A. Program Narrative:
1. Purpose and needs for assistance
The funds requested in this concept paper and grant application will be used to purchase a Polaroid Spectra Law Enforcement Kit for every law enforcement agency in Sussex County. The goal is that every cruiser responding to a domestic violence call would be supplied with one of these cameras, which were developed specifically for use in assault and violence cases.
The Law Enforcement Domestic Violence Camera Project will serve at least three of the program areas of the Violence Against Women Act: law enforcement, prosecution and victim services.
(1) The kits will serve law enforcement in the domestic violence area by allowing police officers to capture and preserve the exact nature and extent of the incident at the point of first response, including the injuries to the victim, appearance of the suspected perpetrator and details of the crime scene at the moment of first response. In lieu of photographs, they are forced to rely on verbal descriptions and photographs taken at a later date such as at the station or the hospital. At the time of first response, victims are more likely to consent to being photographed. In many cases, victims will resist being photographed after-the-fact, either because the stage of denial has begun, or because the perpetrator has begun to exert influence upon their decision.
(2) The kits will serve prosecution of domestic violence cases by generating powerful demonstrative evidence to prove the nature and extent of the in juries and other relevant issues concerning the crime scene. Such photographs will also aid in the prosecution by refreshing the memory of witnesses testifying at trial, which may occur months to years after the incident has occurred. Instant photographs of the victim’'s injuries may stand as the only lasting evidence that the abuse occurred. Photographs taken close to the time of the crime often have more probative impact than verbal descriptions, expert testimony and photographs taken hours after the crime. Additionally, the photographs will facilitate prosecution in those cases where the victim refuses to testify, recants, or is otherwise uncooperative with the prosecution. Presently, prosecution of many serious domestic violence crimes is frequently made difficult or impossible when the victim refuses to cooperate with the prosecution. The evidence produced by these kits will enable such prosecutions to go forward. Due to the rural setting of Sussex County many townships do not have the luxury of detectives and cameras at their facilities. The prosecution can not count on having photographs in many of their cases. This project would provide consistency throughout the county in legislative proceedings.
(3) Finally, the kits will assist victims services. Through the use of photographs, victims/witness coordinators will be able to keep victims focused on the objective reality of the crime that has been committed against them. Seeing photographs of their injuries can help the victims resist the temptation to deny that their significant other has a serious behavioral problem that must not be ignored or minimized.
The nature and magnitude of the domestic violence problem generally is will documented and need not be repeated here. Sussex County’'s experience is typical of the general trend. Every town and city in Sussex County will be serviced by the project. As do domestic violence statistics, the target population of this project cuts across all socioeconomic boundaries as well as age, race and ethnicity.
2. Results and benefits expected (beneficial impacts):
The specific objectives of the program are: to place a Spectra kit in every law enforcement agency and hospital Emergency Department in Sussex County ; to establish protocols and training for the use of the kits in law enforcement; establish protocols and training for prosecutors as to the use of the photographs at trial; and to establish protocols and training for the use of photographs where appropriate as an adjunct to victim services This training will be accomplished through a seminar at the time of award of these cameras.
There are many indications that the proposed project will achieve its objectives will have an impact on the problems identified earlier in this section. First, the project has the enthusiastic support of law enforcement (as evidenced) by attached signatures from police chiefs in Sussex county, prosecutors and victim/witness coordinators in the state. Second, Polaroid’'s Spectra Law Enforcement Kit has been used successfully in similar programs. To date, more than 50 municipalities, counties and states around the county have participated in the Polaroid program, equipping more than 20,000 law enforcement agencies with this valuable tool. Third, Polaroid Corporation has demonstrated its commitment to providing continuing support for the project, in terms of technology, training, and technical support.
This program will service to enhance and expand existing domestic violence response efforts at local police departments. Recent legislation has given law enforcement the authority and means to respond affirmatively and effectively to domestic violence. Police departments have begun putting these laws to use. Having the Spectra camera available to the responding officers will help to ensure that arrests are followed by successful prosecutions.
3. Project implementation plan:
Upon the purchase of the cameras from Polaroid the Nanticoke Memorial Hospital Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Program (S.A.N.E.) will facilitate the domestic violence photography workshop provided by Polaroid’'s School of Law Enforcement Imaging and will augment that curriculum with additional training.
Representatives from Nanticoke Memorial Hospital’'s S.A.N.E. Program and the county attorneys victim/witness assistance program will provide training on the dynamics associated with family violence and the power and control issues that often force victims not to involve themselves in the investigation and prosecution process. A representative from the law enforcement community will provide additional training that will include a review of the Sussex County Domestic Violence protocol and offer suggestion for the development of a department policy on photographing domestic violence evidence. Finally, prosecutor from the Attorney General’'s Office will conduct training relative to the testimony of the victim and will review the parts of the Prosecution Protocol that work in conjunction with the Law Enforcement Protocol.
Training will be conducted within our jurisdiction with trainer follow up to accommodate those officers not able to attend the training related to shift differences. Follow-up training will be conducted on a regular basis by the Domestic Violence groups of Sussex County and will focus on reviewing the camera’'s performance, quality of photographic evidence generated by law enforcement and the general compliance with the Protocols. Attendance at these training sessions will be a condition for receiving and keeping a Spectra Law Enforcement Kit.
4. Project’'s measure of success:
The success of the project will be measured at three levels: law enforcement, prosecution and victim services. At the law enforcement level, an early measure will be the rate of completion of training and the “installation” of the Spectra Law Enforcement Kits in cruisers. Another indicator of success in law enforcement will be the actual production of usable photographic evidence. At the prosecution level, success will be measured by the number of cases that result in convictions or other appropriate dispositions with or without the cooperation of the victim. At the victim services level, success will be measures by the victims’’ acceptance to the use of these photographs in the prosecution. Evaluation of the program will take place continuously throughout its implementation at the direction of chiefs of police or other agency heads, lead prosecutors and the county Attorney General’'s Office. Evaluation will also take place during the follow-up training sessions.
