Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence Quarterly Newsletter

The Director’s Desk

Laura Robertson

Happy Fall! I am looking forward to this new season, mainly because of cooler weather (please!) and Razorback football (WPS!), but also for the opportunity to highlight and share about our partners that are working on the frontlines in the fight against Domestic Violence across Arkansas. October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and many of the shelters around the state will be involved in activities that will bring awareness to their communities about Domestic Violence and what we all can do to help prevent it and how to support the survivors. Please make an effort to reach out to your local shelters this month to see what you may be able to learn about their efforts to combat domestic violence in your city or county, and how you may be able to help them in those efforts.

Sara Rudolph-Pollard, our Domestic Violence Prevention Coordinator, and I have resumed our visits to the shelters around the state after a break over the summer. We had an amazing visit to the shelter in Batesville in August and I was truly impressed with all the great work that they are able to do for those they serve. They have wonderful support from their community and it shows in the services they are able to consistently provide. I look forward to a future visit with them to hear about using their new location to better serve their clients, and I look forward to our visits to other shelters throughout the state.

I am excited to announce that we have hired a new Child Welfare Ombudsman and thrilled that it is Stasia McDonald. I have known Stasia since our juvenile court days when we were both new lawyers. She comes to us from the state Attorney ad Litem office, where she has been the Director since 2018. Before that, she was with ACCARDV as the MDT State Coordinator. I know she will do a fantastic job serving our children and families involved in the child welfare system and working to make the system better. As the first Child Welfare Ombudsman for Arkansas, I am so grateful to hand the reins over to someone as experienced and passionate about child welfare as Stasia.

ACCARDV will be releasing our Child Abuse Prevention RFP again in October. Organizations can apply for two grants, one that focuses on primary prevention ($10,000) and one that focuses on secondary prevention ($50,000). Sherry Williamson did excellent training on proposals that support the development or expansion of child abuse and neglect prevention programs by utilizing primary or secondary prevention to increase protective factors in families and communities. It was inspiring to hear of programs already doing this by increasing the protective factors that strengthen families. We look forward to seeing what organizations across the fields of child welfare, sexual assault prevention, and domestic violence prevention submit. We were able to award grants to some incredible programs last year that encompassed all three of our discipline fields, and I do not doubt that this year’s submissions will be just as great. Look for the release of the RFP in mid-to-late October. If you have questions before then, please get in touch with me or Sherry Williamson.

Laura Robertson

Executive Director

Domestic Violence Division

“Domestic violence is not a new phenomenon. Unfortunately, violence within families and households, especially directed toward women and children, has existed since the beginning of recorded history. Still more troubling is the fact that laws throughout history have often ignored, or even supported, this kind of violence. In fact, it was seen as a justifiable punishment by an abuser to keep their women and children under control”.

“Domestic violence, also called intimate partner violence, ‘involves the physical, sexual, financial, and emotional abuse of one person by another in order to intimidate, humiliate or frighten‘ and thereby maintain power and control. In modern times, we have become far less tolerant of domestic violence in our laws as well as in our attitudes. However, as a society, we are still burdened by hundreds of years of negative precedence. Some cultural and belief systems in contemporary American culture still harbor troubling attitudes about family relations and domestic violence. Even more alarming are the statistics. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence reports that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been victims of violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime.

We have seen many social and cultural changes throughout history. Is it possible that these advancements have left the pervasive problem of domestic violence behind? How much has truly changed over the centuries? The following article will explore the historical timeline of domestic violence. We will see what has changed and then discuss ways to seek help if you or someone you love is experiencing domestic violence.”

