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Introduction
Family justice centers (FJCs) are defined as “multi-agency, multi-disciplinary co-located service centers that provide services to victims of interpersonal violence” that have, at minimum, “onsite victim advocacy, law enforcement and prosecution services and centralized intake processes” (Family Justice Center Alliance, 2019, paragraphs 1 and 5). The FJC framework was developed and has been championed by Casey Gwinn and Gael Strack, who has published research and conducted professional training extensively, as they originated the model in San Diego (Gwinn and Hellman, 2018; Gwinn and Strack, 2006; Gwinn et al., 2007; Gwinn and Strack, 2010); Gwinn and Strack, 2012; Hellman et al., 2017). The initial growth of the FJC movement was supported by the 2003 President’s Family Justice Center Initiative by President George W. Bush, which allocated $20m to launch 15 FJCs across the USA (US Department of Justice, 2007). The FJC model has expanded rapidly, as that time across the USA and internationally, with a total of 34 centers in the USA that are formally affiliated with the Family Justice Center Alliance as of September 18, 2020 (Family Justice Center Alliance, 2020) and many other communities across the US and the world are currently in the process of planning and developing FJCs. The model has been adapted to different types of communities, including rural and urban areas.
Despite the rapid growth of the FJC movement, there is a need for much more research to document the impact of FJCs on victims and survivors, professionals working in FJCs and the broader community (Abt Associates, 2018; Family Justice Center Alliance, 2013a; Murray et al., 2014). The current article focuses on perspectives of professionals who serve victims of family and interpersonal violence, and this article includes the results of a four-year, cross-sectional survey of professionals working in a community that established an FJC. Community-based professionals who serve individuals impacted by interpersonal violence represent an important stakeholder group for understanding the impact of FJCs. With its emphasis on integrated service delivery and cross-disciplinary collaboration, the FJC model creates significant shifts in how professionals work, so their views can influence the effective implementation of the model. Moreover, because professionals are on the front lines of serving community members impacted by violence, their perspectives offer important insights into...