Grant will help victims of domestic violence

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (AP) -- Prosecutors in western Massachusetts have received a $300,000 federal grant to help prevent domestic violence.

Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan says his office received the grant through the U.S. Justice Department's Office on Violence Against Women.

The grant will fund a full-time coordinator position, a victim/witness advocate to be part of a high-risk team and a part-time domestic violence prosecutor. They will work with prosecutors and police on prosecutions and high-risk assessments.

The high-risk team was established in 2010 in response to a district-wide increase in serious domestic violence offenses. It is a collaboration of the DA's office, police departments, probation, parole and sheriffs' departments, emergency dispatch, bail commissioners, victim advocacy organizations and the state Department of Children and Families.