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Good news came for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking in Iowa.  The U.S. Department of Justice awarded Iowa Legal Aid a grant through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).  The money will fund the new Iowa Advocacy for Survivors Project at Iowa Legal Aid.  What is the Iowa Advocacy for Survivors Project and what will it do?

The Project has lawyers working part-time in all ten regional offices of Iowa Legal Aid.  These lawyers provide legal services to low-income survivors and their families in all counties of the state.  Iowa Legal Aid will provide help with family law  issues common in cases of domestic abuse.  These cases include protective orders, divorces, custody, and safe visitation arrangements.  The Project also helps victims with other legal problems.  Survivors benefit from legal help including advice and representation to get public benefits, safe shelter and help for consumer scams.

One woman's case shows how these legal services can help.  We'll call her Anna.  Anna has four children.  Her husband physically abused her for years. Iowa Legal Aid helped Anna get a protective order to keep her and the children safe.  Iowa Legal Aid also helped her get an order to require the husband to pay child support.  Now the family could have financial independence.  A few months later, Anna almost lost her subsidized housing.  Her husband was arrested close to her apartment, for driving with a suspended license. The housing agency was going to stop giving Anna financial help with her rent, claiming the arrest was a crime that compromised the health and safety of others.  At the time, he was not living with her and she had tried to keep him away from her home. Iowa Legal Aid represented Anna in unsuccessful negotiations with the housing agency. It then sued the agency, asking the court to reverse the agency's decision to evict Anna.  The agency then settled the case, and the  settlement let Anna and her children keep their subsidy. They could stay in safe, affordable housing, and did not become homeless.

Lawyers with the Project work closely with other sources of help to address the full range of problems that survivors face. They work with local domestic violence and sexual assault programs, the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and faith-based and community groups.  The Project is also starting to work with local banks to teach survivors how to avoid consumer rip-offs like predatory lending.  Help may also come from other lawyers in private, government or corporate practice through Volunteer Lawyers Projects.  Their pro bono legal assistance to survivors supplements the Project's work.

Iowa Legal Aid expects the Project, working with its partners, to greatly enhance the safety, resources and hope for many low-income Iowa survivors and their families. The demand for this help is great and providing help to all who need it is an ongoing challenge because the number of lawyers is limited. Assisting low-income Iowans facing the problem of domestic violence is a high priority for Iowa Legal Aid. To find out which regional office serves your county, call 1-800-532-1275 (Español 1-800-272 0008) or go to the Iowa Legal Aid website at www.iowalegalaid.org.

Iowa Advocacy for Survivors Project is supported by Grant #2005-WL-AX-0018, awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. Points of view in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.