Phila. Police Again Collect Used Cell Phones To Benefit Domestic Abuse Victims
By John McDevitt
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- You may help save a life by turning in your old cell phone. The phones are being collected once again at Philadelphia police stations to benefit victims of domestic abuse.
The program, called "Hopeline," is a joint effort among the Philadelphia local of the Fraternal Order of Police, the Philadelphia Police Department, Verizon, and the organization Women Against Abuse.
FOP president John McNesby says every donation of a no-longer-needed cell phone will be put to good use, maybe even giving a domestic abuse victim a way to call for help.
"These phones serve as a critical lifeline for thousands of victims," he said today at a press conference at police headquarters. "Devices that cannot be refurbished are recycled, and the funds that we generate are given to local domestic violence service providers. In 2013 alone, this Hopeline program contributed $420,000 in cash grants to victims of domestic violence and local agencies in the tri-state area."
The Philadelphia Police Department says officers respond to 100,000 domestic violence calls a year in the city. And offficials say last year domestic violence claimed the lives of seventeen people.