Click here to continue reading this article

Domestic Violence Awareness Month Activities

The Haven of Northeast AR – Blytheville, AR

9/30/22 – Proclamation Day

A day for the governing officials throughout Mississippi County to proclaim October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month – Gazebo at Walker Park, Blytheville, AR @ 10 AM

10/4/22 – Candlelight Vigil

To remember those who have lost their lives to domestic violence and honor the survivors of domestic violence – Blytheville Prayer Garden, 1st Christian Church, 600 West Walnut Street, Blytheville, AR @ 6 PM

10/6/22 – “Respect in Relationship

Lunch and Learn Series – Arkansas Northeastern College @ 11 AM

10/8/22 – Blytheville Chili Cook-Off

In front of the Outreach Office, 107 W. Main Street, Blytheville, AR, Info Booth from 10 AM – 4 PM

10/8/22 – 5K Run/Walk Against Domestic Violence

The race is timed by Agee Timing-Jonesboro – Ribbons & Trophies will be presented for each age group and overall winners – “Fastest Badge in the County” trophy for the fastest officer’s time – Registration is OPEN @ www.thehavenofneainc.org

10/17-20/22 – Awareness Projects

(on loan from Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence)

Clothesline Project – Recognizing Arkansans who have lost their lives to domestic violence over the past ten years Arkansas Northeastern College – 2501 S. Division, Blytheville, AR, Adams/Vine Gallery from 9 AM – 6 PM

**9am-12noon on 10/20/22**

Silent Witness Project – Recognizing known Arkansans who have lost their lives to domestic violence in 2021 – Mississippi County Library – 200 N. 5th Street, Blytheville, AR – During Normal Library Hours

**Until 12noon on 10/20/22**

Women’s Crisis Center of South Arkansas – Camden, AR

10/8/2022 – 4th ANNUAL COLOR FUN RUN

Start of Race: Women’s Crisis Center Business Office – 1112 West Washington @ 8:00 AM

Registration fee: $30 adult & $20 child

Registration forms are available at the WCCSA Business Office and are due by September 20th – For more info, call 870-836-0375.

10/18/22 – “Recognizing the Signs of Domestic Abuse”

Arkansas Northeastern College – Adams/Vines Recital Hall @ 5 PM

Northwest Arkansas Women’s Shelter – Rogers, AR

10/22/22 – Monte Carlo Casino Night

DoubleTree Suites in Bentonville

For more info or tickets, folks can visit www.nwaws.org/fresh-start-2022

Margie’s Haven House, Inc. – Heber Springs, AR

10/1 – 10/31 – Purple Lights Nights

People are asked to put a purple porch light on every night of the month of October. Communicated through social media by asking the community to wear purple and tag Margie’s Haven House in their social media pictures.

10/1/22 – 10/31/2022 – Facebook Post

Facebook posts to spread awareness of Domestic Violence.

10/20/22 – National Purple Thursday

Promoted by asking the community to wear purple and tag Margie’s Haven House in their social media pictures.

10/24/22 -Domestic Violence Awareness Day

Cleburne County Judge has declared October 24th DV awareness day in Cleburne county, AR. Proclamation signed in 2019.

Turning Point of South Arkansas – El Dorado, AR

10/3/2022 – Drive Through Donation Day

Old City Park – 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM – Need Paper towels, toilet tissue, dish detergent, & laundry detergent

10/4/2022 – Proclamation Day

Guest Speakers: Mayor Veronica Creer & Chief Hickman – Union County Courthouse – 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

10/7/2022 – Post it Purple Day

Tag Turning Point on all of your social media posts – #turningpoint

Serenity, Inc. – Mountain Home, AR

10/1/2022 – 10/31/2022

Clothesline project on the town square for the month of October

Serenity is hiding purple tokens around our area with DV facts on them. The people that find them will have the opportunity to post the fact on Facebook, tag us, and win a prize.

10/14/2022 – 10/17/2022

ACADV’s silent witness project at the shelter

Shelter Visits

As mentioned in last quarter’s newsletter Laura and I (Sara Rudolph-Pollard) are visiting the shelters around the state and it has been nothing short of wonderful to see firsthand the great work that is being done. Below is a letter we received from Billie Grady, ED at Family Violence Prevention.

Billie Grady

Executive Director

September 13, 2022

Family Violence Prevention, Inc. would like to take a moment to thank Sara[h] [Rudolph] Pollard and Laura Robertson for taking time out of their busy schedules to visit our organization.

