Support for domestic violence victims impacted by government shutdown

As the government remains shut down, victims of domestic violence risk losing the support they may need to escape their abusers.

During the shutdown, the Violence Against Women Act, which provides federal funding for agencies that help victims around the country, expired.

"That piece of legislation is very important to everyone who cares about survivors and cares about reducing violence against women," Sara Stanley, the executive director of "Healing Abuse Working For Change" in Salem, said.

Stanley said five of their attorneys rely on that federal funding to help women in the area, and if there's no resolution this month, she said those lawyers may need to stop offering legal services to victims.

"A survivor’s chances of successfully leaving an abusive relationship increase substantially when they have representation," Stanley said.

Stanley said agencies like theirs use federal grants to offer critical services to women suffering from domestic violence, with some of those services including emergency shelters or legal services to help women in court.

"At the end of each month, we bill the government for those services," Stanley said.

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HAWC serves about 3,000 women ever year in Essex County, but Stanley said domestic violence victims across the country are in danger of losing that support if there's no resolution.

"It’s important we implore our leaders to have a bipartisan renewal of that legislation to show a commitment to reducing violence against women and increasing access to justice for survivors," Stanley said.

Cox Media Group