Family Justice Center opens at health sciences campus


The LAC+USC Medical Center at the Health Sciences Campus unveiled its new Family Justice Center, a facility housed at the medical center that will provide services for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and child and elder abuse.

Photo from LA Mayor’s Office website.

The center was developed in partnership with the County of Los Angeles and the City of Los Angeles, and is based upon the nationally recognized Family Justice Center Alliance model, according to a press release from L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.

According to L.A. Supervisor Hilda Solis’ website, the center is only the second of its kind in L.A. County.

After Solis proposed using the LAC+USC Medical Center for the project, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors approved the center in June, according to Solis’ website. 

The center is designed to address all of the needs of victims in one place. Besides medical services, the Family Justice Center will also provide law enforcement resources and social services, the release said.

The Board of Supervisors designated 5,400 square feet for the East Los Angeles Women’s Center, which will provide temporary shelter for victims and help them transition out of dangerous situations. They also designated 4,750 square feet for the Los Angeles Police Department, where victims can seek legal recourse with onsite police officers and investigators, according to minutes taken at the Board of Supervisors meeting where the board approved the proposal.

“These men and women need a place of refuge where they can find comfort, guidance and all the services they need in one place,” Garcetti said at the facility opening, according to the release. “Together with our county partners, we have created this new Family Justice Center to give victims and their families the help and relief they deserve.”

By bringing together these services in one place, the Family Justice Center hopes to provide more effective and efficient aid to those in need.

“Too often, women and their families are driven into homelessness by domestic violence,” said Los Angeles City Councilmember José Huizar at the facility opening. “The Family Justice Center will help us respond to this horrific abuse and give domestic violence victims the support and security they need today, and the hope and inspiration they will surely need tomorrow.”

According to the press release, the Family Justice Center is the first step toward future projects in partnership with the LAC+USC Medical Center.

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