The Baton Rouge CAC provides the following services:
A child-friendly atmosphere for forensic interviews of abused children.
Coordination of the investigative, judicial, social service, medical and mental health systems that respond to reports of abuse.
The CAC offers a comfortable, private, and child-friendly setting that is safe, both physically and psychologically, for children and their non-offending family members. Prior to the establishment of the CAC, abused children were routinely interviewed at the police department or Sheriff's office.
Linkage with mental health, medical, and victim advocacy services.
The primary goal of the CAC is to help child victims and their families begin to heal, while preventing further victimization. The CAC serves as a resource for referrals to service providers in the community. Victims and non-offending family members are eligible to receive no-cost counseling on-site. The CAC also has a Family Advocate Program that provides support to non-offending caregivers so that they are better equipped to support their children.
Information and education to increase awareness of child abuse issues.
The CAC provides information and education to professionals working with children and to the general public through training events, speaking engagements, and the distribution of literature.
The CAC has monitoring equipment that allows one professional to conduct a forensic interview with a child, while another observes from a different room, providing feedback if necessary. This limits the number of interviews a child must endure and improves the quality of the interviews. The CAC also serves as a meeting place in order to facilitate the coordination among agencies involved in child abuse cases. With improved coordination of the involved agencies, the CAC can also better track the occurrence of child abuse and case outcomes.
The Baton Rouge Children's Advocacy Center
Services
