admin @ Sat, 2006-09-23 11:00
Factors that hinder the prosecution of those who sexually abuse children, how to correct the problems, and accountability issues were the major focus of the Arkansas Legislative Task Force on Abused and Neglected Children. The group met at the Capitol on Tuesday, Sept. 19.
The task force heard a panel of experts address why motivation, commitment and excellence at all professional levels are important, as well as ways to measure the performance of those charged with protecting children, including those who answer hot lines, investigators, prosecutors and judges. Grier Weeks, executive director of Promise to Protect, was panel moderator.
Senator Percy Malone (D — Arkadelphia), co-chair of the task force told the panel and attendees: "A lot of us now know how horrible child abuse is in our state. We are going to work to stop it."
Panel member Lona McCastlain, who worked in the White County Prosecutor's Office for a year and is now prosecutor for the 23rd Judicial District (Lonoke County), said that prosecuting child abuse cases is a priority in the 23rd Judicial District. They have a Child Advocacy Center (CAC), which is also used by White County investigators, because White County does not have a CAC at this time. The center provides a child-friendly atmosphere in which to interview young victims and the interviews can be video recorded. McCastlain has sent at least one person to Finding Words training.
She and other panel members, all active or former prosecuting attorneys, pointed out that 96 percent of prosecuting attorneys are elected to office. Many prosecutors run on the basis of their won-loss record; therefore, some prosecutors are reluctant to prosecute cases that they are not sure to win. McCastlain said that her office wins almost as many sexual abuse cases as they do any other type of case.
Speaking of the judiciary's role, task force member Connie Tanner said: "The Chief Justice (of the Arkansas Supreme Court, Jim Hannah of Searcy) is very committed to child abuse issues. This is the most child-friendly court in a long time."
H. G. Foster, of the 20th Judicial District and president of the Arkansas Prosecuting Attorney Association, said prosecutors decide whether to file a case and what charges to file.
David Montague, Assistant District Attorney, Tarrant County, Texas, said their Office of Court Administrator collects numbers on all cases, by case type and by county, and those numbers are dispersed. Having those comparisons is one way to tell what kind of job prosecutors are doing.
"What you take to a jury tells where the prosecuting attorney's priorities are. If they are all drug cases or DWI's, they are not doing a lot. Are they trying tough cases or are they trying lay-downs?" Montague asked.
Problems with the lack of prosecution of child sexual abuse cases don't lie totally with the prosecutor. Training is needed at every level, the panel concurred: the worker who gets a sexual abuse report on the hotline, the investigators and medical personnel who deal with the child, the people who prepare the child for court, and the prosecutors and judges who try the cases.
A problem in one area can cause problems in other areas, the panel said. If law enforcement or investigators do not do their job well, the prosecutor cannot do his or her job well. If the prosecutor doesn't prosecute, law enforcement gets disheartened and doesn't work the next case quite as hard.
"You have hidden enemies and allies," said Alice Vachss, author of "Sex Crimes" and a former Queens, New York prosecutor whom Parade Magazine called "one of the toughest prosecutors in America."
She said, "Five years down the road, you have law enforcement doing less because they are burned out because their cases are denied by the prosecuting attorney. These decisions are made in the dark. No one knows how many cases are declined."
Pros and cons of being a small state were discussed, as well. Senator Sue Madison (D — Fayetteville), co-chair of the task force said, "My concern is that local law enforcement may know the offender." She expressed concern that they might not want to proceed with an allegation against their banker, whom they would see at church on Sunday.
Foster later said that because Arkansas is a relatively small state, a great deal of accountability comes because he encounters people at the store.
During discussions among various professional groups represented, Malone asked more than once if legislative help was needed in order to see more cases go to trial. One person said legislation last year that funded the State Crime Lab at a higher level had resulted in much less delay in getting DNA results back and helped move cases forward much more quickly. Malone also asked prosecutors to get together and draw up an accountability model for prosecutors for presentation to the task force. Methods to assess the performance of other professionals will be developed, as well.
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