Washington State DV Shelters & Safety Tools

DV safety tools, shelters, emergency steps, and documentation checklists for Washington State.

Washington State Domestic Violence Resource Hub

Overview

This page lists selected Washington state options for shelter, safety planning, and safer ways to document abuse, including considerations for the state’s all-party consent recording law.

Washington Shelter and Housing Options

The list below is organized by region. Availability, eligibility, and services can change. If possible, confirm details by phone before traveling.

Statewide and Multi-County Resources

• Washington State Domestic Violence Hotline
  • Type: Statewide information and referral
  • Options: Help locating shelters, advocacy programs, and legal resources across Washington
  • What to ask:
    • Nearest confidential DV shelter or safe housing
    • Transportation options or relocation support
    • Language access and disability accommodations
• Regional Domestic Violence Advocacy Programs
  • Many counties have DV programs that can connect you with:
    • Emergency shelter or hotel vouchers (when available)
    • Transitional or longer-term housing programs
    • Support with applications for public benefits and housing programs
  • Look for “[county name] domestic violence services” or “[tribe name] domestic violence program.”

Puget Sound Region (King, Pierce, Snohomish and Nearby)

• King County (Seattle and surrounding)
  • Options often include:
    • Confidential DV shelters for adults with or without children
    • Hotel/motel placements when shelters are full (case-by-case)
    • Housing advocates who know local landlord and voucher systems
  • What to check:
    • Whether the shelter accepts teen sons, pets, or service animals
    • How long typical stays last
    • Whether they coordinate with local courts or hospitals
• Pierce County (Tacoma and nearby)
  • Typical services:
    • 24/7 DV shelter intakes when beds are available
    • Legal advocacy around protection orders and court accompaniment
    • Support with transportation within the county to safe locations
  • Ask directly if they:
    • Have confidential locations or scattered-site housing
    • Provide children’s services (school coordination, counseling referrals)
• Snohomish County (Everett and surrounding)
  • Common offerings:
    • Short-term emergency DV shelter
    • Safety planning and advocacy by phone
    • Rural outreach for smaller communities in the county
  • Confirm:
    • Transportation options to shelter
    • Any requirements for income or documentation

Southwest and Coastal Washington

• Thurston, Mason, Lewis, Grays Harbor, Pacific Counties
  • Options may include:
    • Combined DV and sexual assault advocacy centers
    • Smaller shelters with limited beds
    • Connections to local food, clothing, and transportation assistance
  • Check:
    • How they handle waitlists
    • Whether they can help you relocate to another county if needed

Central, Eastern, and Rural Washington

• Yakima, Kittitas, Grant, Benton, Franklin Counties
  • Likely services:
    • Rural DV shelters and safe homes
    • Advocacy that understands agricultural and seasonal work schedules
    • Help navigating services across county lines
  • Ask about:
    • Language services for farmworker and migrant communities
    • Transportation if shelters are far from town centers
• Spokane and Northeast Washington
  • Common resources:
    • DV shelters within or near the city
    • Transitional housing and rapid rehousing programs (when funded)
    • Advocates who can coordinate with multiple court systems
  • Confirm:
    • If they support relocation to other regions of the state
    • Any specialized services for veterans, immigrants, or LGBTQ+ survivors

Quick-Exit Safety Plan for Using This Site

This section outlines options for quickly leaving a page or reducing traces of your online activity if someone enters the room or starts watching your device.

