'Safe at Home' program offers confidentiality to crime victims living in Douglas County

If you are being stalked, threatened or fear for your safety, help is here.

Someplace Safe in Alexandria has enrolled in the Minnesota Secretary of State Office’s “Safe at Home” program.

It’s a confidentiality program designed to help survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or others who fear for their safety.

It is now available to Douglas County residents.

Confidential and without charge, Safe at Home allows participants to go about their lives, interacting with public and private entities, without having their address revealed to their abuser.

All private and public entities in Minnesota must accept a Safe at Home participant’s Post Office Box address, including employers, utilities, banks, law enforcement, social services, courts and schools.

The program, administered by the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State (OSS) is available to Minnesota residents. Enrollment locations can now be found in most counties throughout the state.

Locally, Someplace Safe has trained staff to administer applications. Program costs and materials are provided by the OSS.

“Removing fear from daily life is critical to a victim’s survival and their hope for the future,” said Alexandria Someplace Safe Advocate Susan Keehn. “For many, establishing a confidential address through Safe at Home is a positive step in that direction.”

After an applicant is accepted in the program, first-class mail sent to a participant’s designated Safe at Home address is then forwarded to a participant’s actual residence, which is a confidential address.

Almost 30 states have some form of address confidentiality program, but Minnesota was the first to allow participants to use an alternate address for all purposes, including private business relationships.

For more information about the Safe at Home program in Douglas County, contact Someplace Safe at (320) 762-1995.

Tags: local news, safe at home, news, crime