Safety Plan for Victims of Domestic Violence

Developed by Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence


This safety plan is for victims of domestic violence. Safety planning helps develop tools in advance of potentially dangerous situations. Choose only the suggestions listed here that make sense for your set of circumstances.

SAFETY DURING AN EXPLOSIVE INCIDENT

Go to an area that has an exit.
Not a bathroom (near hard surfaces), kitchen (knives), or near weapons.

Stay in a room with a phone.
Call 911, a friend or a neighbor, if possible. Inform them if there are weapons in the home.

Know your escape route.
Practice how to get out of your home safely. Visualize your escape route.

Have a packed bag ready.
Keep it hidden in a handy place in order to leave quickly, or leave the bag elsewhere if the abuser searches your home.

Devise a code word or signal.
Tell your children, grandchildren or neighbors so you can communicate to them that you need the police.

Know where you're going.
Plan where you will go if you have to leave home, even if you don't think you'll need to.

Trust your judgment.
Consider anything that you feel will keep you safe and give you time to figure out what to do next. Sometimes it is best to flee, and sometimes it is best to placate the abuser - anything that works to protect yourself and the children.

SAFETY WHEN PREPARING TO LEAVE

LEAVING CAN BE THE MOST DANGEROUS TIME!

Have a safe place to stay.
Make sure it is a place that can protect you and your children or grandchildren.

Call a domestic violence victim service program.
Find out which services and shelters are available as options if you need them. Keep their address and phone number close at hand at all times.

Find someone you trust.
Leave money, extra keys, copies of important documents and clothing with them in advance, so you can leave quickly, if necessary.

Open a savings account.
Put it in your name only, to increase your independence. Consider direct deposit from your paycheck or benefit check.

Review your safety plan.
Study and check your plans as often as possible in order to know the safest way to leave the abuser.

Concerns about immigration status.
You may qualify under a law called the Violence Against Women Act. Talk to an immigration expert (not Immigration and Customs Enforcement) or your local domestic violence victim services program for more information. (See "Kansas Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline Numbers" below.)

IF YOU DECIDE TO LEAVE, TAKE WITH YOU. . .


SAFETY IN YOUR OWN HOME (If the abuser does not live with you)

Upgrade your security system.
Change the locks on doors and windows as soon as possible. Consider a security service, window bars, better lighting, smoke detectors and fire extinguishers.

Have a safety plan.
Teach your children or grandchildren how to call the police or someone they can trust. Have a secret code word that you and your children agree on - to communicate trouble and for the people who are allowed to pick the children up.

Change your phone number.
Screen your calls if you have an answering machine or caller ID. Save all messages with threats or that violate any orders. Contact your local phone company about getting an unpublished number.

Talk to neighbors and landlord.
Inform them that the abuser no longer lives with you and that they should call the police if they see the abuser near your home.

Get legal advice.
Find a lawyer knowledgeable about domestic violence to explore custody, visitation and divorce provisions that protect you and the children. Discuss getting a restraining order as an option. The abuser may be mandated to a batterers' intervention program. Talk with the program to find out more about potential risks to you while the abuser participates. Additionally, contact your local domestic violence victim services program. (See "Kansas Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline Numbers" below.)

SAFETY AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH

Get support.
Call a domestic violence crisis help-line and/or attend a women's or victims' support group for at least two weeks to gain support from others and learn more about yourself and the relationship with the abuser.

Do what is safe for you.
If you have to communicate with the abuser, arrange to do so in the way that makes you feel safe - whether by phone, mail or in the company of another person.

SAFETY AND YOUR CHILDREN

Tell schools and childcare.
Let them know who has permission to pick up the child/ren and give them your code word. Discuss with them other special provisions to protect you and your child/ren. Provide a picture of the abuser if possible.

Exchange child/ren in a safe place.
Find a safe place to exchange the child/ren for visitation. Some communities have specific locations just for this purpose. Contact your local domestic violence victim services program for more information. (see “Kansas Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline Numbers”)

YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN DESERVE TO BE SAFE!

SAFETY ON THE JOB

Tell somebody.
Decide whom at work you will inform of your situation, especially if you have a Protection From Abuse Order (PFA). This may include office security if available. Provide a picture of the abuser if possible. It is your right to request and expect confidentiality from those you disclose to.

Screen your calls.
Arrange to have someone screen and log your telephone calls if possible.

