North Carolina

The Alliance of AIDS Services – Carolina serves people with HIV/AIDS and their families through direct services in Wake, Durham, and Orange Counties. With offices in Durham and Raleigh, the Alliance offers the following services for people living with HIV/AIDS: emergency financial assistance for housing, utilities, bus tokens, and other basic needs; nutritional assistance; substance abuse and mental health counseling; case management; assistance applying for entitlements such as Medicaid, food stamps, etc.; and referrals to many other services. All Alliance services are free of charge.

Anson County Domestic Violence Coalition provides services to survivors of domestic and sexual violence in Anson County. Sexual assault services include: 24-hour hotline; crisis intervention; hospital accompaniment; counseling; support groups; and information and referrals. All services are free and confidential.

The Durham Crisis Response Center works with the community to end domestic and sexual violence through advocacy, education, support, and prevention.

Service Area: Durham County
Work with: Survivors of domestic and sexual violence regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or country of origin
Services for survivors during incarceration include: Mail correspondence, hospital accompaniment during forensic exams, accompaniment to courts and during law enforcement interviews, legal and medical advocacy, crisis intervention and counseling via hotline, and information, referrals, and references.
Services for survivors after release include: All of the above.
Services for loved ones include: All of the above.
Fees: Free.
Additional Information: DCRC can provide services in English or Spanish. DCRC services include a 24-hour, confidential crisis line for victims of domestic and sexual violence, short-term emergency shelter, hospital and court accompaniment, legal clinics with local attorneys, support groups, counseling, and referrals for job training, housing, childcare and other community services — all direct services offered to the community free of charge. We also offer educational workshops and professional training for service providers, churches, schools, police, hospitals, civic groups and other community members.

Esther House is a group of experienced professionals, survivors and volunteers that work together to provide victims of domestic violence and sexual assault the resources and support they need to begin their journey to safety and independence.

Esther House is a 501(c)(3) organization that began in 2011 under the umbrella of Homes of Hope, Inc. which is a non-profit organization seeking to reduce homelessness in Stanly County. In 2013 Esther House of Stanly County, Inc. became its own entity in order to develop a full program for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Esther House offers safe shelter, hospital accompaniment, court advocacy, safety planning, case management, parenting classes, domestic violence and sexual assault support groups, counseling for both adult and children, job skills support, financial/budgeting classes, educational classes on domestic violence/sexual assault. Community resources help to provide victims of domestic violence or sexual assault with the assistance they need.

Service Area: Stanly County and Cabarrus County
Work with: All survivors of sexual assault and their loved ones
Services for survivors during incarceration include: Mail correspondence, accompaniment to courts and during law enforcement interviews; hospital accompaniment during forensic exams; legal and medical advocacy; in-person counseling; group counseling/support groups; crisis intervention and counseling via hotline; information, referrals, and references
Services for loved ones include: All of the above.
Fees: Free.
Additional Information: English and Spanish

Family Service of the Piedmont is the largest private nonprofit agency serving children and families in Guilford County. Family Service of the Piedmont offers the following services for survivors of sexual abuse: 24-hour crisis hotlines; crisis intervention; medical, legal, and court advocacy and accompaniment; Sexual Assault Response Team program, based on the SANE (sexual assault nurse examiner) model, which combines forensically trained nurses with law enforcement officers and victim advocates to meet all the needs of survivors of sexual assault; individual and family counseling; and information and referrals. All services are free and confidential.

Family Services of Davidson County provides comprehensive services to survivors of sexual assault in Davidson County. Services include: 24-hour crisis hotline; medical and legal advocacy, support, and accompaniment; counseling; support groups; and information and referrals. Crisis intervention services are free and confidential for survivors. Other fee-based services are free for individuals without insurance.

Interact provides services to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and incest in Wake County. Staff counselors and volunteers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to offer crisis counseling, information, assistance with shelter, emotional support, and referrals. Interact also provides short-term, in-office crisis counseling (maximum six to eight sessions) to survivors dealing with rape, incest or domestic violence. Additionally, Interact offers support and informational groups for survivors of sexual abuse and incest (adults only). All services provided by Interact are confidential and free of charge.

