responding.

FINALLY, SHAW said the positions are coming about at a pivotal time for Flathead County as a bill that could expand the use of electronic monitoring of people charged with certain domestic violence and stalking crimes advances through the legislature.

House Bill 449 was introduced by lawmaker and former Kalispell Police Chief Frank Garner. The legislation passed the House on a 99-0 vote in early March and received a hearing in the Montana Senate Judiciary Committee last week.

During the hearing, Garner explained the measure could help prevent deadly domestic violence incidents. He referenced last year’s murder-suicide when addressing the committee.

“There were a number of system failures in that event that have brought about systematic changes in our local criminal justice system,” Garner said. “But one of the issues that was identified was the need, in similar cases, to use available technology to provide for victim safety.”

The bill would add a “rebuttable presumption” to state law that monitoring should be included as a condition of pretrial release in jurisdictions where the technology is available. Unless the defense successfully argues against it, monitoring would go into effect automatically, though it would only apply to certain felony charges deemed the strongest predictors of future abuse or homicidal behavior.

Garner said the measure would enable law enforcement to keep tabs on abusers’ locations and respond quickly if they encroach on victims’ homes or workplaces.

Shaw applauded the bill and described it as “an excellent step toward increased accountability.”

She also believes the new advocates can assist victims in understanding the ins and outs of the potential new law. And for the cases that the legislation wouldn’t apply to, they would be able to help victims navigate other options for protection.

Reporter Kianna Gardner may be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake.com