Day One Sexual Assault & Trauma Resource Center of Rhode Island: The Children's Advocacy Center

What do we do?

The purpose of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center is to provide the child victim and non-offending parent/guardian with interviewing, evaluation, and treatment services at a neutral location in a comfortable environment; to prevent further trauma to the child caused by multiple interviews and contacts with responding professionals; to enhance interagency and case coordination, communication, and cooperation; to hold more offenders accountable through improved prosecution of child abuse cases; and to enhance and refine professional skills needed in responding to sexual and physical abuse cases through training.

The formation of the Children’s Advocacy Center is the result of several years of work by the Attorney General’s Task Force on Sexual and Violent Physical Abuse of Children. Based on a national model, it is a multidisciplinary team effort involving prosecutors, police, medical personnel, mental health professionals, and human service providers.

The Children’s Advocacy Center stresses coordination and teamwork among these professionals. Cooperative working relationships continues to be achieved and reinforced through joint interviews of children conducted by child protective service workers, detectives and/or therapists, and through team meetings held weekly to discuss abuse cases. Through teamwork and the use of established protocols, the number and types of interviews the child and family must endure are greatly reduced.

Police departments in Cranston, Johnston, North Providence, Pawtucket, and Providence have been involved in the program since its establishment in 1993, and are working closely with Day One in the investigation and prosecution of child sexual abuse cases. In order to ensure a uniform approach to dealing with child sexual abuse cases throughout the state, we opened our first satellite office in Washington County in July, 1995, to handle the cases in that area In March, 1997, a second interview site for Providence County cases opened in Woonsocket. In May, 1997, we expanded the program to include Newport County. There are now 27 police departments formally participating in the program. Last year, 286 child victims were served. We expect to serve between 250-350 this year.

The RI Children’s Advocacy Center ensures that no longer will the child victim be "bounced" from one agency to another, and given contradictory advice from agency professionals not trained to handle such cases. In addition, the Network to End Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault’s 24-hour, statewide Victims of Crime Helpline, as well as Day One’s mental health services (i.e. crisis intervention, assessments, and on-going individual and group therapy) and legal advocacy program (which provides support and accompaniment throughout the criminal justice process, including court preparation for children and their families) are available to all RI Children’s Advocacy Center clients.

Who are we?

Day One is a non-profit organization that provides direct services to victims of childhood sexual abuse, sexual assault, and domestic violence, and to their non-offending family members. The Center has been in existence for over twenty-five years, and is recognized both locally and nationally for its expertise in treating victims, and for its innovativeness in establishing programs which provide services in an efficient and effective manner. The mission of Day One is to address the issues of sexual assault and trauma through a comprehensive range of services, including intervention, treatment, education and prevention.

The Center receives substantial financial support from non-federal funding sources, including the State of RI, private foundations, individuals, corporations and associations, the United Way, special events, and program revenues.

Strict client-counselor confidentiality is maintained; all employees and volunteers are required to sign an agreement regarding this issue.

All services provided with VOCA funds are provided to clients at no charge.

The Center relies heavily on its volunteer-advocates to provide crisis intervention and advocacy services, including staffing of the Network’s 24-hour statewide Victims of Crime Helpline. Advocates not only provide information and referrals, but also make follow-up contacts with victims to ensure that their needs are being met. In 1998, volunteers "contributed" 12,338 volunteer hours to the Center at an estimated value of $74,328.

Through the Center’s Advocacy program, victims receive assistance in seeking available crime victim compensation benefits. Services are provided to victims of federal crimes on the same basis as victims of state crimes.

Day One, Inc., is the sole agency in the state organized specifically to deal with issues of sexual assault, domestic violence and other violent crimes as a community concern. Its mission is to address the issues of sexual assault and trauma through a comprehensive range of services, including intervention, treatment, education and prevention.

The population served by the Center is as culturally diverse as the state population. In 2000, the ethnic populations served included:

• White 75%
• Black 11%
• Native American <1%
• Asian 3%
• Hispanic 9%
• Other/Unknown < 2%

The Center was established in 1973 by a group of women concerned about the increasing problem of sexual assault and the lack of services and information available to victims and the public. It was launched as a collaborative project of the YWCA, the Women’s Liberation Union, and the RI National Organization for Women, as a program of the YWCA. In 1979, Day One was incorporated as an independent non-profit agency, no longer formally affiliated with the YWCA.

