Domestic Violence Response Team

 

Domestic Violence Victims: 

Help is available 24 hours a day.  Contact the Holmdel Police Department at 732-946-4400 or 180’s Domestic Violence Hotline at 732-264-4111

Domestic Violence, It Is Your Business

In 2001, the Holmdel Township Police Department, in conjunction with 180 - Turning Lives Around, established the Holmdel Domestic Violence Response Team. Members cover individual shifts, allowing the Team to be on-call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. These volunteers educate, inform, and emotionally assist victims immediately following a domestic violence incident. During 2006 the Holmdel Police Department responded to 104 domestic violence incidents.

Some questions prospective volunteers may have:

Q. I don’t know anything about being a domestic violence victim advocate, what will I say to the victim? 

A. After filling out an application, and passing an interview process, training is provided by 180 and the Holmdel Police. You will be trained as an “victim advocate counselor” and will be taught exactly what needs to be done and said to victim’s of Domestic Violence. 

Q. Do I need to stay at home near the phone when I am on call? 

A. No. You will be issued a pager so you do not need to stay by the phone. When you are on-call we ask that you be able to respond to Police Headquarters within 20 minutes.  

Q. How often will I be on call? 

A. Currently, shifts are 12 hours long, which means there are 14 shifts per week. At the present time the DVRT has 14 members, so each member averages around 1 shift per week.  

Q. What if I know the victim? Won’t they be embarrassed to speak with me? 

A. When you are paged by Police Headquarters, you return the call. At this time, you may ask the name of the victim. If you know them and feel uncomfortable, you can ask to have another volunteer handle the call. However, since the team was established, this has happened infrequently, and when it has, the victim is usually happy to see someone they know and have never turned the advocate away.  

Anyone interested in becoming a member of Holmdel’s Domestic Violence Response Team is asked to contact Captain John Mioduszewski at 732-946-9690 ext 1723 or jmiod@holmdelpolice.org. An application can be e-mailed to you or sent through the mail.

Prospective Applicants Must:

• Be 18 years or older.
• Reside in, or work within, the area of Holmdel Township.
• Possess a valid New Jersey Driver’s License and have available transportation.
• Undergo a criminal history screening.