The Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office was named the 2024 Georgia Crime Victim Service Collaborative and Innovative Project Award recipient.

The award acknowledges the efforts of the office's Victim Witness Program throughout 2023 to provide essential services and solace to crime victims.

“Nobody asks to be a victim,” said Gwinnett District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson. “Our Victim Witness Program works with victims every step of the way through the legal process. Our team strives daily to ensure no victim goes without the best services and care, so they can begin to heal and regain some semblance of normalcy. I am so proud of our team of dedicated, caring victim advocates, and the incredible work they do.” 

The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council recognized the Gwinnett Victim Witness Program’s commitment of collaboration and coordination with local and regional agencies and organizations dedicated to the goal of aiding victims of crime.

“This award recognizes organizations or individuals for their own commitment to promoting a comprehensive, coordinated, victim-centered and unified community response and celebrates extraordinary contribution to the lives of victims and survivors,” said CJCC Executive Director Jay Neal. “This year’s award recipient serves as a beacon of holistic community care, providing broad services both within Gwinnett County and for many counties across Georgia.”

In 2023, the Gwinnett Victim Witness Program achieved the following milestones:

• Facilitated over 84,000 interactions with victims across Gwinnett and neighboring jurisdictions.
• Successfully engaged 330 individuals in the program's Homicide Support Group.
• Hosted the Community Conversations web series, sparking insightful discussions aimed at both supporting victims of crime and proactively preventing further victimization.
• Attracted over 500 attendees to the annual Candlelight Vigil, a poignant tribute to deceased victims.
• Earned the prestigious title of Child Fatality Review Committee Metro County of the Year.
• Distributed more than 3,000 copies of the Resource Guide, spotlighting 200 collaborating agencies from both private and government sectors.

The award was announced at the end of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, a national initiative that gives awareness to the plight of victims of crime.

Learn more about the Victim Witness Program by visiting GwinnettCounty.com/VictimWitness.