Title: Missing and Exploited Children's Training Program

Series: Fact Sheet

Author: Helen Connelly and Ron Laney

Published: March 2001

Subject: Victims of crime child abuse and neglect, juvenile victims, missing
children, child sexual abuse

5 pages

9,000 bytes

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Missing and Exploited Children's Training Program

by Helen Connelly and Ron Laney

Addressing issues associated with missing, exploited, and abused children can
be complex, cumbersome, and often frustrating for those responsible for
protecting them. Significant experience and expertise are required to conduct
proper investigations, effectively manage cases, protect young victims,
prosecute perpetrators, and prevent further victimization of children. To ensure
that juvenile justice professionals have the necessary skills and information to
address the myriad issues that surround cases of missing, exploited, and abused
children, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
funds comprehensive training and technical assistance through its Missing and
Exploited Children's (MEC's) Training and Technical Assistance Program. Fox
Valley Technical College (FVTC) in Appleton, WI, has provided this training
and technical assistance since 1993. 

FVTC currently offers five week-long training courses, each tailored for a
specific audience and designed to improve the handling of, and response to,
cases involving children. The five programs are described below:

o Child Abuse and Exploitation Investigative Techniques. This program is
designed to improve the skills of professionals in law enforcement, child
protective services, and other parts of the justice system who investigate child
abuse, child sexual exploitation, child pornography, and missing children cases.
Training focuses on recognizing signs of physical and/or sexual abuse, properly
collecting and preserving evidence, preparing a case for prosecution,
interviewing victims and interrogating suspects, and understanding liability
issues. Training also addresses issues such as child prostitution, team
investigations, and special investigative techniques for cases involving missing
and abused children. 

o Child Fatality Investigations. This course provides comprehensive training on
how to detect whether a fatality is a homicide or the result of an accident and
how to investigate and prosecute cases involving fatal child abuse and neglect.
The course is offered to professionals in law enforcement, child protective
services, and other parts of the juvenile justice system and to medical
professionals. Training topics include investigating fatal child abuse and neglect,
collecting and preserving forensic and crime scene evidence, understanding the
role of child  protective services in investigating fatal child abuse, and
conducting interviews and interrogations. Medical and case management issues
are also covered. 

o Child Sexual Exploitation Investigations. This course helps law enforcement
professionals recognize, investigate, and resolve cases involving child sexual
exploitation. Participants gain an understanding of the behavior of the child
predator, including how he or she solicits a child and accomplishes the
offending; learn how to obtain and execute search warrants, interview victims,
and interrogate suspects; and prepare a case for prosecution. Federal
resources available to support local efforts are also discussed. The training
addresses computer child exploitation, child prostitution, and missing children
cases. The course is offered to law enforcement investigators, child protective
service workers, and other juvenile justice system professionals involved in the
investigation of child sexual abuse and exploitation and missing children cases. 

o Responding to Missing and Abducted Children. This course provides law
enforcement professionals with the information and tools required to
understand, recognize, investigate, and resolve missing and abducted children
cases. It covers case management, issues related to the investigation of
nonfamily and family abductions and runaway and thrownaway children,
effective methods for recovery and reunification, the use of the media, and the
availability of Federal resources to aid in the investigation and recovery of
missing and abducted children.

o Team Investigative Process for Missing, Abused, and Exploited Children.
This program is a team-based training course designed to promote the
development and use of a multidisciplinary, community-based approach for
investigating cases of missing, abused, and exploited children. It equips local
teams with tools to effectively investigate, prepare, and prosecute cases.
Participating teams develop local interagency action plans to improve their
management and investigation  of cases. This program is offered to local teams
composed of administrators or chief executive officers from law enforcement,
prosecution, social services, and the medical field. 

In addition to these training programs, FVTC, in cooperation with OJJDP's
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), conducts
several additional training programs for law enforcement professionals and
prosecutors. Three programs focus on Internet crimes against children. Each is
described below:

o Protecting Children Online. This 41/2-day course is designed to improve the
ability of law enforcement to investigate computer crimes against children. Open
to law enforcement investigators, the training focuses on how to recognize and
identify computer crimes against children, conduct investigations, and prepare
cases for prosecution. Types of computer technology, legal issues involved in
computer crimes, and ways to help prevent computer victimization of children
are also discussed.

o Protecting Children Online/Unit Commander Policy Training Program. This
21/2-day program for commanders of law enforcement units is designed to
improve their understanding of key issues involved in the investigation,
prosecution, and prevention of Internet crimes against children. Topics covered
include recognizing and identifying computer crimes against children, an
introduction to computer technology, an overview of online communications,
unit commander roles and responsibilities, understanding the technical
investigation, cyberlaw, and discussing available resources.

o Protecting Children Online for Prosecutors. This 41/2-day course provides
prosecutors with critical information to help them understand, identify, and
prosecute computer crimes against children. The course helps prosecutors
recognize when a child is the victim of a computer crime, present and use
expert testimony, and understand liability issues involved in the search, seizure,
and removal of suspects' computers. Training also includes charging and plea
negotiations, preparation of cases for court, and effective methods for meeting
defenses. Cross-examination tactics also are discussed. 

FVTC and NCMEC also collaborate on the Missing and Exploited Children
Chief Executive Officer Seminar, a 2-day program that provides police chiefs
and sheriffs with the information to raise awareness and understanding of, and
improve communities' responses to, cases of missing and exploited children. 

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For Further Information 

To register for classes, contact FVTC at the address listed below, or visit the
FVTC Web site for a schedule of classes and to obtain a registration form.

Fox Valley Technical College

1825 North Bluemound Drive

Appleton, WI 54912

800-648-4966

920-735-4757 (fax)

www.foxvalleytech.com/ojjdp (Internet)

To obtain copies of other OJJDP publications related to missing, exploited, and
abused children, contact:

Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse

800-638-8736

301-519-5600 (fax)

puborder@ncjrs.org (e-mail)

www.ncjrs.org/puborder (Internet)

For more information on NCMEC and its programs, contact:

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

Charles B. Wang International Children's Building

699 Prince Street

Alexandria, VA 22314-3175

703-274-3900

703-274-2222 (fax)

www.missingkids.com (Internet)

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Helen Connelly is a Senior Program Consultant with Fox Valley Technical
College. Ron Laney is the Director of OJJDP's Child Protection Division.

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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component 
of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice
Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, 
and the Office for Victims of Crime.

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FS-200106