October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and local law enforcement in Greene County is working with one organization to bring about more awareness.

ACCESS Domestic Violence Service Coordinator for Boone and Greene Counties Alicia VanCannon says they work with the Jefferson Police Department and Greene County Sheriff’s office with services that they provide for domestic abuse victims. Services that ACCESS provides include: one-on-one counseling, legal and medical advocacy, temporary housing, and emergency response team during non-business hours.

“All of our services are free and confidential. Whatever they (the victim) tell us, they can’t call us as a witness to testify in court. Iowa victim advocates are protected under Iowa law. So that victims have that ability talk to openly (with their advocate).”

VanCannon adds that in the 2018 fiscal year, ACCESS served 60 Greene County residents for a total of 269 hours of advocacy. Jefferson Police Chief Mark Clouse says countywide, there was 122 calls for service for domestic incidents last year, with 67 calls coming from the City of Jefferson. Clouse points out how most of those calls get reported.

“A lot of our domestic cases get started by a neighbor (from a) phone call, hearing arguing or whatever because a lot times the victim can’t report or won’t report. Any way that we can get involved obviously is best for everybody involved.”

To hear more about what ACCESS does and how they work with law enforcement during National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, listen to today’s Community State Bank in Paton Let’s Talk Greene County program.