Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Domestic violence court to get funding

The Nevada attorney general's office is expected to make funds available to help create a pilot domestic violence court for district Court in Clark County.

Nicole Moon, public information offi- cer for the attorney general's office, says it is currently working to make $60,000 available to assist in funding the court. She said while the money might not be enough to solely fund the court, the attorney general's office hopes the county might chip in to help establish it.

The money will be allocated from the Violence Against Women Act, which allows for 5 percent of the federal money given to Nevada to combat domestic violence to be targeted to the justice system.

District Judge Nancy Saitta is spearheading the effort behind creating a pilot domestic violence court, a goal she calls so important that she is determined to "do everything I can to make it part of the Clark County court system."

She said that, in a "perfect world," if funding is secured and the court's location and staffing needs are quickly resolved, the pilot court could be up and running in 120 days. Realistically, operations could be six to nine months off.

"We are still in the very early stages of planning," she said.

Saitta has a proven track record in establishing specialty courts. She was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the Construction defect Court in 2001.

New York, Florida, California, Rhode Island and North Carolina have created domestic violence courts, which provide support services for victims and supervision and rehabilitation for offenders.

The court likely would use a dedicated docket method, a less costly structure that involves one or two judges hearing only domestic violence cases during set periods weekly, she said. That system is similar to Clark County's current drug and mental health courts.

Saitta said while the $60,000 could fund a pilot court for nine months, she hopes the county or state might make additional investments.

"Any investment we make that saves even one life is worth it," Saitta said. "No matter what the investment is, it cannot be worth more than preventing a child from witnessing or being the victim of domestic violence. Protecting people from such violence is worth millions of dollars as far as I'm concerned."

The judge said the court could become self-sufficient through fees paid by defendants. Saitta said she first became interested in creating what she describes as a "therapeutic court" to deal specifically with domestic violence cases while she was a Municipal Court judge. On the Municipal Court bench, Saitta said, she was always troubled that while domestic violence cases were arguably the "most serious offenses" to come before her, she was "limited to impose sanctions."

A "therapeutic court," she believes, can "take the essence of the problems, and through education, monitoring and being creative ... find a more appropriate solution.

"You can really know the case and find out what the real issues are and create a new style of case plan," Saitta said.

"In domestic violence court a judge can fully understand the cycle of violence and discover the underlying reasons for the violence," Saitta said.

"A judge will know when to pull the plug, when they've given someone enough chances and also when someone is truly working to put an end to the cycle."

Matt Pordum can be reached at 474-7406 or at [email protected].

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