The North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA) is a non-profit organization that works to end sexual violence through education, advocacy, and legislation. NCCASA is affiliated with over 75 rape crisis centers working to end sexual violence and providing direct services to survivors of sexual violence. Each center provides 24-hour crisis intervention services, counseling, and advocacy for survivors of sexual assault and their significant others. Free and confidential counseling are available at all of the rape crisis centers. NCCASA can connect survivors with the center nearest to them that can serve them and their family or friends. All services are free.

Service area: North Carolina
Work with: Survivors and their loved ones.
Services for survivors during incarceration include: References; information; and referrals.
Services for survivors after release include: References; information; and referrals.
Services for loved ones include: References; information; and referrals.
Fees: Free

The Orange County Rape Crisis Center (OCRCC) is a non-profit, volunteer agency serving the Orange County community. As a victim-centered agency, OCRCC’s primary focus is to provide services to survivors and community education on awareness and prevention of sexual violence. All services are confidential and include: a 24-hour crisis intervention service that provides support and assistance to male and female sexual assault survivors, their families, and friends; information and referrals concerning the law enforcement, medical, and legal processes; support groups and individual counseling for sexual assault and child sexual abuse survivors; and programs on sexual assault awareness and prevention. All services are free and confidential.

OUR VOICE is a nonprofit crisis intervention agency serving all survivors of sexual violence in Buncombe County. Services include: 24 hour crisis line; individual counseling with a licensed therapist; case management; support groups; accompaniment to medical services, law enforcement interviews, and court proceedings; and information and referrals. All services are free and confidential.

Promise Place provides direct services for survivors of rape, sexual assault, and child sexual abuse and their families in Craven, Jones, and Pamlico Counties. Services include: victim advocacy; crisis counseling services for survivors and their families; self-protection seminars for women; and referrals, information, and resource materials. All services are free and confidential.

Coastal Horizons Center is a private nonprofit service delivery agency for New Hanover, Brunswick, and Pender Counties. The Rape Crisis Center of Coastal Horizons Center provides 24-hour crisis response, counseling, information and referrals, court advocacy and accompaniment, and support groups for all survivors of sexual assault. All services are free and confidential and are available to both men and women.

The Rape Crisis Center of Robeson County (RCCRC) provides crisis intervention to survivors of rape and sexual assault in Robeson County. In addition to the 24-hour crisis line, the RCCRC offers support groups for women, accompaniment to medical and legal appointments, court advocacy, individual case management and support, and information and referrals to outside agencies and service providers in and around Robeson County. All services are free and confidential.

REAL Crisis Intervention has been providing comprehensive rape crisis services for Pitt County since 1975. Some of the services offered include: 24-hour hotline and free and confidential crisis intervention counseling; counseling for individuals, family members, and loved ones; various support groups for survivors of sexual assault; victim advocacy; mobile victim assistance; rape prevention/education; and SART (Sexual Assault Response Team). REAL also runs the Pitt County Information & Referral Service, a community information and referral service that provides information on agencies and services in Pitt County. All services are free and confidential and offered in both English and Spanish. Se ofrecen todos los servicios en español.

Safe Alliance provides hope and healing to survivors of sexual trauma and domestic violence.  The Sexual Trauma Resource Center offers advocacy and trauma-focused counseling services for survivors of all forms of sexual trauma as well as loved ones who are affected.  The Victims’ Assistance program makes available advocacy through protective order assistance and court advocacy for intimate partner violence survivors and sexual assault survivors as well as has the Legal Representation Project that affords pro bono legal representation for protective order civil cases as available. Safe Alliance also has a domestic violence shelter.

