Press Releases

U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright (PA-08) today announced a $600,000 grant to the Domestic Violence Service Center through the Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women. The Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program provides funding for civil and criminal legal assistance programs at minimum or no cost for adult and youth victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking.

“The Domestic Violence Service Center and Victims Resource Center are working tirelessly to help people who suffered get justice by guiding them through complex legal systems,” said Rep. Cartwright, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. “By connecting survivors of domestic violence to the support and legal assistance they need, we are helping them heal and move forward with their lives.”

“The civil justice system can play a powerful role in achieving these processes if victims have access to quality legal representation. This grant will support the Civil Legal Representation Project initiated in 2014 through Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence funding, integrating a holistic approach in serving victims’ needs by providing both expert legal representation and addressing other needs related to the violence experienced through critical lifesaving victim services,” said Paula Triano, Executive Director of Domestic Violence Service Center. Domestic Violence Service Center (DVSC) is committed to saving lives, promoting self-sufficiency and economic stability, creating institutional change for victims of domestic violence, and reducing the impact of the violence perpetrated on those victims.”

The Domestic Violence Service Center (DVSC), with collaborative partner, Victim Resource Center, plan to use the grant to provide legal advice and representation in family law matters such as child support, custody, divorce and housing to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking in Luzerne, Carbon, and Wyoming Counties. The funding will support three staff attorneys and three legal assistants, allowing the partnership to increase their service capacity. For over 40 years, DVSC has offered free and confidential services to victims of domestic violence including 24-hour hotlines for information and referral, crisis intervention, emergency shelter, group and individual counseling, and advocacy.