Being able to sit with two ladies who understand this line of work was such a wonderful moment for us. We started the day out with a few snacks in our new building that we hope to use for training and staff events before heading out to our site visits.

We stopped by our Safe Haven Women’s Shelter first, where Sarah and Laura had a chance to tour the residence and speak with our child advocate on hand. Then we went to the Taylor House Men’s Shelter before stopping by our Fresh Start Resale Shop.

During the visit, we had such a fun time talking and just learning about the struggles and triumphs that we have seen during our time working with domestic violence victims.

I know we learned so much from them, and can’t wait to visit again.

Thank You

Billie Grady

Sexual Assault Prevention Division

With autumn approaching (though certainly far slower than I’d prefer), I can’t help but think of college. Maybe it’s because of the beginning of college football season. Perhaps it’s because my alma mater frequently posts photos of campus in fall colors. Maybe it’s simply because Fall was always that part of the semester where things felt like they were falling into place. Regardless of the reason, the season serves as an important reminder of campus safety issues, some of the existing solutions, and ways for students to advocate for their well-being.

Campus sexual assault is a distressing and pervasive issue, with 13% of all college students experiencing it. While college-aged women are at three times the risk of rape compared to all women, it is essential to note that the risk is 20% higher for non-students than students. The picture isn’t much better for men, with male students between 18 and 24 having a 78% greater risk of rape and sexual assault than non-students. Furthermore, 23.1% of trans, genderqueer, or nonconforming college students are victims of sexual assault. Of even more significant concern is that among college-aged female victims, students are less likely to report than non-students (RAINN). This statistic is particularly sobering because rape is the most underreported crime in the US. Because of this, we must understand how to address campus sexual violence and improve students’ access to justice.

The primary tool used to combat campus sexual violence is Title IX, which requires that schools receiving federal funds protect students from all forms of gender-based violence and harassment from ensuring equal access to education. Not only does Title IX protect students facing sexual violence, but it also protects against intimate partner violence. Suppose the violence and harassment hinder a student’s access to their education and are perpetrated by someone under the authority of the school. In that case, that school is required to do something about it (ACLU). It is also important to note that Title IX is not replacing the criminal justice system. Instead, it is a different system by which victims can seek justice. However, much of Title IX is out of students’ hands, which begs the question: what can students do to advocate for themselves and make their campuses safer?

Fortunately, organizations like Know Your IX have made it their mission to assist students in grassroots organizing to improve the state of campus safety and advocate for change. Know Your IX provides detailed, extensive policy playbooks at the campus, state, and federal levels that students can use to address various aspects of gender-based violence. In particular, there are many policies and strategies to prevent gender-based violence. This is especially exciting as we at the Commission are uniquely situated to utilize these methods and foster and support existing campus movements to prevent gender-based violence. One of those current efforts is being undertaken by the Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault, which offers technical assistance and education for Title IX staff on campuses in Arkansas.

Sexual Assault Prevention Division – Human Trafficking

Melanie Mata – Chair of the Committee on Rape and Sexual Assault Prevention

Recent grant funding of 6.2 million dollars, over five years, was awarded to ACASA through their anti-human trafficking program. Shannon Holman Anti-Human Trafficking Program Director – ACASA has been spearheading this project. The state has been divided into 12 regions. With this funding, all regions will have an anti-human trafficking specialist assigned to assist with getting adult victims needed resources/services. Currently, there are 10 regions who have an anti-human trafficking specialist assigned. The other two regions will have their specialist hired within the next couple of months. The Advisory Council for Human Trafficking will begin to meet again around mid-October. This council includes each region’s anti-human trafficking specialist and several non-profit organizations throughout the state who are working with victims. Through ACASA Anti-Human Trafficking Program, Annie Smith with University of Arkansas School of Law, was consulted to look at where the state is regarding the implementation of the 19 recommendations set forth through the Arkansas Task Force for the Prevention of Human Trafficking done in 2014. The rough draft has been done but will not be released until officially reviewed. All trafficking cases involving minors are to be followed through the Child Advocacy Centers as outlined in ACT 975. Future projects will incorporate which 2014 Task Force recommendations need more focus and development of a state human trafficking registry for accuracy of data collection.

