Quick Links
The Arc of Aurora Self-Advocates'
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Our Mission
The Arc of Aurora (CO) advocates for and with people with intellectual and/or other developmental disabilities and their families through individual and systems change advocacy, training and education, and individual, family and class support.
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March is National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month
What is the connection among 83%, 50%, 10+, and what is the relationship between those numbers and National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month?
Research shows that 83% of women with developmental disabilities will be sexually assaulted in their lifetimes, and, of that number, 50% will experience sexual assault 10+ times.
Staggeringly appalling statistics
that all need to be aware of!
Thus our combined work to continue to raise awareness about the vulnerability of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to
 victimization, including sexual assault, and to work to insure adequate and appropriate services and supports in response to that victimization.
Drop me a note and let me know of your efforts and challenges. In the meantime, stay the course!
Jean Solis
VTrail Update editor
The Arc of Aurora (CO)
jsolis@thearcofaurora.org
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Opportunity
(events/activities to increase and/or support our skills in identifying and working with crime victims with I/DD in our communities)
Victim Assistance Training Online (VAT Online)...
 ... is a Web-based basic victim advocacy training program that offers victim service providers and allied professionals the opportunity to acquire the basic skills and knowledge they need to better assist victims of crime, including those with disabilities. Click here to access this no-cost training.
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Resources
(tools to help us in our work to address crime victimization of people with I/DD in our communities)
Archived, No-Cost Webinar --- Opening Doors: Alternative Reporting Options for Law Enforcement and VAWA Forensic Compliance
There is currently a very welcome national trend across the country emphasizing alternative reporting methods for sexual assault victims, including victims with intellectual and  developmental disabilities. It is partly the result of provisions in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that were first enacted in 2005 and remain in effect under the current 2013 reauthorization. This is an area known as forensic compliance, and it is critically important to understand because these legislative provisions have dramatically altered the options available for all victims to report sexual assault...
Training Bulletin on Effective Report Writing
FAQ's on Forensic Compliance
Ending Violence Against Women International (EVAWI) offers resources to assist community professionals in the area known as forensic compliance. Based on specific provisions in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the goal of forensic compliance is to ensure that sexual assault victims (including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities) have access to a medical forensic exam, without any out-of-pocket costs and regardless of whether or not they decide to participate in the criminal justice process. Click here to access EVAWI's Frequently Asked Questions on Forensic Compliance.
Legal Requirements for Establishing Penetration in Sexual Assault Cases
This STRATEGIES in Brief from Aequitas, The  Prosecutor's Resource, explains the legal requirements for establishing penetration in sexual assault prosecutions and offers strategies for effectively identifying, evaluating, and presenting evidence of penetration. First, it summarizes the categories of criminal sex offense statutes and outlines the legal requirements to establish penetration. Second, it provides strategies to prepare for and try sexual assault cases involving penetration. Third, it identifies and offers guidance for responding to common defense challenges to establishing penetration in sexual assault cases.
2015 National Crime Victims' Rights Week (NCVRW) Online Resource Guide Available Online
The 2015 NCVRW Online Resource Guide is a user-friendly package that contains what you  need to host and promote National Crime Victims' Rights Week, April 19-25, in your community. This year's theme-Engaging Communities. Empowering Victims.-emphasizes the role of the entire community, individually and collectively, in supporting victims of crime, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and empowering them to direct their own recovery. The website allows you to view materials as well as to order them.
Prosecuting Sexual Abuse in Confinement
Sexual abuse in correctional facilities is a crime and a human rights violation. Inmates in our nation's correctional facilities, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, are uniquely vulnerable to sexual violence due to their exposure to and isolated contact with other  violent offenders and corrections officers. Each year, more than 200,000 inmates are sexually abused, which can lead to physical and emotional consequences including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, drug addiction, and the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. These consequences are not confined to correctional facilities, as 600,000 inmates are released back into their communities each year, making an effective criminal justice response to prison rape that much more crucial. Read more.
Technical Evidence in Stalking Prosecutions: Where to Get It and How to Get It In
More than 7.5 million people in the United States, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, are affected by stalking every year, with some studies indicating that one in four victims report use of technology by the offender. The use of personal computers, mobile devices, and other technology in stalking activity presents challenges for the prosecutor who must connect the activity to the defendant. Prosecutors must be familiar with the sources of available evidence, how to obtain it from technology providers, and how to present it effectively to a jury. This archived webinar
covered the applicable rules of evidence and relevant case law associated with proving a technology-facilitated stalking case, and provided strategies on when and how to introduce technical evidence and overcome common objections at trial.
Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Exam Payment Map
Many professionals have questions about the  laws in their own state or territory regarding forensic compliance and payment for sexual assault medical forensic exams. Answers can be found in a document entitled, Summary of Laws & Guidelines: Payment of Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examinations. Click here for more information on the document, including how to access it.
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Articles
(Abuse of people with I/DD occurs throughout the country, including in our own communities...)
