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**U.S. Department of Justice**        Office of Community Oriented Policing Services            145 N Street, N.E.       Washington, DC 20530      www.cops.usdoj.gov×         Menu         - Home
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**Interdiction for the Protection ofChildren: A Program of Partnershipsto Stop Trafficking**
 May 2018 | Volume 11 | Issue 5

*Captain Derek  Prestridge of the Texas Department of Public Safety oversees the Interdiction for  the Protection of Children training program.**The IPC Program was awarded an FY2014 COPS Community Policing  Development (CPD) microgrant.*

Texas Department of Public Safety officers have rescued 351  missing, exploited, and at-risk children and opened 158 criminal investigations  since the Interdiction for the Protection of Children (IPC) program was  implemented in 2009. Nationwide, we have trained over 7,800 students in 14  states and Ontario, Canada. I use the term ‘student’ because the program is  based on a multidisciplinary approach that partners child protective services,  local prosecutors, officers, and nonprofit organizations to rescue victims and  support their recovery. Law enforcement officers learn about resources in their  community, and trainees from other disciplines understand how officers identify  and rescue children. At the end of the two-day training, there is a team in the  community that will work together for long-term success.

We developed with the help of other Federal, State and local  partnerships as a response to the need for an aggressive response to protect missing,  exploited and at risk children, and identify those who would harm them. IPC  trains first-line officers and service partners nationwide on the detection,  interdiction, and rescue of child victims of crimes and the proper handling of  these victims.

One of the most influential lessons of the program is the  component of awareness. The issue of child exploitation is not as simple as  people may believe, and there are a number of complex variables. During the  training, students gain an understanding of challenges and the barriers that  prevent at-risk and exploited children from asking for help. The training  solidifies officers’ understanding of the critical need for resources to help  children and the necessity of calling on those resources more often to provide  long-term services. We train students in the areas of human trafficking,  missing child cases, internet crimes against children, high-risk threats to  children and registered sex-offender compliance.

However, the training is only one component of the program. We  also engage each community in three days of partnerships and help them set up  the program in their jurisdiction through a train-the trainer class. Before the  training is conducted, the local law enforcement agency helps bring services  together for dialog and partnership work, and must show they can have guest  speakers and students that are victim services professionals, child protection  professionals, law experts, and fusion center personnel. The agency also has a  chain of command briefing before we conduct training, which includes an  administrative briefing on the project and an outline of specific components of  the program, the needs of victims and their families, and long-term benefits.

Executives may initially prefer to send their staff for  training, independent of local coordination, but we stress that successful  rescues includes providing long-term resources and services to the child and the  child’s family in hopes of removing the child from harm. The program has  follow-up evaluations to gauge training effectiveness at least six months after  training. We also provide support after the training and continue to engage  with agencies. For example, Arizona reports that over 100 children have been  rescued since the training, and we share that success with other IPC partners.

Our primary message in IPC training and during the executive  briefing: stop waiting for children to disclose. We can’t place the burden of  disclosure on the child. It is our job and duty to ensure the safety of a  child. We teach a victim-centered approach that accounts for every child during  engagement and stresses the necessity for law enforcement to assess their  overall safety before parting. And if we need to intervene to rescue a child,  we also need to ensure the child has the resources to be safe from harm during  the long process of recovery.

Successful implementation of the IPC Program is evident in  the number of rescued children but that is only one measurement. Initiation of  criminal investigation is another. Even if a child isn’t present, an officer  can identify adults that are high risk to children, such as non-compliant  registered sex-offenders and suspects with child pornography. Officers also  provide information to fusion centers for analysis, coordination and  investigative support.

**Expanding Training**

We are expanding through the Train-the-Trainer (T3) program  so new partners can continue and sustain the program and messaging. This outreach  has influenced in policy changes, positively impacted reporting procedures, and  created new opportunities for agencies to develop partnerships.

As the IPC program has grown, it has partnered with the  United States Marshals Service – Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) to evaluate the  techniques of officers who conduct an IPC related encounter.  The team of BAU psychologists evaluates the  techniques used and indicators noticed by the officers.  They then provide feedback to the officers  and other IPC team members of their findings and assessments.  This resource enhances the growth of the  program, works to validate the indicators and increases more effective and  efficient investigations.

The training is offered to various disciplines in law  enforcement.  For example, in 2017  members with the National Park Service (NPS) received the training to reach  at-risk children, increase NPS employee awareness, and train officers on how to  approach children. Whether the officer works patrol or an NPS employee on the  National Mall, we train men and women to take a moment and engage with children  that may be at risk. Officers identify who the children are, evaluate their  environment, and assess if the environment is safe. For example, are the  child’s answers plausible? If not, the officers use the resources available to  assess the safety of the child, such as contacting the National Crime  Information Center (NCIC) to check for missing children reports, contact the  child’s legal guardians, and verify the child’s age. Skills and techniques that  can be applied in a number of situations to increase child safety.

The IPC program is designed to be effective in any size agency,  from the largest agency employing thousands of officers to the more common  rural agencies with only a few.  The  victim centered approach has a low fiscal impact and, unlike other programs, doesn’t  require any new software, hardware, or staff. In addition, agencies see immediate  impact after the training.

Captain  Derek Prestridge          Texas  Department of Public Safety

***Ensuring the Safety of  Children***

Texas Highway Patrol  Trooper Dedrick Wimberly conducted a traffic stop for speeding in March, 2017  and observed a 15-year-old female child inside the vehicle with two adult  males, one of whom was sitting next to her in the back seat. Using techniques  he learned during IPC training he attended the week before, Trooper Wimberly  interviewed the male passenger, who admitted to illegal sexual contact with the  child. Trooper Wimberly placed the suspect into custody for Sexual Assault of a  Child and coordinated with Texas Department of Public Safety Victim Services counselor  to provide support services; she accompanied the child to the Child Advocacy  Center for family reunification. 

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The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

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