Child Welfare Division

As the season begins to change, I look forward to the coming months and am reminded that November is National Adoption Month. We adopted a sibling group from foster care several years ago, and the boys came home to us during the month of November after we met them in October at a DCFS picnic. November is a big deal in my family.

During the most recent annual reporting period, we had more than 117,000 children in foster care waiting to be adopted in the United States. That is the combined population of North Little Rock, Benton, and Bryant. This is not acceptable, and we can all do something about it. We are not all cut out to be adoptive parents, but we can all do something to help foster and adoptive families. We can support them so they do not give up. We can help them so they can stay engaged.

I remember in the earliest days of going from a family of two to a family of five overnight how much it meant to me when I got a random message from a friend asking for our physical address and what we wanted on our pizza. I cried. Something as simple as taking that one decision off my mind that day gave me a little more much-needed patience. You could offer to run errands for a foster or adoptive family with new kiddos. Sometimes it is more helpful to hear a concrete offer… “Do you have anything I can pick up for you? Groceries? Prescriptions? Dry cleaning?”

We had a fantastic support system- personally and professionally- and we needed it. We had friends, family, supervisors, and co-workers who jumped into action sometimes before we knew we needed help. If you see the need for foster and adoptive families but do not feel it is something you can do, you can provide support for someone directly engaged in the process. If you do not know a foster or newly adoptive family who could use your support, please reach out, and I will help you find one. I hope you will consider honoring National Adoption Month by becoming a support to a family who needs it. I speak from experience when I say it makes all the difference in the world.

Staff Highlight

Name: Stasia Burk McDonald

Hometown: I grew up in Dallas, Tx

Role: Child Welfare Ombudsman

UAMS: I was previously employed by UAMS at the Commission from 2007-2018 as the MDT Project Coordinator. I started as the Ombudsman on September 6, 2022.

Away from work: I serve on a few committees at church and am involved in settling refugees from Afghanistan. I love true crime documentaries, reading, cooking, and spending time with my family.

Joy: Helping others

Favorite Vacation: I love visiting cities, especially new ones I have not been to before.

Domestic Violence Committee Meeting Invitation

This announcement is your invitation to join the Domestic Violence Committee for its quarterly meeting at noon on October 17, 2022

The Commission is excited to announce that we are taking steps to start a domestic violence fatality review team here in Arkansas! Our first step is to hear from the fatality review team expert, Neil Websdale, Ph.D. Neil is the Director of the newly formed Family Violence Institute at Northern Arizona University and the Director of the National Domestic Violence Fatality Review Initiative (NDVFRI). He has published work on domestic violence, the history of crime, policing, social change, and public policy. In 2002, Neil won the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Outstanding Book Award and the Gustavus-Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights Award. His social policy work involves helping establish networks of domestic violence fatality review teams across the United States and elsewhere. His extensive fatality review work has contributed to NDVFRI receiving the prestigious 2015 Mary Byron Foundation Celebrating Solutions Award. He has also worked on issues related to community policing, full faith and credit, and risk assessment and management in domestic violence cases. Dr. Websdale trained as a sociologist at the University of London, England, and currently lives and works in Flagstaff, Arizona.

What is a Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team: Domestic violence fatality review refers to the “deliberative process for identification of deaths, both homicide, and suicide, caused by domestic violence, for examination of the systemic interventions into known incidents of domestic violence occurring in the family of the deceased before the death, for consideration of altered systemic response to avert future domestic violence deaths, or for development of recommendations for coordinated community prevention and intervention initiatives to eradicate domestic violence.” This deliberative process can be formal or informal, relatively superficial, offering basic demographic details of victims and perpetrators, or very detailed (Barbara Hart).

