Trauma-Informed, Victim-Centered Training: Text of VAWA Reauthorization Bill
Section 205
Subtitle Q—Trauma-Informed, Victim-Centered Training for Law Enforcement
4 ‘‘SEC. 41701. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM ON TRAUMA-INFORMED, VICTIM-CENTERED TRAINING FOR
6 LAW ENFORCEMENT.
7 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—
8 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Attorney General’ means the Attorney General, acting through the Director of the
10 Office on Violence Against Women;
11 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered individual’ means an individual who interfaces with victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking,
14 including—
15 ‘‘(A) an individual working for or on behalf
16 of an eligible entity;
17 ‘‘(B) an administrator or personnel of a
18 school, university, or other educational program
19 or activity (including a campus police officer or
20 a school resource officer); and
21 ‘‘(C) an emergency services or medical employee;
23 ‘‘(3) the term ‘demonstration site’, with respect
24 to an eligible entity that receives a grant under this
25 section, means—
1 ‘‘(A) if the eligible entity is a law enforcement agency described in paragraph (4)(A), the
3 area over which the eligible entity has jurisdiction; and
5 ‘‘(B) if the eligible entity is an organization or agency described in paragraph (4)(B),
7 the area over which a law enforcement agency
8 described in paragraph (4)(A) that is working
9 in collaboration with the eligible entity has jurisdiction.
11 ‘‘(4) the term ‘eligible entity’ means a State,
12 local, territorial, or Tribal law enforcement agency;
13 and
14 ‘‘(5) the term ‘mandatory partner’ means a national, regional, or local victim services organization
16 or agency working in collaboration with a law enforcement agency described in paragraph (4).
18 ‘‘(b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—
19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall
20 award grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities to collaborate with their mandatory partners to
22 carry out the demonstration program under this section by implementing evidence-based or promising
24 investigative policies and practices to incorporate
1 trauma-informed, victim-centered techniques designed to—
3 ‘‘(A) prevent re-traumatization of the victim;
5 ‘‘(B) ensure that covered individuals use
6 evidence-based practices to respond to and investigate cases of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking;
9 ‘‘(C) improve communication between victims and law enforcement officers in an effort
11 to increase the likelihood of the successful investigation and prosecution of the reported
13 crime in a manner that protects the victim to
14 the greatest extent possible;
15 ‘‘(D) increase collaboration among stakeholders who are part of the coordinated community response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and
19 ‘‘(E) evaluate the effectiveness of the
20 training process and content.
21 ‘‘(2) AWARD BASIS.—The Attorney General
22 shall award grants under this section to multiple eligible entities for use in a variety of settings and
24 communities, including—
1 ‘‘(A) urban, suburban, Tribal, remote, and
2 rural areas;
3 ‘‘(B) college campuses; or
4 ‘‘(C) traditionally underserved communities.
6 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity that receives
7 a grant under this section shall use the grant to—
8 ‘‘(1) train covered individuals within the demonstration site of the eligible entity to use evidence10 based, trauma-informed, and victim-centered techniques and knowledge of crime victims’ rights
12 throughout an investigation into domestic violence,
13 dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including
14 by—
15 ‘‘(A) conducting victim interviews in a
16 manner that—
17 ‘‘(i) elicits valuable information about
18 the domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and
20 ‘‘(ii) avoids re-traumatization of the
21 victim;
22 ‘‘(B) conducting field investigations that
23 mirror best and promising practices available at
24 the time of the investigation;
1 ‘‘(C) customizing investigative approaches
2 to ensure a culturally and linguistically appropriate approach to the community being served;
4 ‘‘(D) becoming proficient in understanding
5 and responding to complex cases, including
6 cases of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking—
8 ‘‘(i) facilitated by alcohol or drugs;
9 ‘‘(ii) involving strangulation;
10 ‘‘(iii) committed by a non-stranger;
11 ‘‘(iv) committed by an individual of
12 the same sex as the victim;
13 ‘‘(v) involving a victim with a disability;
15 ‘‘(vi) involving a male victim; or
16 ‘‘(vii) involving a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (commonly referred to
18 as ‘LGBT’) victim;
19 ‘‘(E) developing collaborative relationships
20 between—
21 ‘‘(i) law enforcement officers and
22 other members of the response team; and
23 ‘‘(ii) the community being served; and
24 ‘‘(F) developing an understanding of how
25 to define, identify, and correctly classify a re-
1 port of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and
3 ‘‘(2) promote the efforts of the eligible entity to
4 improve the response of covered individuals to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and
6 stalking through various communication channels,
7 such as the website of the eligible entity, social
8 media, print materials, and community meetings, in
9 order to ensure that all covered individuals within
10 the demonstration site of the eligible entity are
11 aware of those efforts and included in trainings, to
12 the extent practicable.
13 ‘‘(d) DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM TRAININGS ON
14 TRAUMA-INFORMED, VICTIM-CENTERED APPROACHES.—
15 ‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION OF EXISTING
16 TRAININGS.—
17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General
18 shall identify trainings for law enforcement offcers, in existence as of the date on which the
20 Attorney General begins to solicit applications
21 for grants under this section, that—
22 ‘‘(i) employ a trauma-informed, victim-centered approach to domestic violence,
24 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and
1 ‘‘(ii) focus on the fundamentals of—
2 ‘‘(I) trauma responses;
3 ‘‘(II) the impact of trauma on
4 victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking;
6 and
7 ‘‘(III) techniques for effectively
8 investigating domestic violence, dating
9 violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
10 ‘‘(B) SELECTION.—An eligible entity that
11 receives a grant under this section shall select
12 one or more of the approaches employed by a
13 training identified under subparagraph (A) to
14 test within the demonstration site of the eligible
15 entity.
16 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall consult with
18 the Director of the Office for Victims of Crime in
19 order to seek input from and cultivate consensus
20 among outside practitioners and other stakeholders
21 through facilitated discussions and focus groups on
22 best practices in the field of trauma-informed, victim-centered care for victims of domestic violence,
24 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
1 ‘‘(e) EVALUATION.—The Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of
3 Justice, shall require each eligible entity that receives a
4 grant under this section to identify a research partner,
5 preferably a local research partner, to—
6 ‘‘(1) design a system for generating and collecting the appropriate data to facilitate an independent process or impact evaluation of the use of
9 the grant funds;
10 ‘‘(2) periodically conduct an evaluation described in paragraph (1); and
12 ‘‘(3) periodically make publicly available, during
13 the grant period—
14 ‘‘(A) preliminary results of the evaluations
15 conducted under paragraph (2); and
16 ‘‘(B) recommendations for improving the
17 use of the grant funds.
18 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
19 are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General
20 $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027
21 to carry out this section.