On Oct. 17, Cathy Purvis, MA, executive director of Children’s Advocacy Centers of N.C., met with the Polk County Child Advocacy team at Steps to HOPE to develop a county-wide protocol for responding to and interviewing sexually or otherwise abused children forensically.
Polk County’s Child Advocacy Team meets monthly, and consists of members of law enforcement from the Columbus, Saluda and Tryon police departments as well as the Polk County Sheriff’s office, Family Services, State Bureau of Investigation, N.C., the district attorney’s office, members of the mental and physical health communities, the Polk County Department of Social Services’ forensic interviewer, Kim Wilson, and Steps to HOPE’s family outreach educator, Ruth Richardson.
– article submitted by Debra Backus