Since that time, the Center has grown to an agency employing twenty-three staff members. The racial/ethnic background of the staff at the time of this proposal is primarily Caucasian. The Center is an equal opportunity employer. Every effort is made to recruit minority individuals.

Day One is located at 100 Medway Street, Providence. The building and the Center’s suite of fines are accessible to people with disabilities.

The Center serves victims of sexual assault and educates the public through a combination of paid and volunteer staff. Services include: a 24-hour, statewide Victims of Crime Helpline; crisis intervention; individual and group counseling for children and adults; consultations; advocacy (including legal advocacy) and accompaniment for victims; the RI Children’s Advocacy Center; prevention education programs and professional training; counseling and psycho-educational services for incarcerated men and women who are victims of childhood sexual abuse, a Homicide Bereavement program, and psycho-education for adolescent girls at the RI Training School.

In 1992, the Center launched an innovative program designed to provide counseling and education to victims of domestic violence who are also victims of childhood sexual abuse. "Building Bridges: A Partnership Against Violence" began as a collaborative effort with two of the state’s domestic violence agencies. We are currently providing services to clients of Women’s Resource Center of South County, and Woonsocket Head Start. Through the "Building Bridges" program, we are running "cross-over" groups for victims of both childhood sexual abuse and of domestic violence.

Day One relies heavily on the services provided by its volunteers. Volunteers function primarily as counselor/advocates and respond to calls through the Networks 24-hour, statewide Victims of Crime Helpline. They provide crisis intervention and support, and outline legal and medical options. Advocates also accompany victims to hospitals, police stations, and judicial proceedings. The Center, in partnership with the Network Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, offers three 36-hour core training sessions each year on issues relating to sexual assault and domestic violence in order to maintain its active volunteer corps at 90-100.

The Center has both staff members and volunteer advocates (available on an emergency basis) who are able to converse in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Persian, and Sign. A brochure describing agency services and sexual assault information has been printed in Spanish, as has the "Victim Information Booklet" which is used by advocates meeting victims at hospitals and police departments. Efforts continue to recruit additional bi-lingual volunteers.

In December, 1993, Day One officially "opened the doors" to the Rhode Island Children’s Advocacy Center, a program of the Center. Operating out of Day One’s Providence location, the Children’s Advocacy Center purpose is to provide the child victim of sexual and/or physical abuse, and the non-offending parent/guardian with interviewing, evaluation, and treatment services at a neutral location in a comfortable environment; to prevent further trauma to the child caused by multiple interviews and contacts with responding professionals; to enhance interagency and case coordination, communication, and cooperation; to hold more offenders accountable through improved prosecution of child abuse cases; and to enhance and refine professional skills needed in responding to sexual and physical abuse cases through training.

A satellite office in Washington County opened in July 1995. In April 2000, the program was expanded to Kent County in space located at Kent County Mental Health Services. The Children's Advocacy is currently seeking new locations for the northern RI and Newport sites.

The following Day One personnel are directly involved in the RI Children’s Advocacy Center:

a) Peg Langhammer - Executive Director.

Ms. Langhammer has been Executive Director of Day One for the past 18 years. A founding member of the Attorney General’s Task Force on the Sexual and Violent Physical Abuse of Children, she has been instrumental in the establishment of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center. She currently serves on the Board of the National Children’s Alliance (formerly the National Network of Children’s Advocacy Center

b) Stacie Cummins-McLaughlin, CISW - Director, RI Children’s Advocacy Center Ms. Cummins-McLaughlin serves as Director of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center, a position she has held since August, 1993. She was previously Clinical Coordinator and Senior Clinician of RI Youth Guidance Center in Pawtucket, responsible for the development of policies and procedures, staff supervision, program planning and development. Ms. Cummins-McLaughlin has provided training on Children’s Advocacy models for the Northeast Regional CAC. She has also provided training to CANTS investigators and police through the Department of Children, Youth and Families, and the Municipal Police Academy. She is a member of the National Association of Social Workers, and the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC).

b) Cheryl A. Patnaude - Director, RI Children's Advocacy Center

Ms. Patnaude serves as Director of the RI Children's Advocacy Center, a position she has held since June 1999. She was previously the Counties Coordinator of the CAC. Ms. Patnaude has provided training on Children's Advocacy Center models for CANTS investigators and police through the Department of Children, Youth and Families, and the Municipal Police Academy. She has 19 years of management and clinical experience in the area of mental health, including program development, multidisciplinary team coordination, and domestic violence.

d) ,Jill Amore - Forensic Interview Specialist In January 2001, Ms. Amore joined the Children's Advocacy Center as a full-time Forensic Interview Specialist.

e) Melissa D'Urso, Intake Manager

Ms. D'Urso joined the agency in June 1999. A former Day One advocate, she screens all requests for counseling and advocacy services (including the Children's Advocacy Center), determines which individuals are in need of crisis intervention, makes appointments for new clients, and assists with referrals to other resources. She is an active member of the clinical team, participating in individual and group supervision. She is supervised by the Clinical Director, Linda Ciolfi, LICSW.

