South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has announced that organizations assisting crime victims throughout the state will receive over $26 million in grants. The funding, which combines federal and state sources, was formally approved by the South Carolina Public Safety Coordinating Council earlier this year. The supported projects are set to begin on October 1, 2025.
The Department of Crime Victim Assistance Grants within the Attorney General’s Office is responsible for distributing these funds. There are four types of grants included: Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), State Victim Assistance Program (SVAP), and Supplemental Allocation for Victims Services (SAVS).
“These state and local agencies and non-profit groups do so much to help people who are going through traumatic circumstances. With these funds, we are able to support agencies throughout the state as they assist victims of violent crime in their recovery,” said Attorney General Wilson.
Recipients include private non-profit organizations, sheriff’s offices, police departments, solicitor’s offices, and state agencies. Specific examples include the City of Anderson Police Department, which will receive $93,520 in VOCA and VAWA awards for domestic violence investigations and victim advocacy; McLeod Regional Medical Center in Florence with $251,907 from VOCA and VAWA to provide forensic interviews and medical care for sexual assault victims across 12 counties; and HALOS, a Charleston-based nonprofit supporting kinship care families in 10 counties, which is set to receive a VOCA award of $114,177.
Barbara Jean “BJ” Nelson, Director of the Crime Victim Services Division in the Attorney General’s Office, stated: “The grant staff of the Crime Victim Services Division in the Attorney General’s Office is honored to work with the hundreds of caring, dedicated professionals who help victims of crime every day in South Carolina. Our goal is to have the most effective and the most compassionate victim service system across the United States.”
Approximately 88 percent of these funds originate from federal grants while the rest comes from state sources. Both VAWA and VOCA programs are administered by the US Department of Justice. VAWA receives congressional appropriations. Funding for VOCA comes from federal fines and penalties deposited into the Federal Crime Victims Fund rather than taxpayer dollars or national debt increases.
A complete list of grant recipients can be accessed online.
