New center eases burden on young victims
The Children’s Advocacy Center may have just been introduced to the general public Friday afternoon, but those who work with children daily have been utilizing it for the past few months.
Department of Children’s Services workers reported they have already used the center to investigate several suspected cases of child abuse. Designed to aid a child’s comfort level in situations where sexual abuse and other types of abuses are suspected, investigators and others said the house is functioning exactly as it was intended.
“One of the major things this center does, as far as interviews, is it reduces the number of times a child has to be interviewed,” said District Attorney General Dale Potter, noting in the past, a child could have the same question posed by several different people representing several different governmental units. “All the critical questions get asked at one time.”
The center is the result of more than two years of efforts to create a central point for child abuse investigations to take place. The center allows everyone – from family members, to law enforcement, to children’s services workers – to be involved in the investigation simultaneously.
“Yesterday we were doing a case that had five children in it,” said DCS team coordinator Stephanie Craven, who is involved with the center as a board member of the non-profit group running the center, as is Potter. “Children played and were able to be comfortable in a living room complete with sofas while the interviews were occurring.”
Warren County Sheriff’s Department chief investigator Herb Rowland, who is also on the board, also said the center fosters a sense of cooperation among all concerned, and helps victims tremendously.
“It takes a lot of tension out of the investigation and it’s a lot easier on the child,” said Rowland. “They’ve already been traumatized enough without having to be driven over to the jail or some cold office atmosphere where there’s nothing for the other kids or the family to do. Here, they can just be at home.”
DCS team leader Melba Mooneyham added the center is also a place where all involved can focus.
“This week we’ve spent three out of five days over here doing interviews and it’s just been wonderful to be able to bring the children over here and be able to do the interviews without interruptions,” she said.
Center officials appreciated all who stopped by to welcome the center’s existence Friday during the center’s grand opening.
“We can’t do it without the community’s help,” Rowland said, also thanking East End Church of Christ for donating the use of the house. “The little house has worked out perfectly for what we had in mind. It fits us.”
Future plans are to expand the center’s services, with the potential to allow the entire investigation, including physical examinations, to take place there.