Eight who lived in squalor moved from "horrible" Buffalo group home: Boardinghouse tenants paid $500 rent per month
Sewage was backed up into the basement, where someone had tried to use duct tape to repair the sewer pipe. Plastic garbage bags piled outside a rear door were torn about, perhaps by the rats that infested the house. And the door was braced shut from the inside by a wood plank wedged against an inside step. Ice as thick as 18 inches encased a box of hamburger patties and packages of cold cuts, because the door on a freezer did not shut all the way. Inside the refrigerator, food was rotting..." Buffalo, NY - March 19, 2015
Parents shocked that court allowed alleged abuser off the hook
The parents of four special needs children can't understand how the court system let their alleged abuser escape prosecution. "I'm concerned we've raised the bar to what educators can do to children now," said Lisa Williams, whose son Alex was abused when attending Hopewell Middle School in 2006 and 2007. Fulton county, GA - March 5, 2015
Stories of trauma in Va. prompt crackdown on seclusion rooms
Carson Luke still has nightmares about the time four years ago when he was in second grade and school staff locked him inside a room, his mother said. He broke his hand when the door was closing and somehow broke his foot. Carson, who has autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, had had an aggressive outburst at a school for the disabled, so he was taken to the "quiet room," his mother said.
Child Wrongly Removed From Mom with Disability, Feds Say
Just two days after a 19-year-old with intellectual disability gave birth, state officials took her newborn away in an act the federal government contends violated the woman's civil rights.
Disability Rights Violations by Massachusetts Department of Children and Families
In a recent joint letter, the Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Health and Human Services (HHS) offices of Civil Rights advised the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) that it violated the rights of a new mother with developmental disabilities when it removed her two-day-old daughter from her care.
The hidden victims of campus sexual assault: Students with disabilities
It was months into her freshman year here at Gallaudet University before Melissa decided to try alcohol. As the nation's only liberal-arts institution specifically designed for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, Gallaudet is undoubtedly unique. But when it comes to drinking, this small school is like so many other campuses across the country: Alcohol is near ubiquitous to the social scene...
Alachua County Personal Care Assistant Arrested for Abuse of a Disabled Adult
Attorney General Pam Bondi's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Alachua County Sheriff's Office today announced the arrest of a Personal Care Assistant for abuse of a disabled adult. According to the investigation, Marcus Bernard Woods, 52, inflicted physical injury on an assisted living facility resident while employed as a Personal Care Assistant at CoWorkers, Inc. Tallahassee, FL - Feb. 19, 2015
One of Two Teens Charged in Beating Death of Disabled Man in Boulder Pleads Guilty
Austin Holford, who was charged along with a friend in the beating death of a developmentally disabled Boulder man, pleaded ... --- FOX31 Denver --- February 13, 2015 (COLORADO)
Alabama School 'Rape-Bait' Case Involving 14-Year-Old Special Needs Girl to Be Heard in Court
It's been five years since a 14-year-old Alabama girl with special needs said she was persuaded by a teacher's aide to act as bait to ... --- Q13 FOX --- February 13, 2015 (ALABAMA)
Connecticut School Restrained One Child 700 Times in One Year
In Connecticut, hundreds of children were left injured after schools' ... more than 90,000 instances of restraint and seclusion in public schools and ... --- Newsweek --- February 13, 2015 (CONNECTICUT)
A Southern California woman's son jumped to his death from the roof of the Courtyard Marriott three days after he was fired, she says. January 27 (CALIFORNIA)
Crimes vs. People with Disabilities Hits Home
And when it comes to understanding these types of attacks against people with developmental disabilities, state agencies say many questions are left ... --- Baxter Bulletin --- January 20, 2015 (ARKANSAS)
Former School Employee Sentenced in Sex Case
A former employee of a school for special-needs children in Murrieta who had sex with a 16-year-old student on campus was sentenced Wednesday ... --- Press-Enterprise --- January 21, 2015 (CALIFORNIA)
SF Officer Probed for Alleged Wheelchair-Tipping Incident
The San Francisco police internal affairs unit is investigating an incident in which an officer was filmed as he apparently tried to tip a man out of his ... --- SFGate --- January 21, 2015 (CALIFORNIA)
Sentencing in Theft of Birthday Money from Autistic Man
A judge has sentenced a man to three years in prison for taking birthday money from a man with Autism. The whole incident was caught on ... --- WTNH --- January 16, 2015k (CT)
Iowa City Man Accused of Abusing Dependent Adult
Njoroge was arrested and faces one count of dependent adult abuse causing physical injury, a Class C felony. If convicted, Njoroge could spend up to ... --- KCRG --- January 21, 2015 (IOWA)
Man with Mental Disabilities Taken in Violent Newport Carjacking Caught on Video
A man described as mentally disabled was taken from a popular Newport parking lot ... --- WCPO --- January 21, 2015 (KENTUCKY)
Family Alleges Bus Driver Caused Disabled Child Permanent Injuries
A family in Clarence says their teenage daughter wasn't just mistreated, she suffered "severe, permanent and painful ... --- wwlp.com --- January 16, 2015 (NEW YORK)
Norman PD Searching for Suspect Who Sexually Assaulted Man with Special Needs
A man with special needs was sexually assaulted in a Norman bathroom, and now police are asking for the public's help in catching the fondler. --- KOCO Oklahoma City --- January 14, 2015 (OKLAHOMA)
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The Arc of Aurora
1342 South Chambers Road
Aurora, CO 80017
720.213.1420
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a clear understanding of how the brain processes and retrieves information. 
produced in this series is on 
among the most mysterious and confusing conditions that can affect a child and his or her family... Responders to child abuse may find it extremely difficult to work with children with ASD, from the treatment of physical and emotional harm to forensic interviewing, evidence gathering, and preparation for trial or another legal process..."