New Complex To House Family Justice Center

A sign indicates the location of the future Hays County Family Justice Center.

 

San Marcos local Catherine Shellman said she had no idea her daughter’s abusive boyfriend was capable of murder until he killed her.

 

“As a law enforcement officer, what we are practicing (by assisting victims of domestic abuse) is homicide prevention,” said Penny Dunn, San Marcos Police Department (SMPD) assistant chief and Friends of the Family Justice Center board member. Dunn said leaders of Hays County social service organizations hope to create a shared campus-style complex this year.

Representatives of Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), the newly founded Family Justice Center and Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) began talks of co-locating in 2000 to combine resources and save money. Dunn approached the organizations in 2004 to add the Family Justice Center after seeing a highly successful example of a shared complex in San Diego.

 

Officials hope the complex will provide services in a one-stop-shop model. The centralization stops services from being duplicated and allows easier access for citizens who may have transportation problems, Dunn said.

 

The building will be constructed on a 29-acre lot off Hunter Road and Reimer Avenue. Friends of the Family Justice Center officials bought 10 of the acres with a grant from the city. Kathy Morris, former San Marcos mayor and social worker, donated the rest of the land, Dunn said.

 

The project, known as Village Main, will cost $3.3 million, according to a March 2 Friends of the Family Justice Center press release. Dunn said Friends of the Family Justice Center are seeking money from any possible source and have posted a donation link on the Friends of Family Justice website.

 

Relocating the Hays County Food Bank to the property will be the next step in the process, Dunn said.

 

Dunn has supported a Family Justice Center since 2004. She has seen firsthand the importance of assisting victims in domestic abuse situations.

 

The most dangerous time in an abusive relationship is when the victim is trying to leave or has left, said Shellman, former Friends of Family Justice board member and current Unsilence the Violence speaker.

 

“What we know for sure is that we pull drunk drivers over because they will kill,” Dunn said. “Just like drunk drivers, batters will kill too.”

 

In 2012, 114 women were killed by domestic abusers, according to the Texas Council on Family Violence, a nonprofit dedicated to providing a statewide network of those involved in ending domestic violence. Just fewer than 200,000 cases of family violence happened in 2012.

 

Victims sometimes flee from their abusers with nothing and struggle to find means to get the help they need, Dunn said.

 

The Family Justice Center would provide law enforcement, legal aid, spiritual assistance and job training to empower victims, Dunn said. The goal of the Family Justice Center is to prevent victims from going back to their abusers and being killed.

 

“All barriers (to getting help) are removed,” Dunn said. “Victims can stand on their own feet. They don’t have to go back to their abuser.”

Roya Williamson, Victim Service Coordinator for SMPD and Friends of the Family Justice Center, said victims will be able to file reports regardless of what jurisdiction they fall under. Victims can file a protective order at the center.

 

She said the center will allow victims to bring their children and is hopeful some sort of childcare will be provided in the future.

 

Shellman left the board of the Family Justice Center in 2012 to work on her nonprofit LOVE, Leaving Out Violence Everywhere. However, she remains a supporter of the program.

 

“It is proven that the best way to provide help to victims is a Family Justice Center,” Shellman said.

 

Shellman will host a function April 10 at Dicks Classic Car Garage. The function will support social service organizations in the Hays County area. The Friends of the Family Justice Center will partner with Shellman for this project.

 

Dunn admits planning to break ground this year is ambitious. 

 

“If I won the lotto, I would fund it,” Shellman said. 

If you would like to get involved, or just want more information about this great cause, please visit their website at: http://www.villagecampus.org/about.html