Before You Start

• Identify:
  • The nearest “close tab” or “close window” button on your browser
  • A neutral website you can switch to (for example, weather, news, or search page)
• Practice:
  • Closing a tab quickly (often Ctrl+W or Command+W on a keyboard)
  • Switching to another app or browser window (often Alt+Tab or Command+Tab)

While Browsing

• Keep at least one neutral tab open:
  • Example: a search engine, email inbox, or work-related site
  • This gives you a quick, normal-looking page to switch to
• Position windows:
  • Adjust your browser so the tab bar is visible and easy to click
  • Keep your mouse or finger close to the browser’s close controls when reviewing sensitive pages

Quick Exit Options

• On a computer:
  • Close the browser tab: often Ctrl+W (Windows) or Command+W (Mac)
  • Close the entire browser: often Alt+F4 (Windows) or Command+Q (Mac)
  • Switch to another window: often Alt+Tab (Windows) or Command+Tab (Mac)
• On a phone or tablet:
  • Use the home button or swipe to go to the home screen
  • Switch to another app such as messages, maps, or a game
  • Close the browser tab or app from the app switcher when safe

Reducing Traces Afterward

• Browser history:
  • Consider clearing only recent history (for example, last hour) if this does not look unusual for your device
  • Avoid large, sudden changes in settings that might be noticed
• Private or incognito windows:
  • These can reduce stored history, but downloads and some data can still remain
  • Check that you know how to exit private browsing quickly
• Search suggestions:
  • If your browser shows recent searches, be aware that search terms may appear even if history is cleared

Recording Abuse Safely in Washington (All-Party Consent)

Washington is generally an “all-party consent” state for recording private conversations. That means recording conversations without the knowledge and consent of everyone involved can create legal risk.

Key Points to Understand

• “All-party consent” usually means:
  • Everyone in a private conversation must know and agree to being recorded
  • Secret audio recordings of private conversations can potentially violate state law
• “Private” conversation:
  • Whether a conversation is considered “private” can depend on the situation (location, expectations of privacy, who can hear, etc.)
  • Public or semi-public settings may be treated differently than private homes or phones
• Different rules can apply to:
  • Audio recordings versus silent video
  • In-person conversations versus phone or online calls
  • Recording adults versus recording children

Lower-Risk Documentation Options to Consider

Some ways of documenting abuse may carry less legal risk than secretly recording conversations. Options can include:

• Written records:
  • Maintain a dated log of incidents in a notebook, secure document, or secure app
  • Include:
    • Date and approximate time
    • Location
    • Who was present
    • Short, factual description of what happened
• Photos and videos (without audio when possible):
  • Photograph property damage, injuries, or other physical evidence after an incident, when safe
  • Consider silent video or muting audio when capturing surroundings (depending on circumstances)
  • Be aware that faces, voices, and other identifying details may raise privacy issues
• Saved communications:
  • Save text messages, emails, social media messages, and voicemails
  • Take screenshots, including timestamps and sender information
  • Back up important screenshots or messages to a safe location or account
• Third-party observations:
  • Keep track of people who witnessed incidents or saw injuries or damage afterward
  • Note names, contact details (if known), and what they observed

If You Are Still Considering Recording

If you are thinking about recording conversations or interactions in Washington, options to consider include:

• Understand potential legal risk:
  • Review basic information on Washington’s recording and privacy laws from reliable legal information sources
  • Consider that illegal recordings might not be usable in court and could create new problems
• Seek legal information first, when possible:
  • Contact a Washington legal aid organization or clinic and ask:
    • About risks of recording private conversations in your situation
    • About other ways to document abuse that are safer legally
• Check your devices:
  • Identify which apps can record audio or video
  • Know how to quickly stop or delete a recording if you start one by mistake

Digital Safety Around Evidence

• Storage locations:
  • Consider storing evidence in:
    • A password-protected app or folder
    • A separate cloud account that is not shared
  • Avoid storage locations that your partner regularly checks
• Backups:
  • Back up important files in at least one other secure place (for example, a trusted person’s device or account), when safe
  • Label files in a way that does not draw attention on your device
• Device access:
  • Review who has passwords, fingerprints, or face recognition access to your devices
  • Consider adjusting access settings if safe to do so

For more information on local programs, legal clinics, and national organizations that support people experiencing abuse, some directories and links are listed at DV.Support.

Recommended Articles

• Gathering Evidence
• Technology Safety
• Creating a Digital Exit Plan
• Safety Planning Checklist
• Staying Safe While Living With an Abuser