How domestic violence help works in AtlantaA short guide: who to call first and what to expect.
You do not need a plan to call. The people who answer talk with those who are staying, those who are leaving and those who are not sure. Calls are free and private, and nothing happens unless you say so.
For a safe place to stay, call one of those lines. Shelter addresses are kept secret, so you get in by phone. If one shelter is full, the advocate calls others for you.
For a protective order, go to the superior court in the county where the person who hurt you lives. Filing is free and you do not need a lawyer. A judge can sign a temporary order the same day, and a hearing follows within 30 days. Advocates at the courthouse help you fill out the papers.
Some groups serve one community and speak its languages. Raksha serves South Asian survivors. Tapestri serves immigrants and refugees. Caminar Latino serves Latino families, and Baitul Salaam serves Muslim families. If you have a pet you can't leave behind, Ahimsa House cares for it until you are safe.
If the person checks your phone, call from a friend's phone or from a library, and clear this page from your history.
Not One More Domestic Violence Victim is a nonprofit that helps people hurt by domestic violence and sex trafficking. It offers a crisis line, support groups, help with restraining orders, and help finding resources. It also teaches the community about abuse. The website says its programs are free and private.
Atlanta Victim Assistance is a nonprofit that has helped crime victims since 1984. Trained advocates work with Atlanta police, the city's municipal court, and some schools. They help people stay safe, understand the court process, and find support. Services are free, and you do not have to report the crime or have an arrest to get help.
Day League helps people in DeKalb County who have been sexually assaulted, whether it happened last night or years ago. It is part of Women's Resource Center to End Domestic Violence. A trained advocate answers the hotline at any hour, and free help includes counselling, support groups, legal advocacy and an advocate who can go with you to the hospital.
This is the Fulton County District Attorney's office, led by Fani T. Willis. It has divisions for domestic violence cases and for special victims cases such as sexual assault and child abuse. The pages show the team and news about its cases, but give no steps for getting help.
Raksha is an Atlanta-area nonprofit that has helped the South Asian American community since 1995. It gives free, private help to survivors of family violence, sexual assault and other crime, including adults and children. Staff can talk with you in English and several South Asian languages.
The Georgia Commission on Family Violence is a state commission that works to cut domestic violence and the deaths it causes. It helps set the rules for court-ordered classes for people who harm family members, trains law enforcement, studies family violence in Georgia, and has a project for survivors of murder-suicide.
This group helps survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in the Atlanta area. It has 24-hour hotlines, a private safe house, support groups, and legal help. It is changing its name to In Safe Company, so you may see either name.
Game Changing Men is a group that supports masculine-presenting people, including transgender men, men of color, and men who have been in jail or prison. It offers support groups, workshops, a 24-week class on family violence for male-identified people, mentoring for people inside jails and prisons, a yearly retreat, and a youth leadership program.
The Mayor’s Office of Violence Reduction is an Atlanta city office that works with community groups to prevent gun violence and make neighborhoods safer. It coordinates youth violence prevention, support for people returning from incarceration, domestic violence awareness, and human trafficking prevention.
This is the office that prosecutes felony crimes in DeKalb County. Its Victim Services staff guide and support people hurt by crime, give crisis counseling, send court notices, and make referrals. The office also runs diversion programs that let some people avoid a regular prosecution.
This is the DeKalb County office that prosecutes misdemeanor crimes, such as domestic violence, drunk driving, stalking and elder abuse. Its victim advocates help crime victims and their families understand their rights and the court process. They also point people to counseling and other services.
Tapestri helps immigrant and refugee survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking, and sexual abuse in Georgia. They offer case management, crisis counseling, legal advocacy, and referrals. They also train service providers and run a program for men. They are not a shelter and do not have housing on site, but they can connect people to shelters and housing through their referral network.
Karibu Community Legacy is a nonprofit in Tucker that helps people who have faced sexual or domestic violence. It focuses on African immigrant and refugee communities, but it says it serves anyone who needs help. It offers advocacy, counseling, legal support, support groups, and help in many languages, and says its services are free.
GCADV is Georgia's statewide group for domestic violence help. It runs a free hotline that is open all day and night, and it works with more than 50 local programs across the state. It also trains those programs, helps Deaf and hard of hearing survivors, and works to change laws that affect survivors.
Tahirih Justice Center is a national nonprofit with an office in Atlanta that gives free, private legal and social services to immigrants who have faced violence because of their gender, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, forced marriage or trafficking. Its lawyers help with immigration cases like asylum, VAWA, T visas, U visas and special immigrant juvenile status, and its social services team helps with safety planning and connecting to other help. The Atlanta office serves survivors across Georgia. They do not take walk-ins, so start by calling.
Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation (AVLF) is a nonprofit that gives free legal help to qualified people. It helps with eviction and landlord problems and with protective orders for survivors of intimate partner abuse. Help starts with a phone call, not a visit to the main office.
Securus House, also called the Clayton County Association Against Family Violence, has helped people escape domestic abuse since 1984. It runs a crisis line that answers all day and night and an emergency shelter for women and their children. It also gives legal advocacy, case management, support groups, and a children's program.
Struggling Kids is a small charity started by Dr. Gary Stillwagon, a doctor in Atlanta. It gives food, clothing and other hands-on help to poor children, and it runs a free center for abused and abandoned women and their children in Nikolaev, Ukraine. Its website says it focuses on Ukraine and metro Atlanta, but the pages describe no Atlanta program.
Ser Familia is a nonprofit that helps families, especially Spanish-speaking Latino families, in Georgia. It offers counseling, parenting and couples classes, youth workshops, tutoring, and support for people hurt by domestic violence. The site says all of its programs and services are free.
This is the housing voucher office of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA). It helps very low income people and families pay rent for homes in the private market. DCA pays part of the rent straight to the landlord. It also runs special vouchers for groups such as young adults leaving foster care, veterans, and people who are homeless.