In addition, we plan to hire a second Forensic Interview Specialist. This position, which will have statewide coordination responsibilities, is necessary due to the increased demand for services resulting from program expansion and increased collaboration with police departments throughout the state.

What is our challenge?

National statistics indicate that 1 in 4 girls, and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually assaulted before reaching the age of 18. Nationwide, the increase in the number of reports of child sexual and violent physical abuse has been astronomical. In 1974, there were about 60,000 cases reported. In 1997, close to one million children were confirmed as victims of abuse and neglect. An estimated three million were reported to state child protective service agencies as suspected victims. In Rhode Island, there were 4,416 indicated cases of child abuse and neglect reported to the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) in 1999. If these cases, 7 percent or 309 were incidents of sexual abuse. We believe that this number of reported cases represents only a fraction of the actual incidence of child abuse.

Last year, of the sexual assaults reported to Day One, approximately 10% of the offenders were categorized as strangers, or unacquainted with their victims. Ninety percent of the offenders were family members or acquaintances of the victims.

Child victims of sexual abuse have special needs and concerns, and are extremely vulnerable to revictimization. The traditional method of dealing with abuse cases has been to have each of the involved agencies deal with the child separately. Children are often interviewed numerous times by numerous people, an experience, which many find both frightening, confusing, and traumatizing. This experience may result in a child refusing to testify, or a family dropping charges in order to stop the revictimazatzon .

In March, 1999, focus groups were held to get comments from our partner agencies on their experiences working with the RI Children’s Advocacy Center. Day One staff met with prosecutors (Providence area), Washington County police, and child protective investigators from DCYF who have used the center. Focus groups were held in Newport and Kent Counties with police and prosecutors to talk about further expansion in those geographic areas. The response was extremely positive and generated a great deal of useful information for planning purposes. We are now developing an action plan using the comments and suggestions generated by these groups. We anticipate that this plan will prompt an increase in the number of requests for CAC services.

We are also continuing outreach to police departments throughout the state in an ongoing effort to improve coordination and services to victims.

What is our action plan?

The establishment of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center in 1993 as a program of Day One marked the beginning of a new era of responding to the needs of this population. To date, thirty-eight police departments in the state have used the program. We have also worked on several cases with departments in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Florida, and California

Our goal of expanding this program into Washington County became a reality in July, 1995. We opened another interviewing site in Woonsocket in March, 1997. We opened a satellite office in Newport in May, 1997. Our ultimate goal is to have satellite offices throughout the state.

The purpose of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center is:

• to provide the child victim and non-offending parent/guardian with interviewing, evaluation, and treatment services at a neutral location in a comfortable environment,
• to prevent further trauma to the child caused by multiple interviews and contacts with responding professionals, to enhance interagency and case coordination, communication, and
• cooperation, to hold more offenders accountable through improved prosecution of child abuse cases, and
• to enhance and refine professional skills needed in responding to sexual and violent physical abuse cases through training.

The formation of the Children’s Advocacy Center is the result of several years of work by the Attorney General’s Task Force on Sexual and Violent Physical Abuse of Children. Based on a national model, it has been a multidisciplinary team effort involving prosecutors, police, medical personnel, mental health professionals, and human service providers. In addition to the Department of the Attorney General and the Department of Children, Youth and Families, police departments in Cranston, Johnston, North Providence, Pawtucket, and Providence were the first to commit to work closely with Day One in the investigation and prosecution of child sexual abuse cases.

With the expansion to Washington County, police departments in Charlestown, Hopkinton, Narragansett, North Kingstown, Richmond, South Kingstown, Westerly, Block Island, and the State Police, have also become key players. Other organizations, which are involved in the program, include South County and Westerly hospitals, and Washington County based personnel in the Department of the Attorney General.