Make a safety plan.
Create a safety plan for when you enter and leave your work place. Have someone escort you to your vehicle or other transportation.

If you and the abuser work at the same place, discuss with your supervisor your options regarding scheduling, safety precautions, employee/family benefits.

Contact your local domestic violence victim services program (see “Kansas Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline Numbers”) to receive additional information about workplace safety.

In an Emergency
Call 911

For support, call the domestic violence program nearest you (see "Kansas Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline Numbers" below), the Kansas Statewide Hotline at 888-END ABUSE (363-2287), or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE (7233).


KANSAS SEXUAL and DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HELPLINE NUMBERS

Programs are listed below the map, alphabetically by city, services provided, program names and their HOTLINE phone numbers. The numbers on the map correspond to the programs listed. Call the program nearest you. You do not have to live in the city where the program is located to use their services.

Kansas map with areas of service covered by domestic violence and sexual assault advocacy programs
DV = domestic violence services provided    SA = sexual assault services provided

CITY SERVICES KCSDV MEMBER PROGRAM CRISIS HOTLINE NUMBER
1. Atchison DV/SA DoVES 800-367-7075 or 913-367-0363
2. Dodge City DV/SA Crisis Center of Dodge City 620-225-6510
3. El Dorado DV/SA Family Life Center of Butler County 800-870-6967 or 316-321-7104
4. Emporia DV/SA SOS, Inc. 800-825-1295 or 620-342-1870
5. Garden City DV/SA Family Crisis Services 800-275-0535 or 620-275-5911
6. Great Bend DV/SA Family Crisis Center 866-792-1885 or 620-792-1885
7. Hays DV/SA Northwest Kansas Domestic and Sexual Violence Services 800-794-4624 or 785-625-3055
8. Hutchinson DV/SA Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Center 800-701-3630 or 620-663-2522
9. Iola DV/SA Hope Unlimited 620-365-7566
10. Kansas City, KS DV El Centro, Inc. ¡Si Se Puede! 913-677-0177
11. Kansas City, KS DV Friends of Yates Joyce Williams Center 913-321-0951
12. Kansas City, MO DV/SA KCAVP 816-561-0550
13. Kansas City, MO SA MOCSA 816-531-0233
14. Lawrence SA GaDuGi Safe Center 785-841-2345
15. Lawrence DV Women's Transitional Care Services 800-770-3030 or 785-843-3333
16. Leavenworth DV/SA Alliance Against Family Violence 800-644-1441 or 913-682-9131
17. Liberal DV/SA Liberal Area Rape Crisis and DV Services 620-624-8818
18. Manhattan DV/SA The Crisis Center, Inc. 800-727-2785 or 785-539-2785
19. Mayetta DV/SA Prairie Band Potawatomi Family Violence Prevention Program 866-966-0173 or 785-966-2932
20. Newton DV/SA Harvey County DV/SA Task Force 800-487-0510 or 316-283-0350
21. Overland Park DV/SA Safehome 888-432-4300 or 913-262-2868
22. Pittsburg DV/SA Crisis Resource Center of Southeast Kansas, Inc. 800-794-9148 or 620-231-8251
23. Salina DV/SA Domestic Violence Assoc. of Central Kansas 800-874-1499 or 785-827-5862
24. Topeka DV/SA YWCA Battered Women Task Force 888-822-2983 or 785-354-7927
25. Ulysses DV/SA DoVES of Grant County 888-229-8812 or 620-356-2608
26. Wichita DV Catholic Charities Harbor House 866-899-5522 or 316-263-6000
27. Wichita DV StepStone 316-265-1611
28. Wichita SA Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center 316-263-3002
29. Wichita DV YWCA Women's Crisis Center 316-267-7233
30. Winfield DV/SA Safe Homes, Inc. 800-794-7672 or 620-221-4357


This project was partially funded by the Federal Violence Against Women Act, awarded by the Federal Violence Against Women Grants Office and the Office of Justice Programs of the U.S. Department of Justice and the State Protection from Abuse Fund as administered by Kansas Attorney General Carla J. Stovall, awarded by the Violence Against Women Office, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, recommendations or points of view expressed in this publication are those of the author, KCSDV, and do not necessarily represent or reflect the official position or policies of the Office of the Kansas Attorney General or the U.S. Department of Justice.



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