CPS officials, peace officers train on child-abuse investigations

Athens Daily Review - 3/30/2018

March 29--Texas Department of Family and Protective Services officials are working with law-enforcement officers and others to increase child-abuse prevention awareness, including at the Henderson County HELP Center on Thursday.

"We have always had a great working relationship with the Child Advocacy Center and law enforcement in Henderson County," said Amanda Prewitt, program director for Child Protective Services in Region 4. "It's so much easier and better for our clients when we all work together. We have a very good network system here in Henderson County."

At Maggie's House Child Advocacy Center, a part of the HELP Center, peace officers and CPS investigators conducted training on how to approach families about child abuse. In a mock situation, the investigators were put into an environment that could have been dangerous for themselves or the children they're trying to protect.

"What we want is to increase our investigators' knowledge of safety tips," Prewitt said. "We want them to have the general knowledge of their surroundings and to enhance their skills."

CPS Investigators Kayla Mullins and Heather McKinley are sisters who participated in the mock investigation.

"Most of the calls we make, the parents don't know we're coming," Mullins said. "We are there to make sure the kids are in a safe environment. The kids are our main concern."

Senate Bill 1806, passed by state lawmakers last year, requires CPS to refer cases to advocacy centers, and officials with those organizations center must initiate responses by the centers' multidisciplinary teams.

The new law provides that any interview of a child conducted as part of the investigation must be a forensic one conducted in accordance with the center's protocol, unless a forensic interview is not appropriate based on the child's age and development. Counties not served by a a child advocacy center that has an interagency memorandum of understanding may refer a case to a center in an adjacent county to initiate a response by that center's multidisciplinary team.

"It's also important our investigators stay safe," Prewitt said. "If an investigator does not feel safe, they should call law enforcement to the location."

Investigators came from Henderson, Anderson, Van Zandt, Angelina, Nacogdoches, Shelby, Rains, Marion, Harrison, Morris, Upshur and Camp counties to participate in the training. Prewitt said this is just the second time such a training has been offered to CPS officials.

"This is something that may be rolled out statewide. There was a similar training in Lamar County, now Henderson County. It gives our investigators a perspective as to what law enforcement goes through and helps law enforcement understand what is involved when we have to investigate a family."

Maggie's House last year provides services to 549 alleged victims of abuse and neglect. Henderson County Child Protective Services had 970 intakes assigned to investigators and 791 investigations completed here.

"Child abuse is a major problem across the nation, and Texas is no exception," according to a press release from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. "Child Protective Services completed 174,740 investigations last year in Texas and confirmed that 63,657 children were victims of abuse or neglect. That's an 8.5 percent increase in the number of victims compared to the previous year."

April is Child Abuse Awareness Month. Thousands of Texans will wear blue -- the official color of prevention -- to show their support for children. The Henderson County District Attorney's Office and the Go Blue Committee is selling "Go Blue" T-shirts to bring awareness to the importance of preventing child abuse and keeping children safe in Henderson County.

Suspected child abuse can be reported by calling the Texas Abuse Hotline at 800-252-5400 or by visiting TxAbuseHotline.org. For more about the Henderson County HELP Center and Maggie's House, call 903-675-4357 or visit thehelpcenter.org.

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