Assault Center

**The following article was written for my Newspaper Writing class at the University of Georgia during the Fall Semester of the year 2007. The article will include the date of submission to my professor (information found in the article will only be as current as this included date). The article was NOT published at any time.**

October 19, 2007
Assault center
by Rene Lautenschlager

Many sexual assaults may not be reported, and local officials are trying to change that by ensuring victims are treated with sensitivity and compassion.
The Family Protection Center, next to Athens-Clarke County police headquarters, creates an inclusive and homelike environment for victims of child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence.
"We have sexual assault kits done here instead of having the victim go to a hospital where there will be lots of other people around," Detective Ben Dickerson said.
The entire process, from collection of evidence to interviews and counseling, is conducted in the same building so victims are not sent multiple places.
National statistics say as many as half of all sexual assaults are not reported, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, one charity fighting sexual assault. Statistics like these led to the creation of the Family Protection Center, at 2795 Lexington Road in a house that has been expanded to have enough rooms for all of the services provided.
The center has three interview rooms, two with two-way mirrors which are useful for interviewing children. There are comfortable chairs and couches, wall hangings and a small table and chairs for children. The third room is for interviewing adults. All three rooms have video and audio recorders.
There is also a playroom for children, a conference room for meetings and a room for private counseling where nothing is recorded.
Sexual assault nurses are on call, and there is an area of the building specifically for gathering evidence. In this area, there is a waiting room, exam room, showers and a washer and dryer.
There are also areas for victims to rest, and they are offered food, coffee, and juice. "The idea is to keep the victims from having to move around," Lt. Gregory Paul said.
Students concerned parents may find out what they report should know "confidentiality is profound here," Paul said. "Once someone is 17 years old, they are an adult, and we're not allowed to share their information with anyone."
Sometimes sexual assault is not reported because the victim is afraid of telling police they were drinking underage or using drugs. "The main thing we need is brutal honesty," Dickerson said. "We are more concerned about the assault that happened than arresting someone for underage drinking. We are not drug investigators, and we are not here to get anyone in trouble. We are here to be objective truth finders."
Paul said the police would like people to "use safety measures to protect themselves, and to not lose control of themselves and not know where they are."
University of Georgia police are also working to prevent assaults. "We get a lot of calls from parents and students about our personal safety classes," UGA police officer Lee Rushton said.
Organizations at the Family Protection Center include the Georgia Department of Family and Children Services, the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner, Project Safe, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department, the Sexual Assault Center, and the District Attorney.