Domestic violence. Sexual assault. Child abuse. Drunk driving.

All of these crimes involve innocent victims.

If the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute authorizes two grant applications, Lisa Smith and Joanna Beatson will serve as on-scene advocates for those victims in northern Kosciusko County 24 hours a day.

Smith will work the day shift and Beatson, victim's assistant with the county prosecutor's office, will work evenings.

"It's actually a pilot program," said Beatson. If it proves successful, she said, they hope to expand the program to the southern part of Kosciusko County.

The victim's assistants will help Syracuse, North Webster and Milford police with non-property crime victims. Their jobs will include helping victims deal with their situation, helping children understand what is happening, transporting victims to a shelter or the hospital and providing community education to various groups, schools and organizations.

Whenever a police officer needs a victim's assistant to help on a case, they will simply contact Smith or Beatson. The evening, Beatson said, "is when most of your domestic violence happens.

"The county needs it because a lot of the victims in the northern part of the county don't have access to the victim's assistance (program) in Warsaw," she said. Victim's assistance is well-covered in Warsaw, but the northern part of the county isn't, and is more than 25 miles from Warsaw.

She said, "A lot of times, the victims up there don't get the services they need because they are embarrassed to talk to male officers."

Beatson and Smith are applying for two different grants, one for each of them. Beatson's grant would be $60,000 for the year and she would need to reapply for the grant every year.

"Once you get the grant, they usually continue it each year," Beatson said.

The towns will need to provide an in-kind match of 20 percent for Beatson's grant. That match can include use of office space or office equipment. Several local organizations are donating equipment, which can count toward the match.

She said, "The more match we get, the more likely we'll get the grant."

They are working to get an unmarked vehicle for the victim's assistants. Anyone who provides a vehicle can receive a tax write-off because the program is not for profit.

Beatson will present the grant application to the Syracuse Town Council March 21 for the council's approval.

"We asked that Syracuse Police Department be the project manager," Beatson said. "All the money would flow into them."

The grant applications are due April 3 and approval should be by June 23. Beatson said they would start July 1.

Beatson, 23, graduated from Grace College in 1998 with a degree in criminal justice and counseling. She interned with the Warsaw Police Department and then worked there part time. In October 1998, Beatson began working at the prosecutor's office.

She became interested in assisting victims when, in the fourth grade, she saw her neighbor get beat up by her husband and the police arrived.

"I remember my neighbor coming over with a broken nose and blood all over her shirt," Beatson said.

A speaker at her high school also influenced her to become a victim's advocate.

She said she really enjoys police work, but didn't want to be an officer.

"I feel like I'm making some kind of impact on society. I realize it's just baby steps ... but I feel like I'm making a difference. If I can help just one person, that's one person that wouldn't otherwise be helped," Beatson said.

For more information on the program, contact Syracuse Town Marshal Tom Perzanowski at 457-3366 or Beatson at 372-2463. [[In-content Ad]]