Nevada’s First Model Domestic Violence Protocol

Attorney General Laxalt Releases Nevada’s First Model Domestic Violence Protocol for Cross-Agency Response

Nevada Attorney General Adam Paul Laxalt announced that his office created Nevada’s first Domestic Violence Model Protocol for Cross-Agency Response. The resource was created to assist victims of domestic violence by providing local law enforcement with a protocol to foster stronger relationships with local domestic violence service providers.

“Addressing domestic violence in our communities extends beyond arrests and prosecutions—it involves partnerships, and prevention and education efforts,” said Laxalt. “The protocol developed by my office will help ensure law enforcement agencies are working hand-in-hand with local service providers to assist victims of domestic violence in their recovery process. The need for this protocol arose from the work of my Fatality Review Team completed in early-October that identifies gaps in policy or services specific to domestic violence in Nevada, and we are confident that this resource will do much in service to our survivors.”

The protocol endeavors to assist law enforcement with defining their cross-agency working relationship in order to implement best practices in domestic violence response. By illustrating ways in which victim-related issues, community-based organizations, victim services advocates and victim services on-scene responders can be integrated into law enforcement dispatcher and on-scene protocol, the resource provides a framework that local law enforcement agencies can adapt and tailor to the unique needs of their county.

“This resource supports earlier intervention which often results in greater safety for victims and their families,” added Nicole O’Banion, Ombudsman for the Office of the Nevada Attorney General. “With a continued commitment towards preventing homicides and saving lives, we hope to decrease the severity of domestic violence in our communities.”

AG Laxalt serves as chair of the Committee on Domestic Violence that endeavors to increase awareness about the prevalence of domestic violence in Nevada and the deep and abiding damage such violence causes. The Committee reviews all appropriate issues related to the administration of the criminal justice system in Nevada with respect to offenses involving domestic violence. As an offshoot of this Committee, the Batterers Treatment Subcommittee reviews programs for the treatment of individuals who commit domestic violence, and makes recommendations to the Division of Public and Behavioral Health for the certification of these programs. The Fatality Review Team, another subcommittee of the Committee on Domestic Violence, reviews the deaths of victims of crimes that constitute “domestic violence.” The purpose of this Team is to identify any gaps in policy or services, particularly in rural parts of the State where law enforcement is more geographically dispersed, and to make recommendations on strategies for prevention of domestic violence.

To view the Model Protocol for Cross-Agency Response to Domestic Violence, click here.