By The Star Staff
Carolina District Sen. Marissa “Marissita” Jiménez Santoni announced Tuesday that she will be looking for a facility in the municipality of Carolina to create a temporary shelter for women who are victims of crimes in order to alleviate the congestion that exists in the shelter network, which already houses more than 500 women, as well as their children, all victims of abuse.
“The news that between January and October of this year, more than 500 women and their children have had to seek refuge in shelters for abused women [...] is dramatic and denotes the urgent need to create a support platform,” the New Progressive Party senator said. “In light of this, we are going to study the feasibility of creating a temporary shelter for women and their children in the Carolina area to serve as support for the network of shelters.”
Jiménez said she is looking for a facility, which could be an unused school, in order to create a temporary shelter of at least 10 rooms, which will be attached to the Department of Justice’s Office of Compensation and Services for Victims and Witnesses of Crime.
“We are evaluating a structure that can not only have at least 10 rooms, but also … that will serve to provide a space for these victims and their children until the Housing Department identifies a home for them,” she said. “What cannot happen is that there are no beds to house these victims of crimes such as abuse in all its forms, among others. Carolina is one of the cities with the largest extension in the metropolitan area, and seeking this facility in the municipality provides the victims with a safe place within the metropolitan region.”
It is estimated that there are currently about 170 beds available in Puerto Rico for use by victims and their children.
“This is part of our legislative program for the next four years,” Jiménez said. “Once we are sworn in in January, we will file legislation focused on identifying a structure for the creation of this temporary shelter, as well as the funds we need to rehabilitate and manage the facility.”
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