If you missed today you missed a great speaker:  Kathy Rau, Executive Director of the Southern AZ Children’s Advocacy Center and the Courthouse Dog Russell.
 
Russell is a Golden Retriever; 4 years old owned by County Attorney Barbara LaWall, he was purchased using Rico Funds.
 
Russell is a fully certified mobile assistance K-9.  The company who trains the dogs use Elementary kids to socialize them and the high school kids are used for obedience training.  One of the decisions in brining the dog into the center was knowing he was fully trained.
 
The Children’s Advocacy Center (AZCAC), where children are brought to in the event of a child abuse case either sexual or physical.  Children come to the center through law enforcement or DCS (Department of Child Safety).   They provide forensic interviewers and medical staff if needed.  It’s a one-interview process for kids, all the agency’s work together to conduct the interview. 
 
Here is something hard to believe but in AZ Children must testify on the stand just like an adult victim would.  No videos or DVD of child testimony is allowed in the courtroom.   Russell is certified to go into the courtroom and set with the kids while they testify.
 
When you read about the horrific cases of child abuse she said people just don’t think about where the kids went for interviews, medical service, or who was there to support them into healing.  This agency does all of that in one place.
 
Some statistics she provided us:  80% of the child abuse cases are sexual, 75% are girls, 85% are girls between 5-12.   A trend that the agency has been noticing the last two years is the offenders relationship to the child that has been shooting up on the list from 10 to 3 is Brother/Sister abuse. One of the reasons she believes is the media, some of the show on TV that supporting brother/sister incestual relationship.  As everything else things creep into our society until they become less shocking.
 
She pointed out that the Internet crimes unit at the police department is very busy.  Kathy said you can’t set down for 10 minutes in front of the computers posing as a young child, before graphic pictures are sent via internet (beware of what your kids and grandkids are doing).
 
Some ways we can help support the center in needs are listed below:
 
Boys and girls clothes 10-14 and Hand held games for older kids (like bop-it, hangman, etc.).
 
Maeve suggested that instead of exchanging gifts at the Christmas Party we could bring a gift for the center.