Family Justice Centers

Monarch Justice Center is part of a growing movement of Family Justice Centers across the country. Today, there are over 100 FJCs in the United States, 26 of these are in California serving over 70,000 victims of interpersonal violence each year, including over 20,000 children.

What is a Family Justice Center?

Family Justice Centers are multi-agency, multi-disciplinary centers that provide one-stop, comprehensive, compassionate services to victims of inter-personal violence including, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder or dependent adult abuse, and human trafficking. Both public and private partner agencies assign staff on a full-time or part-time basis to provide legal, medical, therapeutic, and social services from the Family Justice Center.

Why Family Justice Centers?

FJCs focus on reducing the number of times victims need to tell their story; reduce the number of places victims must go for help; and increase access to vital services and support for victims and their families to help them stay safe, heal, and thrive.

FJCs may be comprised of, but are not limited to:

• Community-based rape crisis, domestic violence, and human trafficking advocates
• Law enforcement personnel
• Medical personnel
• District attorneys and city attorneys
• Victim-witness program personnel
• Domestic violence shelter service staff
• Social service agency staff members
• Child welfare agency social workers
• County health department staff
• City or county public assistance workers
• Mental health professionals
• Civil legal service providers

Without a FJC, a victim survivor may have to go to over 23 places to receive services and legal support, all while telling their story over and over again and reliving their trauma in settings that are often scary or intimidating to survivors of abuse.

An FJC offers survivors a safe space to tell their story to a trained navigator who makes the process understandable and as comfortable as possible. In the same office, the navigator can introduce the survivor to a community of professionals in victim advocacy, civil law, mental health, prosecution, law enforcement, trauma recovery and more, who will work with the survivor and their family to coordinate the best way to help serve the survivor and their family–providing comprehensive, continuous, and seamless care all in one place.