Safety Planning

If you are living in a violent home:

* Decide and plan where you will go if you have to leave your home

* Practice how to get out of your home safely, with alternate routes

* If you feel as if an incident is about to occur and you cannot or choose not to leave, try to move to a room with access to a phone. Stay away from rooms that do not have an exit and rooms such as kitchens and/or garage with items that could be used as weapons.

* Teach your children how they can stay safe during an incident

* Talk to one or more neighbors you can trust, ask them to call 911 if they hear a disturbance

* Have a code word or signal to use with your children, family, friends, neighbors and co-workers when you need help

* Teach your children how to call 911 and provide them with access to a cell phone if possible. Free emergency cell phones are available at the YWCA (345-6555) and Victim Assistance Unit (444-4597)

* Use your own instincts and judgement. If the situation is dangerous, do whatever is necessary to stay safe

* Be safe when using cell phones and computers- they can be tracked. Use computers at a public location, using free e-mail accounts. Regardless of whether you choose to stay or leave the relationship, a domestic violence advocate can support and assist you with safety planning.

If you decide to leave your home:

* Update your safety plan

* Leave items such as those listed at the bottom of this page with a trusted friend or family member or take them with you

* Open a bank acount/credit cards in your name only

* Take your pets with you if possible, and if not contact a local shelter to care for them. Nebraska Humane Society (444-7800)

* Remember that leaving your abuser is a very difficult, dangerous time. Reach out to people for support and help staying safe

If you have a protection order:

* Keep a copy of your protection order with you at all times, plus copies of orders and a photo of the abuser: in your car’s glove box, with friends, with your employer or school, and at your children’s school or daycare

* Inform others, such as your clergy person, doctor, and neighbors, that you have a protection order and if they see the abuser near you, to call the police

* Call the police if the abuser violates the protection order

* Keep evidence of protection order violations, such as email, voicemails and notes. Provide them to the police and/or sheriff, and the County Attorney

If you have left your home:

* Update your safety plan

* Change your access codes and locks to your home and mailbox. Consider installing a security system

* Tell friends, neighbors, and landlord that the abuser no longer lives in the home. Ask them to call the police if they see him or her near you or your home

* Inform school and caregivers who is allowed to pick the children up and when

* Change your routine. Take different route to work, home, school, and businesses when possible. Plan what you would do if you were followed

* Have someone escort you to your car or bus, and wait until you are safely on your way

* Protect your social security number. If necessary, consult with an attorney about changing it

* Protect your voicemail, email passwords, and PIN numbers. Change them often

* If you are involved in a court case, require that all contact be made through attorneys

* If you must have contact with the abuser, take measures to make it feel as safe as possible- including public meetings, third party, or law enforcement presence

If you plan to leave, keep important items and documents in a safe place:

* Your safety plan

* Driver’s license or other form of ID

* Birth certificates

* Social security cards

* Work permits/VIS

* Passports, money and/or credit cards

* Bank book, bank statements, and checkbooks

* Public assistance documentation

* Tax returns for the last three years

* Pay stubs for you and abuser

* Loan/mortgage information

* Protection order

* Lease/rental agreement/house deed

* Car title, registration, insurance papers

* Health and life insurance papers

* Medical and vaccination records

* Divorce/custody papers

* House and car keys

* Medication, glasses, hearing aids

* Address book

* Cell phone and cards

* Family photographs

* Jewelry, items of sentimental value

* Children’s toys

* Clothes for you and children

* Pet items