Emergency housing for victims of domestic violence coming to Ascension Parish – The Advocate

New emergency housing for women and their families escaping domestic violence in Ascension Parish is coming to the parish in a new initiative by the IRIS Domestic Violence Center of Baton Rouge and the Ascension Sheriff's Office.

The new emergency housing that will provide a 45-day stay is a way to help Ascension Parish children stay in their schools, said Sheriff Bobby Webre and the IRIS interim director Keysha Robinson.

"If we have housing units that, at a moment's notice, will be available to house a woman and her children, they don't have to change schools," said Webre, who reached out to Robinson recently about the possibility of bringing such a shelter to Ascension. "We wanted to see if it was possible."

The nonprofit IRIS Domestic Violence Center serves women and their children from eight parishes at its shelter in Baton Rouge and will continue to serve victims of domestic violence from Ascension Parish there, after the new shelter housing is available in the parish, Robinson said.

"We do get a lot of phone calls from Ascension Parish, where parents are reluctant to relocate and take their children out of school," she said. "That is a big barrier to their leaving."

The fast-growing Ascension Parish public school system has historically been one of the top-rated districts in the state and has grown by about 300 students every year for the last 10 years.

Webre said the Ascension Sheriff's Office will be working with the nonprofit IRIS Domestic Violence Center to find housing for the new shelter in the parish and will provide labor for anything that might be needed in the way of improvements for the home.

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"I think that would be a great resource for Ascension Parish," Webre said.

Seven years ago, the Ascension Sheriff's Office revamped its protocols in its response to domestic violence incidents, after the parish saw a string of murders in several of those cases.

Webre, who was then chief of criminal operations, helped put into place several new procedures, including one that was especially significant.

Deputies responding to a domestic violence call now ask victims several key questions.If a victim answers yes to any, the officer immediately helps them get in touch with IRIS, which, in addition to providing federally funded housing, offers counseling and legal advice and representation.

Robinson said that IRIS is also working with the Baton Rouge-based Capital Area Family Justice Center to bring what's called transitional housing for up to a year for victims of domestic violence in the eight parishes it serves, which, in addition to Ascension Parish, includes East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, West Baton and West Feliciana parishes.

"Housing is the No. 1 reason victims have to return to their abuser," Robinson said.

The 24-hour hotline number for the IRIS Domestic Violence Center is (225) 389-3001 or 1-800-541-9706; there is also a national, 24-hour hotline number, 1-800-799-7233.

Originally posted here:

Emergency housing for victims of domestic violence coming to Ascension Parish - The Advocate