Join Zoom Meeting

If the above Zoom link does not work, contact Sara Rudolph-Pollard at serudolphpollard@uams.edu and I will forward the Zoom link to you.

Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence Quarterly Newsletter

The Director’s Desk

Laura Robertson

We have received our first quarterly reports from our Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention grants, and many good things are happening across the state with our partners in prevention. I am excited to be able to highlight a few of them.

100 Families, through the funded case manager position, are working toward reducing the number of children that come into foster care by helping identify and coordinate services for families in crisis. After meeting with the Sebastian County juvenile judges, they are also starting to take referrals from juvenile court officers to assist families with finding services they need to defer any possible DCFS involvement.

Wade Knox Children’s Advocacy Center was able to educate over 2700 students and over 140 teachers, coaches, counselors, and school administrators on the 5 Safety Rules from the Child Safety Matters and Teen Safety Matters curriculum. The Monique Burr Foundation created this curriculum which the CAC purchased with the grant and is using to teach students and those that work with them how to identify and address unsafe situations like bullying, cyberbullying, and child abuse.

We are happy to share information on the extraordinary work being done in our communities through all of ACCARDV’s partners in prevention.

The Child Welfare Division

Do you know about the child welfare training options available to you at no cost through the Commission? The most frequently requested topic is mandated reporting, we have multiple options available. ACCARDV provides access to two online options: one for licensed educators and another for anyone else interested in online training. Through a collaboration with PBS, the Commission consulted on training modules available on the Arkansas IDEAS (Internet Developed Education for Arkansas Schools) for licensed educators, and is the most efficient way for educators to receive the required professional development hours on child maltreatment.

Another online option is self-paced training available at www.ar.mandatedreporter.org. This option is often utilized by agencies and programs that want staff or volunteers to receive training, as well as post-secondary educational programs that utilize it in curricula. The participant creates an account and completes the training, which can be done over multiple log-ins. A completion certificate may be printed, emailed, or accessed later to provide documentation of completion to their employer.

ACCARDV MISSION STATEMENT
To enhance the investigation, prosecution, treatment, support, and prevention of cases of child abuse, rape, and domestic violence. We hope that our services will help you educate and protect those whose lives are affected by these destructive realities, and replace confusion with clarity of purpose. The Commission’s purpose and membership were further defined in Act 1336, passed by the State Legislature in 1995. This comprehensive group is made up of representatives from various agencies, professions or groups, and service providers including law enforcement, medicine, and mental health.

Sexual Assault Prevention Division

We’ve been relatively busy in the past few weeks! In mid-June, we hosted a training on LGBTQ+ Inclusivity for our RPE sub-grantees and ACASA. Lorraine Stigar did an incredible job with the training, and they received high praise from the attendees. At the end of June, we held the 2022 Sexual Assault Hospital Protocol Conference, which covered various topics, including sexual assault exams, advocacy, neurobiology of trauma, laws about sexual assault, and health equity as it relates to several marginalized groups. If anyone would like a link to the conference recording or the presentations, please contact Sam Siegel at sesiegel@uams.edu. We have also begun printing and distributing our “Am I in Love or Am I in Trouble?” brochures, which have been translated into Spanish by some of the fine folks at Ozark Rape Crisis Center! Over the next few months, we’re working with the Arkansas Department of Health to host more training opportunities for our funded programs.

We’re looking forward to the next meeting of the Committee on Rape and Sexual Assault Prevention on August 24 at 1:30 pm.

Among female victims of rape, 51.1% reported an intimate partner as the perpetrator, while 40.8% reported the perpetrator was an acquaintance. Among male victims, 52.4% reported being raped by an acquaintance, while 15.2% reported the perpetrator was a stranger.

National Sexual Violence Resource Center

Domestic Violence Division

Terri Baker presented at our DV Committee meeting on 7/19. Below is a synopsis of her presentation.
The guest presenter was Terri Baker, with the Faulkner County STOP DV (Special Team on Preventing Domestic Violence) specialty court. STOP DV is a non-profit that was started in 2019 to address the gaps in the system regarding domestic violence cases in the court system. Ms. Baker is the Court Liaison for the program and the Executive Director.

