DA CARE Center Serves as a Resource Hub for Supportive Services (2022)
San Diego County District Attorney’s Office (San Diego, CA)
Population: 3,343,340 | Number of Full-Time Prosecutors: 330 | Contact Information
After evaluating calls for service, crime data, and multiple community focus groups, the San Diego County District Attorney (SDCDA) launched a Community Action and Resource Center located in the heart of its highest need neighborhood. The District Attorney’s CARE center partners with community based organization to direct people to appropriate resources using motivational interviewing and an evidence based assessment tool developed in conjunction with a local university.
The CARE center helps connect people to local community programs and does some program reimbursement, enhancing the breadth of community services. CARE center employees organize and present to a variety of groups on public safety issues. They also connect people to a wide variety of social and emergency services including employment assistance, food, clothing, diapers, childcare and outdoor activities, housing resources, and therapeutic support for those dealing with substance abuse and crime related trauma. The CARE center is staffed with people from a variety of educational and cultural backgrounds, several of whom were recruited from the local community through their work with SDCDA’s Youth Advisory Board or participation as Ameri-Corps VISTA volunteers.