Dear ,

  

Thank you for helping us raise awareness around the issue of sexual assault last month during National Sexual Assault Awareness Month! Just because the month is over, please don't stop talking to your friends, neighbors and colleagues about what they can do to both help victims and prevent sexual assault within our community.

  

We started the month off with some great news, as we completed our Washington State Community Sexual Assault Program Accreditation Audit and scored 100%! Our auditor had nothing but praise for KCSARC's excellence and innovation. Earlier this week, the majority of our program staff attended the Children's Justice Conference. I also had the opportunity to attend the Washington State Nonprofit Conference last week.

  

KCSARC is always striving to be the best stewards of your support by providing high quality services in our efforts to end the silence around sexual assault. I encourage you to speak up and let us know what you think.

  

 

KCSARC is proud to announce that our first report from the CourtWatch program is now available! CourtWatch is a court monitoring program that utilizes volunteers to gather information about the courts. Court monitoring includes the realtime observation of court proceedings, as well as conducting research on individual cases and court practices and procedures. The data collected by volunteers is used to improve the justice system. In addition to preparing reports that focus on a particular aspect of this system, CourtWatch also uses the data internally to inform how staff prepares victims for the court process and provides feedback to people working within the system.

 

This first report analyzes the impact and application of the Sexual Assault Protection Order (SAPO) Act in King County. Some interesting findings include:

 

• SAPO's have filled a gap that had previously existed for many victims, and once issued, they appear to be effective in protecting victim safety.
• At the full hearing, if the respondent* was represented and the petitioner* was not, the SAPO was dismissed 100% of the time.
• Petitioners who had a KCSARC Legal Advocate with him/her at the hearing had an 80% success rate in obtaining a SAPO.

Download the full report "Analyzing the Impact and Application of Sexual Assault Protection Orders in King County."

 

Click here for more info on the CourtWatch program. CourtWatch has been funded through the Department of Justice, the Satterberg Foundation and the Office of Crime Victims Advocacy.  

 

*The Petitioner is the person requesting the protection order and the Respondent is the person they are seeking protection from.

Planning is underway for KCSARC's annual "Kids Are Our Business" Luncheon to be held in South King County this October. At the luncheon you'll meet special and courageous survivors of sexual assault, hear their stories and celebrate their healing. If you were unable to attend the "Kids Are Our Business" Breakfast in March, the Luncheon is a great event for you to connect with KCSARC's work and learn about the impact you are making in the community. More information, date and location will be coming soon!