Campaign advocates recognizing, reporting suspected abuse

[GaryC 7]

Now don't get me wrong, child sexual abuse is the most dispicable crime I can imagine. Anything we can do to stop it is worthwile. But this goes way over the top. It would turn any father that holds his childs hand into a suspected child molester. The billboard is just wrong!!

By ELIZABETH SIMPSON, The Virginian-Pilot

© June 21, 2007

For years, campaigns to stop child sexual crimes have focused on encouraging children to speak up about abuse.

State health officials are trying a new tactic. The latest push, at least in Hampton Roads, is to educate adults on how to spot - and stop - sexual offenders.

The "Stop It Now " campaign - just launched locally - will urge people to call a help line if they see an adult whom they suspect of having a sexual relationship with a child.

Billboards and posters show an adult hand holding a child's hand, with the words: "It doesn't feel right when I see them together."

A national help line number is listed, and through it callers can get advice about what to do.

Rebecca Odor, who directs the sexual and domestic violence prevention division for the state Department of Health, said officials hope to reach people who might feel uncomfortable reporting a relative or acquaintance to law enforcers.

"We want to teach them to trust their instinct and, if it doesn't feel right, take action," Odor said.

A survey released by the health department in 2004 found that one in four women and one in five men have been victims of child sexual assault. That led officials to seek new prevention methods.

The Stop It Now national organization is based in Massachusetts. Its first involvement in Virginia came in Richmond in 2005. Since then, the organization also has worked with the state on campaigns in the Shenandoah Valley and in southwest Virginia.

Radio spots will begin airing in Hampton Roads on Monday. Billboards are already in place in Chesapeake, Norfolk and Portsmouth. Posters are also being sent to human services agencies throughout the region.

The local campaign will last a month and cost $16,000.

The national help line number, (888) 773-8368, connects people with a professional trained to spot warning signs of both victims and offenders. The help line operator will give advice about what can be done to keep the child safe and help determine if enough evidence is available to report the adult as a possible offender. It will be the caller's responsibility to contact authorities.

The help line hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

An evaluation of the campaign in Richmond showed that people who heard the radio spots were three times more likely than those who hadn't heard it to think that child sexual abuse is preventable. About 40 people called the help line from the Richmond area during that campaign, from October 2005 to February 2006.

Groups that have formed to help people falsely accused of abuse are opposed to the campaign. Dean Tong, who operates a Web site that offers help to people who are falsely accused of abuse, said the campaign has the potential to tarnish the reputation of innocent people and hurt children.

"For every case of genuine abuse, there are two or three that are unfounded witch hunts," said Tong, a Florida forensic consultant who has written books on the topic of false accusations.

Odor, though, said the aim is to better educate the community about child sexual abuse and to connect children and possible offenders with services that could help them.

http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?...&ran=222513

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

"For every case of genuine abuse, there are two or three that are unfounded witch hunts," said Tong, a Florida forensic consultant who has written books on the topic of false accusations.

America loves a good witch hunt.

Edited June 28, 2007 by Gupt

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Going off what happened in the UK a few years ago - this is one issue where we really shouldn't be feeding the paranoia.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Billboards and posters show an adult hand holding a child's hand, with the words: "It doesn't feel right when I see them together."

I think the idea here is they are trying to say that if your gut is telling you something doesn't seem right, to report it. I would hope that CPS would not respond to people's gut feeling, but on actual substance when taking in a potential abuse case.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

They are asking people to report based on gut feelings, not actual substance. Why would they ask for that to be reported on if they didn't intend to treat the reports as actionable?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Wrongful/malicious accusation causes far-reaching problems for the person involved.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

They are asking people to report based on gut feelings, not actual substance. Why would they ask for that to be reported on if they didn't intend to treat the reports as actionable?

Maybe they believe that professionals could see things that the person making the report wouldn't be able to put the finger on, other than saying they have a gut feeling about it.

It sounds over-reaching, but if you think about it, CPS cannot go and investigate every report - they will have to filter through and decide which reports are worth investigating. The downside is that even if someone is falsely accused, their lives are ruined.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

They are asking people to report based on gut feelings, not actual substance. Why would they ask for that to be reported on if they didn't intend to treat the reports as actionable?

Maybe they believe that professionals could see things that the person making the report wouldn't be able to put the finger on, other than saying they have a gut feeling about it.

It sounds over-reaching, but if you think about it, CPS cannot go and investigate every report - they will have to filter through and decide which reports are worth investigating. The downside is that even if someone is falsely accused, their lives are ruined.

I think they'll get so many 'anonymous tips' that it will be futile.

[JoeMama 0]

Billboards and posters show an adult hand holding a child's hand, with the words: "It doesn't feel right when I see them together."

I think the idea here is they are trying to say that if your gut is telling you something doesn't seem right, to report it. I would hope that CPS would not respond to people's gut feeling, but on actual substance when taking in a potential abuse case.

It only has me asking, "how many people are actually smart enough to figure out what you did about the billboard"?

[Caladan 19]

"For every case of genuine abuse, there are two or three that are unfounded witch hunts," said Tong, a Florida forensic consultant who has written books on the topic of false accusations.

America loves a good witch hunt.

This is going to be another 'satanists in the day cares!' mass hysteria. Child abuse and kidnapping rates have remained stagnant for decades. The only thing that's changed is that there's a lot more handwringing.