Five employees, including a child advocate and an attorney, handle only the Orders of Protection for the victims. The goal of STOP DV is not to solve the problem of domestic violence but to stop it. They staff and review cases and follow the offenders through their program to ensure their cases do not get overlooked or fall through the cracks.

STOP DV has been twenty years in the making and was the idea of a prosecutor and a judge that saw a need in Faulkner County. They saw many repeat offenders and wondered what they could do to increase the safety of survivors. They had a docket agreement between the district court judge and the circuit court judge to hear all cases related to domestic violence. They wanted to ensure that their agreement to work together would outlast them and not depend on who was on the bench, so STOP DV was born. It is funded through DFA and VOCA funds.

The staff attorney is only allowed to handle the Orders of Protection for the victim and cannot represent the victim on any other legal matters. They are hoping to change that if funding allows it in the future. They also make sure victims know their rights and all relevant court dates. STOP DV makes sure the offender is held accountable. A compliance piece is tied to criminal charges for the offender. Similar to probation, it also has a diversion program that allows the offender to be diverted from jail time if they work the program through DV court.

Usual standards do not measure the success rate. It is common for victims to return to their abusers, but the program considers it a success if the victims return to them for help, even if they continue to return to their abusers. The program is not trying to fix offenders but to provide a safe place for victims to receive referrals and help when they are ready. They can secure attorneys who will provide pro bono services for the victims. Because of the repeat offenders and victims, the program does track new versus returning clients.

Their goal in their first year was to reach fifty (50) clients. They served 90 in the first month. Since opening in 2019, they have served almost 3000 clients.

They are the only DV specialty court in Arkansas. About 25% of the judicial districts are progressing with their DV cases and moving toward a specialty court to handle them. The Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence has been very supportive of the program. Ms. Baker said that the first step is getting a judge on board with the program, which helps immensely if the prosecutor is on board.

1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. For trans or gender non-conforming folks, this number jumps to 54% (National Center for Transgender Equality)

1 in 3 adolescent girls in the US are victims of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner.

It takes an average of 7 attempts for a survivor to leave their abuser and stay separated for good. Leaving is the most dangerous time in an abusive relationship.

Each day in the US, three women are murdered by a current or former intimate partner (Bureau of Justice Statistics).

An intimate partner kills 1 in 5 homicide victims. Over half of female homicide victims in the US are killed by a current or former male intimate partner (CDC).

https://www.responding.org/dv-facts-stats/

Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence Quarterly Newsletter

The Director’s Desk

Laura Robertson

Spring is finally in the air…along with pollen…but the days are getting longer, the flowers are blooming, and new beginnings are all around us! At ACCARDV, we are excited about some new beginnings too. In February, we were able to fund nine new programs focused on primary and secondary child abuse prevention. These new programs involve partners across all three of our areas of prevention focus; child abuse, sexual assault, and domestic violence. Each program is unique and will provide education or services that will aid in preventing child abuse in populations most at risk. As April begins and awareness is raised in our communities through Child Abuse Prevention Month and Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention Month, we look forward to telling you a little about each of these new programs and their impact on Arkansas.

I have also enjoyed beginning visits to our Domestic Violence Shelters around the state with our Domestic Violence Coordinator, Sara Rudolph-Pollard. We have learned so much and have been so impressed with the services provided to the communities served in Fort Smith, Blytheville, West Memphis, Texarkana, and Little Rock. The part that impressed me most at every shelter was the tremendous support each of these agencies has from their cities and counties. That support says so much about the incredible work they do and the necessary services they provide to those experiencing domestic violence.

We look forward to continuing our visits around Arkansas in the coming months and meeting more of ACCARDV’s partners on the front lines of Domestic Violence prevention and survivor support.

