The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office will be in Laurel Monday, Nov. 16 as part of a statewide initiative to help residents understand the resources available to them.

The free event, which is open to the public, will be held at 1:30 p.m. Monday at Comfort Care Nursing Center, 1100 West Drive.

In a release to media, Attorney General Jim Hood said, “We think people understand that we’re an agency of lawyers, that we prosecute various crimes, and that we bring lawsuits in the public interest. But we also want Mississippians to understand that we are so much more than that. For example, did you know that this office awarded more than $3 million in financial assistance to eligible victims of violent crimes last year? Most importantly, we have some great resources available to our residents.”

The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office is divided into a number of divisions and units including:

• The Victim Compensation Division, which provides financial assistance and support services to eligible victims of violent crimes

• The Consumer Protection Division, which provides assistance during disputes with a business through its mediation process

• The Cyber Crime Unit, which protects and rescues children through the investigation of computer crimes such as child pornography

• The Administrative Division, which manages the Law Enforcement Officers and Fire Fighters Disability Trust Fund, that provides financial benefits to eligible law enforcement officers and firefighters injured in the line of duty

• The Domestic Violence Division, which provides materials on coping with domestic abuse, including information on domestic abuse protective orders and the address confidentiality program

• The Child Desertion Unit, which criminally prosecutes deadbeat parents throughout the state for desertion, abandonment and the failure to pay court ordered child support

• The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and Vulnerable Adults Unit, which enforce the laws which prohibit abuse, neglect and exploitation of vulnerable adults, such as those having mental or physical disabilities

The initiative, which was announced Thursday, is a grassroots campaign with employees of the Attorney General’s Office mailing and delivering information packets to churches, community centers and other non-profit organizations.

“No money will be spent on media campaigns, and most of the materials being provided were printed in-house,” Hood said. “Primarily, we plan to visit smaller, more rural communities and talk to our fellow Mississippians, but particularly the poor and busy working people. We want to get some of our publications into the communities so that Mississippians can know where to turn for specific types of assistance.”

For more information, contact the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office at 800-281-4418 or visit www.agjimhood.com.