Service area: Charlotte and Mecklenburg County; sexual assault services to inmates/detainees at the Mecklenburg County Jail; we serve inmates at both Jail North and Jail Central.
Work with: all survivors of sexual trauma (recent or past) as well as their loved ones.
Services for survivors during incarceration include: crisis intervention and advocacy via the 24-hour hotline or by mail; hospital accompaniment during forensic exams; incarcerated survivors may contact us for sexual abuse in detention or services needed due to previous sexual trauma. Mail from Safe Alliance will handled like legal mail by the Mecklenburg County Jail. Our hotline is a free call from the jail.
Services for survivors after release include: in-person advocacy, trauma-focused counseling, support groups.
Services for loved ones include: all of the above except support groups.
Fees: All advocacy services are free. Counseling is available on a sliding fee scale.
Additional Information: Services can be provided in any language needed through interpreter services, but there is a Spanish speaking advocate.

The Phoenix Center provides crisis intervention to sexual assault survivors and their families in Cumberland, Hoke, and Bladen Counties. Direct services include: crisis response and 24-hour hotline; individual crisis counseling by licensed therapists; support groups for survivors of sexual assault; advocacy and accompaniment to hospitals, court, and law enforcement agencies; and an interactive website where questions can be asked anonymously and will be answered within 48 hours by a trained staff counselor. All services are free and confidential.

The Inmate Grievance Resolution Board was created to ensure that inmates have a procedure through which they can file complaints. The Board is a separate agency within the North Carolina DOC that attempts to resolve inmate grievances through mediation. If examiners are unable to reach a resolution through mediation, they can order such relief as is appropriate or deny the grievance. Decisions made by this board are binding, unless the Secretary of Correction finds that such relief is not appropriate, gives a written explanation for this finding, and makes an alternative order of relief or denies the grievance.

The North Carolina Lawyer Referral Service is a program of the North Carolina Bar Association Foundation which provides the name of an attorney in a particular area of law based on geographic location to a member of the public. LRS is not a reduced fee or pro bono (free) service. When you contact the LRS toll-free number, an LRS specialist will ask you a series of questions. The specialists are not attorneys and cannot provide legal advice. You will be given the name and telephone number of an attorney who handles cases in the area of law that addresses the problem. The attorney will receive a confirmation of the referral. If the attorney is not able to assist you with the legal problem, you may contact LRS again for another referral. You will receive one referral per legal matter per call, and there is no charge for receiving a referral from the service. In most cases a $30.00 fee will be charged by the attorney, which entitles the caller to a 30 minute consultation.

North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, Inc. (NCPLS) provides legal services to North Carolina prisoners and handles a variety of legal matters involving prison conditions and criminal convictions. Services range from advice about prisoners’ legal rights to representation in all state and federal courts. These services include the provision of legal representation (without cost to the inmate) in cases alleging that prison officials failed to protect a prisoner from harm.

NCPLS has established priorities for case acceptance so that they can address the most serious problems of incarcerated persons. The most important considerations affecting acceptance of any case are the extent of injury to the client, the strength of the evidence supporting a recognized legal theory of liability, and the importance of the issue to prisoners in general. Top priority is given to the following types of cases: excessive force by an officer resulting in personal injury to a prisoner; failure to protect a prisoner from other prisoners, resulting in personal injury; inhumane or overcrowded conditions of life in jails and prisons; indifference to, or neglect of, the serious medical and mental health needs of prisoners; and criminal convictions obtained in violation of the defendant’s constitutional rights.

If you need advice or representation, you should write a letter describing your problem and send it to NCPLS. Your letter should explain as clearly as possible what happened and what you want NCPLS to do for you. Please include enough details for NCPLS to understand and investigate your complaint, including, names of the officers and inmates who were involved or who were witnesses, addresses, dates, places (such as the name of the unit and cell block), and file numbers. Often there is nothing that NCPLS can do until after the prisoner has filed a grievance, so you should include a copy of your grievance and the response of the DOC. Please be sure to include your full name, prison ID number, and address of your unit. (Include your home address if you expect to be released soon).