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Domestic Violence

    • Personal Safety for Victims of Domestic Violence
    • Measures You Can Take to Increase Your Safety
    • Measures You Can Take to Secure Your Residence
    • Safety Tips for When You Have an Order of Protection
    • Safety on the Job and in Public
    • Items to Take When Leaving Your Partner
    • Other Useful Items to Take if You Have Time
    • Telephone Numbers You Need to Know
    • Additional Contact Information

Personal Safety for Victims of Domestic Violence

You are a victim of domestic violence, and police officers are summoned to your home. You are possibly injured, in fear, and do not know what questions to ask for further HELP! The following guidelines will assist in answering those often difficult questions that you may have in your time of need.

    • Should you choose to remain in your present relationship, your safety is extremely important.
         Consider keeping an emergency bag packed with clothing, money, emergency telephone numbers
          and perhaps toys for children.

    • Many batterers, unless held accountable, will batter again! We recommend obtaining a restraining
         order. A TEMPORARY restraining order will be granted for a period of ten days. If the order is granted
         by the Family Court Judge, it is recommended that you give a copy of the restraining order to the Marshal,
         so that the offender can be served. Both you and the offender will be ordered to return in ten days, so it
         can be finalized for a period of THREE YEARS.

    • Make copies of the restraining order, so you, family members, friends, neighbors and your employer can
          be aware of the situation. If you have the restraining order BEFORE you call the police, give a copy to the
         officer.

Measures You Can Take to Increase Your Safety

Create a Personal Safety Plan. As part of such a plan you should:

    • Decide in advance how you will get out of the house safely, if such a need occurs (e.g. fire escape,
         windows, stairwells, etc.)

    • Keep your purse and keys in a designated place so that you can escape quickly.

    • Inform a close neighbor of the situation and ask them to call the police if they hear suspicious noises
         coming from the house.

    • Teach your children how to use 9-1-1.

    • Create a code word to share with your friends and children so that they know when to call for help.

    • Decide where you will go in the event you have to leave (also have at least one alternative location that
         you may escape to).

    • When you anticipate an argument, try to direct it to a room that is the lowest risk in terms of weapons
         that could be made available by your partner (e.g. try to avoid the kitchen, bathroom and garage areas).

    • Using your intuition and judgment, consider giving your partner what he/she wants to calm him/her down
         so that you can protect yourself until you are out of danger.

    • Leave extra money and a spare set of keys with someone you can trust so that you can leave quickly.

    • Have a designated location where you can keep important documents or keys.

    • Consider opening a separate savings account so that you may increase your independence.

    • Keep coins or a pre-paid calling card on hand so that you may make calls that will not be as easily traced
         by your partner via telephone bills.

    • Teach your children how to make a collect call as well as who they should call in the event they are taken
         by your partner.

    • Inform your children’s teachers, baby-sitters, etc. as to who is and is not allowed to pick them up from
         school, daycare, etc.

    • Pre-arrange an overnight stay with a close friend/family member before you leave.

    • Leave an extra set of clothes with that same person who’s house you will be attending.

    • Review your safety plan as necessary.

    • Practice your safety plan and, if needed, rehearse it with your children.

Measures You Can Take to Secure Your Residence

    • Change the locks on doors and windows.
    • Replace wooden doors with steel/metal doors.
    • Install a security system, and/or additional locks, window bars, etc.
    • Purchase rope ladders for escape from second floor windows.
    • Install smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in each floor of the house/apartment.
    • Install a motion-sensor outdoor lighting system.
    • Inform a neighbor or friend if your partner no longer resides at your home so that they may call police if
         they observe him/her near your residence.

Safety Tips for When You Have an Order of Protection

    • Always keep your protection order on or near your person.
    • Give a copy of your protection order to the Police Departments in the communities where you live, work
         and typically spend much time.
    • Check to make sure that your protection order is registered in the County Registry of Protection Orders.
    • Inform your employer, minister and closest friend that you have a protection order in effect.
    • If your protection order is destroyed, obtain another one from the County Circuit Clerk’s Office.
    • If your partner violates the protection order, notify the police and have your attorney advise the court of
         the violation.
    • If you feel the police do not respond adequately, you may contact your attorney to file a complaint with the
         chief of the department.

Safety on the Job and in Public

    • Inform both your boss and, if applicable, your security supervisor of your situation.
    • Ask to have a fellow employee or manager screen your calls at work.
    • When leaving work, try to leave with at least one other employee at the same time.
    • If you use public transit, sit as close to the operator as you can.
    • Change your routines. If you always went to the grocery store on the same night of the week at the
         same time when with your partner, switch it up so that he/she cannot as easily confront you there.
    • Related to the last point, consider changing the location at which you conduct business (e.g. switch
         banking locations).
    • Minimize your usage of alcohol and other legal substances which may reduce your ability to think
         and react clearly.
    • Do not, under any circumstances, use illegal drugs as this not only makes you vulnerable physically,
         but can make it more difficult for you to gather support from friends and neighbors when it is needed.
    • Try to avoid your partner if he/she has been either drinking or using narcotics.

Other Useful Items to Take if You Have Time

    • Welfare Identification
    • Work Permits
    • Green Card
    • Passport(s)
    • Divorce Papers
    • Medical Records (for all family members)
    • Leases/rental Agreement, House Deed, Mortgage Payment Book
    • Bank Books
    • Insurance Papers
    • Small Saleable Objects
    • Address Book
    • Pictures
    • Jewelry
    • Children’s Favorite Toy and/or Blankets
    • Items of Special Sentimental Value

Telephone Numbers You Need to Know

    • Police Department when at Home
    • Police Department when at School
    • Police Department when at Work
    • Battered Women’s Program
    • County Registry of Protection Orders
    •  Work Number
    • Supervisor’s Home Number
    • Minister

Additional Contact Information

Phoenix Crisis Center – Granite City
(618) 451.1008
Phoenix Crisis Center is a women’s shelter for abused women.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline
1.800.799.SAFE (7233)
The National Domestic Violence Hotline provides callers with crisis intervention information about domestic violence and referrals to programs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in many languages.

Family Violence Prevention Fund
www.fvpf.org
(415) 252.8900
The Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF) is a national non-profit organization that focuses on domestic violence education, prevention and public policy reform. Included on web page are different programmatic responses to family violence, survivors and personal stories, family violence facts and ways to get involved.

Illinois Center for Violence Prevention
www.preventingviolence.org
(312) 986.9200
The Illinois Center for Violence Prevention (ICVP), founded in 1992 as a private not-for-profit organization, is dedicated to the prevention of interpersonal violence, including family violence (child, partner, and elder abuse); sexual assault; youth violence; gang and gun violence; and hate crimes.

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
www.ncadv.org
(202) 544.7358
The coalition is a national organization that works to end violence in the lives of battered women and their children. The coalition provides information, technical assistance, publications, newsletters and resource materials.

Partnerships Against Violence Network
www.pavnet.org/
PAVNET Online is a “virtual library” of information about violence and youth-at- risk, representing data from seven different Federal agencies. It is a one-stop searchable, information resource to help reduce redundancy in information management and provide clear and comprehensive access to information for States and local communities. The four searchable categories on the website are programs, funding, curricula, and tech information. Also on this website is a great directory of upcoming conferences.

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