A public information release from the office of Cobb County District Attorney Flynn D. Broady Jr. announced that a planning session was held for the future Cobb Family Advocacy Center, and that a possible site for the center has been identified.

According to a previous public information release from the DA’s office:

As a public safety model, this multi-disciplinary and multi-agency initiative responds to the critical needs of victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, child, and elder abuse.

The planning for the advocacy center began when Cobb became one of the three Georgia counties to be given 4-year Victims of Crimes Act (VOCA) grants from the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) to set up Family Justice Centers.

In January Broady announced that Cobb County’s Family Justice Center will be named the Family Advocacy Center.

This first Strategic Planning Event was facilitated by Casey Gwinn, Gael Strack, and Dr. Denise McCain.

Gwinn is the president of Alliance for HOPE International and according to the public information release “is one of the visionaries of the rapidly expanding Family Justice Center movement.”

Strack is the CEO of Alliance for HOPE International and ran the first Family Justice Center, created in San Diego in 2002.

According to the news release:

District Attorney Broady invited the Alliance team to help the Cobb Family Advocacy Center continue the planning process for a Family Justice Center to help survivors of family violence and their families get the resources and support they need at one location – bringing together police officers, prosecutors, advocates, therapists, civil attorneys, community volunteers, and many others.

Gwinn and Strack led participants through training that will assist in establishing the multi-agency center for victims. Participants discussed the funding and sustainability, community outreach, governance, and data collection necessary for the center’s success.

“Without a question, Cobb County is uniquely positioned to move forward in the development of a Family Justice Center,” Gwinn said. “The need is clear, the commitment of key partner agencies to participate in the model is strong, and key leaders all appear to support the emerging vision for a Family Justice Center.”

“I am very excited for us to be taking this next step in the planning process,” Broady said. “I am pleased by the support and the understanding of the need for the FAC shown by our county and municipal leaders. We have identified a possible site location. We are hopeful to able to secure it and make an announcement about it soon.”