Chicago will more than double funding to help victims of domestic abuse and expand assistance programs to all neighborhoods, officials announced Monday.
Mayor Richard Daley said that spending will climb from $700,000 a year to $1.9 million in the proposed 1998 budget that he will introduce to the City Council on Wednesday.
The announcement came as officials reported that the police department received an average of 655 domestic abuse calls a day in 1996, up dramatically from about 400 a day the year before.
“I am not saying there is a significant increase in actual incidences,” said Leslie Landis, who was appointed in January by Daley as the city’s domestic violence coordinator. “I am saying cases are being tracked better.
“People are coming forward. They are calling police in greater numbers than ever before. I think it is a reflection that the message is getting through that help is available.”
But as it stands, there is not enough assistance to go around, and some city neighborhoods are without counseling or other help.
“People are being turned away for services every day,” said Landis, who appeared with Daley at a news conference. “There clearly is not enough to meet the need.”
The city helps abuse victims directly through the police department and Health Department clinics, but the majority of domestic abuse services are provided by private community-based organizations funded by City Hall. They offer counseling, legal services, employment programs for abuse victims and parenting training.
More than 40 organizations would receive city funding next year under Daley’s proposal.
Also, the city is considering a domestic abuse hot line that would serve as a clearinghouse, referring victims to the appropriate agencies and organizations, Landis said.
Starting such a service would be a huge project, and officials are studying how it might be funded as they study existing hot lines around the country, Landis said.
Earlier this year, Daley convened the Domestic Violence Advocacy Coordinating Council, chaired by Landis and made up of representatives of various city departments, law enforcement, other governmental agencies and victim advocates to develop a “comprehensive intervention strategy” for the city.
The council’s report is expected later this month.
Meanwhile, the police department has increased training on domestic abuse and appointed one detective in each police area to handle abuse cases, officials said.
In the past, officers typically tried to mediate and restore peace in domestic disputes, then left, Landis said. Now they make arrests and are trained to inform victims how to obtain court orders of protection and to provide referrals to the proper agencies, she said.
“What we are doing citywide through all these efforts is reinforcing the safety net for victims of domestic violence,” Daley said. “We are working toward the day when we won’t need special services or public awareness campaigns.”
