New crisis intervention center opens in National City

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSIU) -- A new crisis center called "One Safe Place" has opened in National City, providing a comprehensive range of services for victims of crime.

The center offers critical services under one roof, including counseling, job training and legal assistance aimed at helping victims move forward.

San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan spearheads this project, highlighting the importance of providing a safe and supportive environment for victims.

"Getting a conviction and accountability -- that's very important for justice. There's the rest of the story, so what this does is it breaks generational violence and breaks cycles of poverty and homelessness," said Stephan. "Which is one of the number one reasons you see women and kids on the street, [they are] escaping abuse at home."

The facility includes a clothing boutique, a small hair salon and a food pantry to meet the various needs of victims. They can also receive forensic sexual assault exams and assistance with restraining orders without the need to travel to multiple locations.

"We are finding such a way to lift people out and not let them enter into the homelessness cycle by intervening," Stephan continued.

The first "One Safe Place" facility opened in San Marcos in 2022 and has served nearly 9,000 people, demonstrating the demand and effectiveness of such centers.

With the opening of "One Safe Place" in National City, victims of crime now have a centralized location to access essential services, ensuring they receive the support needed to rebuild their lives.

FOX 5/KUSI's Elizabeth Alvarez contributed to this report.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KSWB. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KSWB staff before being published.