The Child Welfare Ombudsman Division

I cannot believe that it has been fifteen months since the office of the Child Welfare Ombudsman opened. It has been full of meetings and partnering with stakeholders throughout the Child Welfare system, addressing issues within the system, and helping families and children receive the help and services they need while attempting to progress through an often confusing and overwhelming system.

One group I would like to highlight is our dependency-neglect attorney ad litems. These are attorneys that the court assigns to the children involved in a dependency-neglect case to represent the child’s best interest. Without a doubt, they have made my job much easier and more bearable on many days. Across the state, they take their jobs and their clients’ best interests very seriously. They genuinely care about the children they represent. Their care and concern show in their professionalism, legal expertise, and relentless pursuit of services for their clients and families, especially to prevent further abuse and strengthen the child’s family. They fight daily to make sure their clients whose parents’ rights are terminated are not lost to a system that can easily turn them into another statistic. These foster children are our most vulnerable, and our attorney ad litems represent them and their needs very well. Stasia McDonald, the Dependency-Neglect Attorney ad Litem Program Director for Arkansas, has done a fantastic job in the selection process across the state for attorney ad litems. The training and support her office provides the attorneys allow them to maintain consistent excellence in representing their clients that are often not seen in the legal profession.

ACCARDV Mission Statement
To enhance the investigation, prosecution, treatment, support and prevention on cases of child abuse, rape, and domestic violence. We hope that our services will help you educate and protect those whose lives are affected by these destructive realities, and replace confusion with clarity of purpose. The Commission’s purpose and membership were further defined in Act 1336, passed by the State Legislature in 1995. This comprehensive group is made up of representatives from various agencies, professions or groups, and service providers including law enforcement, medicine, and mental health.

Sexual Assault Prevention Division

As April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, I’m reminded that rape and sexual assault are unfortunately common in the United States and Arkansas. The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) reports that 81% of women and 43% of men reported sexual harassment and/or assault in their lifetime. In 2018, there were 2,950 rape and sexual assault reports across Arkansas. In 2019, the number of rape and sexual assault reports increased to 3,035. It is important to note that these statistics likely underestimate the actual number of rapes and sexual assaults. The NSVRC reports that 63% of sexual assaults go unreported. The Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence work with community partners to prevent rape and sexual assault and improve the quality of care for victims through educational programming and conferences.

Through the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Rape education grant, we fund five sexual assault programs around the state. One of these partners works tirelessly to implement prevention programs for people with disabilities, who have a significantly higher victimization rate of rape and sexual assault. The programs implement evidence-informed rape and sexual assault prevention programming, which teaches secondary students how to recognize healthy and unhealthy relationships, the harms of gender stereotypes, and the importance of consent.

This year, the Commission is hosting a conference on hospital response to sexual assault. The goals of this conference are to reinforce existing treatment protocols for healthcare providers around the state, provide more information about the chain of custody of evidence gathered from rape exams, and educate providers about issues in health equity faced by various marginalized groups.

Finally, we are working with the Arkansas Department of Health to include the Sexual Violence question module for the 2023 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS); this will provide data to understand better the state’s actual rate of rape and sexual assault. The BRFSS collects vital demographic data and identifies the populations of greatest need, thus helping to direct our efforts most effectively.

Among female victims of rape, 51.1% reported an intimate partner as the perpetrator, while 40.8% reported the perpetrator was an acquaintance. Among male victims, 52.4% reported being raped by an acquaintance, while 15.2% reported the perpetrator was a stranger.

National Sexual Violence Resource Center

Child Welfare Division

As Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness Month always brings to mind the one question that has been asked of me at almost every child maltreatment education session over the last two decades. No matter if the audience is a dozen Head Start employees in a colorful classroom in rural Arkansas, a bustling auditorium of hundreds of educators, or a seminar room filled with uniformed law enforcement- the question most often asked is some version of “How do we keep this from happening?”

How do we prevent child abuse and neglect? According to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), promoting protective factors is the answer. As defined by ACF, protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities, thereby increasing the health and well-being of children and families. Utilizing protective factors assists parents in finding resources, supports, and coping strategies to help them in parenting effectively, even when under stress.

