Putnam Chosen for Domestic Violence Community Response Program

It was a team effort between the Putnam County District Attorney’s Office, Putnam/Northern Westchester Women’s Resource Center, the Department of Social Services, and local law enforcement agencies, but after months of advocacy, Putnam was selected as one of five counties across the state to partner with the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence to join the Coordinated Community Response Pilot and develop the county’s first Domestic Violence High-Risk Team.

This multi-agency collaborative group will identify and coordinate interventions for the most dangerous domestic violence situations, according to District Attorney Robert Tendy. The team will bring together professionals to create increased community access to assistance services, develop safety plans, and support survivors while insuring offender accountability.

“We will continue our collaborative fight to help survivors access support services more quickly while insuring harsh accountability for offenders,” he said. “Our network of services will provide a more comprehensive response to intimate partner violence. We will fight to eliminate violence from their lives and provide victims with the necessary resources to end the cycle of abuse.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul recently announced the action to strengthen public safety and protect survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, selecting Putnam, Clinton, Yates, Columbia, and Delaware counties to participate in this two-year pilot.

“Addressing gender-based violence requires strong collaboration across agencies and disciplines, and this pilot strengthens our ability to respond as a unified community,” said Putnam/Northern Westchester Women’s Resource Center Executive Director Piaget Solpiaget. “By improving coordination and aligning our efforts, we are better positioned to support survivors, hold offenders accountable, and build a safer, more responsive system for everyone in Putnam County.”

The pilot will give participating counties a clear framework for responding to domestic and gender-based violence.

With extensive technical assistance and implementation support from the state, counties will adopt one of two evidence-based approaches by establishing either: a Coordinated Community Response Task Force, which is a multidisciplinary group with the authority to influence policy, improve systemic procedures, and strengthen community awareness to prevent and respond to gender-based violence; or a Domestic Violence High-Risk Team, which is a nationally recognized best practice proven to increase survivor safety, strengthen offender accountability, and reduce burdens on local systems through coordinated, proactive intervention.

“Survivors and local leaders have been clear: Systems must be better aligned, policies must reflect today’s realities, and responses must be faster and more effective,” said New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence Executive Director Kelli Nicholas Owens. “The CCR pilot, along with updating New York’s domestic violence model policy, is about closing gaps that put people at risk.”