The opening of an additional interview site in Woonsocket has solidified the involvement of the Northern Rhode Island police departments. Other organizations from Northern RI which are involved in the program include: Woonsocket Housing Authority (which is providing the office space as an in-kind donation), Landmark Hospital, Thundermist Medical Center, Northern RI Mental Health Center,

Family Resources, Woonsocket Head Start, and the Blackstone Valley Psychological Institute. These agencies continue to serve as referral sources for the program.

When the Newport satellite office opened in May, 1997, we began working with police departments in Newport, Jamestown, Portsmouth, Tiverton, and Little Compton. The Women’s Resource Center Serving Newport and Bristol Counties are donating space for the site.

The Children’s Advocacy Center stresses coordination and teamwork among these professionals. Cooperative working relationships continue to be achieved and reinforced through joint interviews of children conducted by child protective service workers, detectives and/or therapists, and through team meetings held weekly to discuss abuse cases. Through teamwork and the use of established protocols, the number and types of interviews the child and family must endure are greatly reduced.

Staffing

The staffing of the Children's Advocacy Center has been key to its successful operation and management. As previously mentioned, Program Director Cheryl Patnaude is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Center.

Forensic Interview Specialist Jill Amore spends five days per week at Day One, Providence. She is supervised by the Director of the RI Children's Advocacy Center.

The Intake Manager, Melissa D'Urso, takes information on all new referrals and schedules interviews, as well as clinical appointments.

We plan to hire a second Forensic Interview Specialist later this year to provide additional support for the anticipated increase in referrals to the program. This will ensure that there are no delays in scheduling interviews, and cases can continue to be dealt with as soon as they are referred to the Center. The Case Management Team The Case Management Team (CMT) reviews all cases brought to the RI Children’s Advocacy Center with the goals of reducing additional trauma to children and of increasing the rate of successful prosecution of cases. The Case Management Team currently consists of the following members:

• a senior prosecutor designated by the Attorney General
• a DCYF supervisory level representative designated by the Director and the Child Protective Administrator
• a mental health professional with expertise in child sexual abuse
• the RI Children’s Advocacy Center Program Director a medical clinician with expertise in child sexual abuse (as needed)
• police detectives from participating departments
• a representative of the Victim/Witness Program

The teams meet every other week to review all active cases in which the CAC has been involved. All reports of child sexual abuse and serious physical abuse are brought before the team - usually at the first meeting held after the report is made. Team meetings are held at the Providence, Washington and Kent County sites. The meetings are chaired by the Director of the CAC.

The Washington County office has its own Case Management Team, comprised of professionals from Washington County agencies/organizations. The Washington County Coordinator chairs the Team meetings, which take place on a bi-weekly basis. Newport County cases are reviewed upon request.

At the first periodic meeting after a case has been brought in to the RICAC, the Investigative Team, consisting of representatives from law enforcement, prosecution, the Department of Children, Youth and Families (in caretaker cases) and mental health services, presents a review of the case. Facts revealed during the investigation are discussed, and team members are free to ask questions. Other professionals involved in the case may add any additional information, such as the family’s attitude toward criminal prosecution, progress in therapy, and the need for or the results of a medical examination. During this discussion, team members discuss and recommend a course of action for each case that meets the best interests of the child involved.

Cases may be brought before the team several times, particularly if a decision is made to tile a petition to change the custody of the child or to prosecute the offender. The child may be referred for a therapeutic assessment; the case may then be continued and all decisions suspended, until the assessment is completed and recommendations are received.

The review by the Case Management Team is done to:

• Discuss and plan the progress of the investigation;
• Review or determine the necessity for a medical examination;
• Discuss protection issues and provide input in the decision to remove the child;
• Provide input in the decision to prosecute;
• Discuss treatment needs of child and family;
• Review family attitude toward criminal prosecution; Coordinate criminal and family court proceedings;
• Discuss support for non-offending parents, siblings and other family
• Monitor and determine the sufficiency of the interview of the child members
• Produce a written record of findings and recommendations to be furnished to the investigative team
• Provide for a case specific review date.

Before a case is brought to the RI Children’s Advocacy Center for interviewing for alleged child sexual molestation, specific criteria must be met:

• 1. The alleged abuse must have occurred in one of the local jurisdictions which has formally agreed to participate in the multi-disciplinary process and use the agreed upon protocol (or by special request from other jurisdictions);
• 2. Potential should exist for criminal action and/or prosecution of cases in question, as determined by the responding investigative team;
• 3. The child has made some initial statement about the abuse. Cases based on behavioral indicators only are not appropriate for RICAC interviews;
• 4. Cases are given priority based on: an incident having occurred prior to the child’s fourteenth (14th) birthday; history of past abuse; severity of the abuse; the risk of continued sexual, physical and/or emotional abuse of the child; and the number of victims involved.