UAMS recently provided the Commission with the opportunity to develop funding parameters for a grant to prevent child abuse and neglect. Utilizing the protective factors framework adapted from the Strengthening Families Framework developed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy, ACCARDV asked non-profits, state agencies, law enforcement, juvenile courts, and other programs to submit proposals to increase protective factors in local communities. The funded programs described in their applications how the development or expansion of proposed projects would contribute to the increase in protective factors in the communities served. The Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault, two domestic violence shelters, four child advocacy centers, Restore Hope, and the Center for Arkansas Legal Services are recipients of the ACCARDV Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Grants. For the first time in Commission history, programs in all three disciplines were funded by the same grant, encouraging collaboration and integration among professionals and programs working in child maltreatment, sexual assault, and domestic violence. The Commission was grateful for applications for the initial round of funding, and we look forward to working with these programs and shining a light on the work they do in their communities in the coming year.

Protective Factors Framework:
Nurturing and attachment
Knowledge of parenting and child and youth development
Parental resilience
Social connections
Concrete support for parents
Social and emotional competence of children

Domestic Violence Division

As Laura mentioned above, it is a great pleasure visiting the shelters. I enjoy seeing old faces and meeting new ones. As I listen to all that the shelter’s staff can accomplish, I am amazed that they do so much with so little. One constant that I hear over and over is “COMMUNITY.” The communities are stepping up and providing everything from shampoo to diapers to furniture and stoves. People in the communities also give their time to build playsets, paint and even take care of lawns. Check with the shelter in your community and offer your time and talents.

On another note, I provide domestic violence/Healthy Relationship training to the residents of Hoover Treatment Center. At Hoover, we always seem to have some discussion on, Why doesn’t she just leave? When I started in the DV field over 25 years ago, I asked the same question. The reasons victims stay are varied and many.

Why Do The Abused Stay?

-The victims lack knowledge or access to safety and support.

-The belief that two-parent households are better for children, despite the abuse.

-Unsupportive friends and family

-The victim feels that the relationship is a mix of good times, love, hope, manipulation, intimidation, and fear.

Fear of the batterer’s violence:

A victim’s chances of being killed or seriously injured increase by 75% when leaving a violent relationship.

Immobilization by psychological and/or physical trauma:

Victims are often too injured or too frightened to tell or escape.

Connection to the perpetrator through children:

Some stay in the relationship because of their beliefs and for their children’s need for the other parent or because of the abuser’s previous threats to flee with the children, have the children taken away, or harm them.

Belief in cultural, family, or religious values:

Support systems are not always supportive of a victim leaving the relationship or seeking help. Family or religious systems can pressure a victim into staying in a violent relationship.

Continual hope and belief that the violence will end or he will change:

Victims believe promises made by the batterer and want the violence to end, but not necessarily the relationship. Victims believe that they have the power to change the relationship for the better.

Belief batterer will commit suicide or engage in self-destructive behavior:

Many batterers threaten suicide or use any means necessary to place guilt and worry on the victim.

Lack of funds:

It costs approximately $1500 to set up a household in the first month without housing assistance. Public housing lists are long, sometimes over six months, and many do not qualify.

Lack of real alternatives for employment and financial assistance:
Domestic violence is the number one cause of loss of employment in the United States.

Source: https://www.domesticpeace.com/why-abused-stay

1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. For trans or gender non-conforming folks, this number jumps to 54% (National Center for Transgender Equality)
1 in 3 adolescent girls in the US are victims of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner.
It takes an average of 7 attempts for a survivor to leave their abuser and stay separated for good. Leaving is the most dangerous time in an abusive relationship.
Each day in the US, three women are murdered by a current or former intimate partner (Bureau of Justice Statistics).
An intimate partner kills 1 in 5 homicide victims. Over half of female homicide victims in the US are killed by a current or former male intimate partner (CDC).

https://www.responding.org/dv-facts-stats/