Child Legal Advocacy

What Is A Child Legal Advocate?

As a part of the Multidisciplinary Team response, victim support and advocacy services are provided to all CAC clients and their non-offending caregivers.
The Child Legal Advocate will assist children and families in crisis and help them navigate through the many systems involved their investigation.

If your child’s case is picked up by the prosecutor’s office, a Child Legal Advocate may be assigned to your case. Upon receiving a referral from the prosecutor’s office, Partners’ Child Legal Advocate will contact the referred family by telephone.

Once assiged to your case, your advocate will:

Maintain strict standards of confidentiality.
Informs victims of what their rights are.
Provide information and education to child and teen victims and families about the legal criminal justice system, courtroom procedures, and prosecutorial timelines.
Provide emotional support, safety and comfort to the child/teen victim before, during, and after any legal proceedings, by paying close attention to the individual child’s/teens emotional state and needs.
Maintain contact with the victim and family throughout the investigation and prosecution when requested by the family, Prosecutor, or the law enforcement officer.
Accompany the child/teen and family to any prosecutorial or defense interviews with the victim, and at any judicial proceedings related to criminal acts committed against the victim.
Provide the family with updated information regarding the status of their case, continuances, dispositions, sentencing and inmate status notifications. (including offender release from custody)
Connect victims with available resources.
Act as a liaison between victims and the prosecutor.