To minimize the number of interviews the child must endure, the initial interview of child victim through the RI Children’s Advocacy Center is conducted by one of the members of the investigative team, which could be a law enforcement detective, a Child Protective Investigator, a clinical interviewer, or a prosecutor. While one of these individuals conducts the interview, other team members may observe and participate from behind a one-way mirror. Follow-up interviews and contacts may be scheduled through the Children’s Advocacy Center. These interviews may be videotaped, if appropriate.

An important component of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center is that mental health services, including crisis intervention, assessments, and on-going individual and group therapy, are available at Day One. The Center currently employs one full-time child therapist, who provides individual counseling for child victims. In addition, group therapy is offered for adolescent survivors of sexual abuse, children exhibiting sexually reactive behavior, as well as a support group for non-offending parents of child victims of sexual abuse. Clients may be referred into existing programs at the Center, or given outside referrals. During the upcoming year, we plan to establish a group for parents of children who have been seen at the Children’s Advocacy Center.

In addition, Day One’s legal advocacy program provides information and accompaniment throughout the criminal justice process, including court preparation for children and their families.

All of these services are available to RI Children’s Advocacy Center clients. The same protocols are followed, and the same services offered, to clients using all of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center sites.

The services and activities outlined in this project are carried out under the management of the Executive Director. She meets on a regular basis with the RI Children’s Advocacy Center Program Director to review and evaluate the progress of the program. The Program Director supervises the Counties’ Coordinator and the Case Manager. The Intake Manager is supervised by the Clinical Director.

Action Plan as previously stated, the plans of the RI Children’s Advocacy Center are:

The program is evaluated on successfully meeting these goals.

Day One currently maintains detailed statistics on all of its clients. The Children’s Advocacy Center provides case tracking of child sexual abuse cases seen through the Center. The Center also collects data on (1) the number of child sexual abuse cases seen at the Children’s Advocacy Center by sex, race, etc., (2) number of cases referred for prosecution, the length of time it takes to process each case, and the outcome, (3) the number of cases referred for mental health therapy.

During 2000, the RI Children's Advocacy Center provided services to 331 child victims of sexual abuse. There were 216 new referrals. In addition, RI Children's Advocacy Center staff and advocates met with their non-offending parents and guardians to provide support and information about Day One services, the legal process, and to provide counseling referrals. A total of 231 forensic interviews were conducted. Also in 2000, a total of 147 cases were referred for prosecution following the forensic interview. Forty-seven cases were referred for prosecution following the forensic interview. Forty-seven cases were disposed by plea negotiation. Three hundred and thirty one cases were being tracked through the courts.

The videotaped interviews have been helpful in convincing defense to waive bail hearings, thus saving a child from additional court testimony. In most of the cases that went to Grand jury, the videotaped interviews were presented instead of in-person testimony by the child.

Through March 30, 2001, a total of 67 new referrals have been made to the program. This represents a potential increase in referrals of more than 20 percent to the Children's Advocacy Center in 2001. This information, coupled with the increase of signed formal agreements with local police departments (to 38), demonstrates the overwhelming success and future potential of the program.

The positions funded through VOCA monies are all essential for the provision of direct services to victims. The RI Children's Advocacy Center Director and the Forensic Interview Specialist work directly with victims of child sexual and physical abuse, and their non-offending parents/guardians. In addition, the Intake Manager's responsibilities include scheduling client interviews and meetings. The Center's support staff direct phone calls and inquiries, check in clients, and prepare CAC correspondence.

The RI Children's Advocacy Center has become a highly respected, statewide collaboration that is effectively reducing the trauma that must be endured by young victims as their cases proceed through the justice system. VOCA funding is extremely important to its continued success.

For more information contact:
Lauara A. Pisaturo, Esq., Program Director
Rhode Island Children's Advocacy Center
Day One
Sexual Assault & Trauma Center of Rhode Island
100 Medway
StreetProvience, Rhode Island 02906
Telephone: (401) 421-410
Web Page: www.dayoneri.org
E-Mail:info@DayOneRI.org