Family Advocacy Program
Building 3338, Redeye Rd256-876-5397
Operating Hours: Monday through Friday 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Purpose of program :
To prevent spouse and child abuse and neglect, encourage reporting of all instances of abuse, ensure prompt assessment and investigation of all reports, provide safety for victims of abuse and provide support services and treatment for victims, family members and offenders.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The Army's Family Advocacy Program (FAP) is a vigorous proactive program which consists of prevention education programs and procedures for identification, reporting, investigation and treatment. Although FAP coordinates the legal, law enforcement, social services and medical aspects of family violence on the installation, program responsibilities are primarily divided at the installation between Army Community Service (ACS) and Medical Treatment Facility (MTF) staffs. The FAP at ACS provides education, training and other prevention activities and the MTF provides assessment and treatment .
The primary goal is to prevent abuse by providing a variety of services to strengthen Army families and enhance resiliency. The goal is supported by a system that allows the identification of abuse as early as possible, timely reporting, and intervention through rehabilitation and treatment. This process does not preclude disciplinary and administrative actions against soldiers.
NEW: The Army offers 2 Reporting Options for Victims of Domestic Violence.
1)Unrestricted Reporting: Allows the victim to receive medical treatment, including a forensic examination, counseling, and support services. The incident is reported to appropriate legal and command authorities. An investigation is completed to ensure the safety and well-being of the victim and other family members who may be at risk from harm. The offender's responsibility in the incident will be investigated.
2)Restricted Reporting: Allows the victim, on a confidential basis, to disclose details of the incident/assault only to specified individuals and receives all services. Law enforcement and the soldier's commander are not contacted. Medical treatment, including a forensic examination, counseling and other support services are offered to the victim. This option gives the victim time to receive relevant information and support, in order to make a more informed decision about reporting the domestic abuse to the commander and being willing to participate in a criminal investigation.
There are exceptions to the restricted reporting option. Two of the exceptions include: if a child is being abused and/or neglected the local child protection agency must be contacted or if the victim or others in the home are at risk for serious injury or death then a report must be made to local authorities.
To discuss the options of domestic violence, contact the Domestic Violence Victim Advocate, at (256) 876-5397 during duty hours or at (256) 508-6613 after duty hours.
AUTHORITY
Public Law 97-291,Victims and Witness Protection Act of 1982
Requires additional protection to victims and witness in Federal cases and Federal agencies to assist victims within limits of available resources. Local Judge Advocate has proponency.
Public Law 101-647, Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1990, Criminal History Background Checks
Requires Federal agencies to conduct background history checks on individuals working in childcare services.
Public Law 101-189, Title 15, Military Child Care Act of 1990
Requires DoD to maintain a hotline for reporting of child safety and abuse violations and authorizes specially trained teams of professionals to assist installations in responding to child sexual abuse cases.
Public Law 103-209, National Child Protection Act of 1993
Requires the establishment of a national criminal history background check system for child sexual offenders.
DoDD 6400.1, Family Advocacy Program
Requires the Services to establish family advocacy programs. DoDI 6400.1-M requires the Services to comply with 62 quality assurance standards for the FAP.
DoDI 6400.2, Child and Spouse Abuse Report
Requires the Services to analyze and report data on child and spouse abuse semi-annually.
DoDI 6400.3, Family Advocacy Command Assistance Team
Requires the Services to prevent child sexual abuse in out-of-home settings, respond to allegations using a coordinated multi-disciplinary approach, prosecute perpetrators, train and maintain a team of specially trained personnel to assist in assessment and investigation of such case and report out-of-home child sexual abuse cases within 72 hours to OSD.
DoDI 1402.5, Criminal History Background Checks on Individuals in ChildCare Services
Requires FBI-ID fingerprints and checks against state criminal history repositories for all individuals providing child care service.
AR 608-18, Army Family Advocacy Program
Provides operational procedures and policies for the FAP.
PARTNERSHIPS
The FAP partnerships include being:
- The commander's primary source of FAP information and prevention strategies.
- A key member of the Army community's FAP multi-disciplinary case review and policy team.
- A participant in the civilian community's domestic violence and child abuse prevention and intervention efforts.
- An advocate with soldiers and family members for strong Army families.
- A sponsor for training in family violence prevention and intervention.
TRANSITIONAL COMPENSATION
Congress established the Transitional Compensation (TC) program for abused dependents of military personnel in FY 94 in order to reduce disincentives for victims to report abuse. The Judge Advocate coordinates this program.
QUALITY ASSURANCE and Accreditation
Monitor, ensure the installation is in compliance with DoD FAP Quality Assurance (QA) standards and meets accreditation standards.
PARENTING
Parenting the Adolescent
Effective Parenting For the 5 to 12 Year Old Child
Effective Parenting For Young Children: 1 to 4
Strengthening Your Stepfamily
Anger and Stress Management Classes
