With every case we take on, with every survivor we support, we reaffirm our mission to ensure that justice prevails and survivors find their voices.
Our Mission
The mission of St. Louis Survivors Legal Support (SLSLS) is to provide zealous advocacy and meaningful access to justice for survivors of intimate partner violence and their children, and to educate the St. Louis community about the legal process and resources for those seeking protection. SLSLS helps survivors get effective legal relief in the form of thorough and enforceable orders of protection and other companion orders.
What We Do at SLSLS
Partner with police departments, community advocate organizations, and local establishments that regularly encounter people in distress. Through these relationships, SLSLS connects with survivors before they would typically seek help on their own, perhaps saving them from years of abuse.
Educate partner community organizations’ members about the dynamics of intimate partner violence, how to identify victims of intimate partner violence, how to obtain an order of protection, and how to refer cases to SLSLS.
Consult with survivors of intimate partner violence to help them determine whether an order of protection is in their best interest (as sometimes the filing of a petition to get a full order of protection could place the survivors in a more dangerous situation).
Assist with the SLSLS application process, prepare them for their court hearings, refer them to advocates for safety planning, and connect them with community resources for their other needs.
Provide free legal representation at their order of protection hearings, advocating for them to obtain the relief that they need, such as custody/visitation of their children, child support, rent, firearms relinquishment and batterer programs. When abusers “pose a serious danger” to SLSLS clients (due to the facts alleged and/or the offenders’ history), their attorneys seek lengthy orders of protection.
Help hold offenders accountable when they violate orders of protection, by strategizing with officers from partner police departments, and by helping survivors file motions for contempt to report these violations to the judges who issued the orders.
Our History
I saw it firsthand. I presided over thousands of cases involving domestic abuse during my 22 years as a Judge in St. Louis County. It was common for the survivors of the cases with the worst allegations to not appear for their hearings, forcing me to dismiss their cases. I knew why; many of their abusers likely threatened them, intimidated them, or pleaded with them to not go forward with getting an Order of Protection (OP). The victims who did show in court were typically unrepresented, while their abusers often hired attorneys. These victims were understandably daunted by such an unfair battle. Some simply left the courthouse before their trials began. This painful reality made it very clear to me that the system was failing survivors. St. Louis County judges are wise, compassionate, and fair but, just as mine were, their hands are tied. SLSLS was founded to address this problem. Its mission is quite simple: no victim of IPV should ever walk into court alone.
Michael D. Burton,
SLSLS Founder and Executive Director
