New partnership has goal to end intimate violence

During a luncheon held at the River House in St Augustine on Thursday, Kent Justice was emcee for the launch of a newly organized team of law enforcement and citizen agencies whose mission is to reduce violence in the community on a case-by-case basis.

The partnership is known as InVEST; an acronym that will be used to identify the Intimate Violence Enhanced Services Team.

“During Thursday’s event, the program asked for each person in the audience to pledge and promise to be part of the solution to end all forms of violence,” Justice reported in a televised interview for WJXT in Jacksonville.

InVEST is a partnership among several agencies including the St Johns County Sheriff’s Office, the State Attorney’s Office, and advocates for victims of domestic violence.

InVEST members will work with representatives from the Betty Griffin Center; as together, they investigate cases managed by the new partnership.

The Betty Griffin Center helpline number is 904-824-1555. The Florida Domestic Violence hotline number is 1-800-500-1119.