Pamela Waltermire: It impacts everyone. It can be your family member, it can be your neighbor, it can be your friend, it can be your coworker. Regardless of race, socioeconomic status, the LGBTQI community, domestic violence doesn't discriminate. Officer Heather Hughes: When I had worked with the schools, I would see children tell me what's happening in their homes and how much it affected them. And so I know that every one survivor that's reported to me, sometimes I'm taking historical reports where it's years of violence that they have never reported. So I know there's a lot of people out there, men and women that are involved in violent relationships and don't feel supported and don't feel that there's anybody out there to help them. And we just want to let them know there are people out there to help them. Officer Heather Hughes: I'm Officer Heather Hughes. I've been a police officer 25 years, and I'm one of the DVERT which is the unit that we work with that investigates domestic violence here in the Family Services Unit. We investigate the criminal aspects of domestic violence, but as a team approach, we work as a team, decide what is the best way to help our survivors. Sometimes it's me as the officer that needs to go out arrest someone and hold someone accountable through the court systems with the DA's office. Other times it could be working with the advocates and finding a safe plan for them before they go through and prosecute. Pamela Waltermire: My name is Pamela Waltermire and I am a domestic violence enhanced response team, DVERT advocate. Pamela Waltermire: Is this an okay time for you to talk? Pamela Waltermire: I reach out to the survivors and see what their needs might be. They may want prosecution. They may just want safety planning. They may just want support, resources, explanation of the criminal justice process. Officer Heather Hughes: And that's why we do the team approach. Everybody's different. Prosecution is just a small part of it. Prosecution is sometimes what survivors need to feel that they're vindicated in what happened, but sometimes the survivors just want some resources and help to break that cycle. When you're talking to a survivor, they don't know what a healthy relationship is. And going through this process and getting resources and counseling can help them learn what a healthy relationship is. And that's why I put in to work this unit. So I've been here for five years and I plan on being here until I retire. Pamela Waltermire: Well, I found my passion working with survivors, making sure that they were heard and that they knew their rights. Advocates are confidential and if there's something that they don't want to report or don't want an officer to know, then that's going to stay safe with an advocate. And our response advocates, they speak several languages. Officer Heather Hughes: We want them to know that whatever they need, we'll try to meet that need so we can get them to the safe place and they can have healthy boundaries and healthy relationships and healthy environment and kind of be able to move on. There's resources and help out there for you. That there are people that want to assist you however you want to be assisted. And sometimes it's knowing that you have a group of people that our biggest concern is your safety and our biggest concern is keeping you safe and helping you end that cycle of violence that a lot of people are in. Pamela Waltermire: There is hope and there is help. Reach out. Don't be afraid. There are people out there that care and there are people out there that do want to help you.