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Toward the Best Interest of the Child

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Title: Toward the Best Interest of the Child


1
Toward the Best Interest of the Child the
Childrens House Multiagency and
Interdisciplinary Approach to Child Sexual Abuse
Save the Children, Copenhagen, October 2002
  • Bragi Guðbrandsson, Gen. Director,
  • The Gov. Agency for Child Protection, Iceland

2
Outline
  • The value of international cooperation
  • The situation in Iceland prior to the Childrens
    House
  • Research findings on child sexual abuse and
    intervention by the authorities
  • Defaults in work procedures, lack of competence
    and violation of childrens rights
  • Towards solutions the missions of the Childrens
    House
  • How does the Childrens House work?
  • Positive experiences and issues of concern

3
Social awareness
  • Stage of denial
  • Stage of admittance
  • Stage of recognition

4
International cooperation
  • World Congress 1996
  • European Union
  • Council of Europe
  • Regional cooperation
  • Children at risk in the Baltic states
  • Childcentre.baltinfo.org

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7
A study on the prevalance/intervention of child
sexual abuse in Iceland
  • intervention in CSA by public agencies.
  • data collected from the CPS, the Police, the
    Prosecution and the Courts.
  • individual cases were studied and traced on
    different levels
  • lessons learned

8
Number of cases 1995-1997
  • Total number of cases 369 which involved 368
    children
  • Average of 123 cases a year.

9
Victims by sex
  • During the three year period girls were 80,4 and
    boys 19,6 of alleged victims

10
Victims by age
11
Age of the offender
12
Did child know offender?
Child knew offender 216 76,3 Child did not know
offender 18 6,4 Not known 49 17,3
13
Duration of abuse
One incident 56,0 Few months 16,7 A year or
more 17,9 Data missing 9,5
14
Tracing of cases
Total number 369 100
CPS 281 77
Police 170 46
Prosecution 146 40
Court cases 51 14
Convictions 49 13
15
Tracing of cases cont.d
Total number of cases 369 CPS 281 77
Referred to police by CPS 84 30
16
Case assessment by CPS
  • Substantiated cases 51
  • Unsubstantiated cases 32
  • Data missing/unknown 18

17
An Overview of the Findings Procedural defaults
  • Lack of coordination/cooperation between the
    different agencies involved CPS, Police,
    Prosecution, Medical profession
  • Lack of an interdisciplinary approach.
  • Absence of appropriate guidelines in work
    practices
  • Lack of personell with special training and
    specialization, especially in conducting
    investigative interviews

18
The Findings contd Violation of the childs
interests
  • Investigation often generated painful experiences
    for the child victim

19
The Findings contd The child was subjected to
  • repeated interviews
  • by many interviewers
  • in different locations dep. of social services,
    the police station, the hospital, private
    practice, the court etc.
  • revictimisation retraumatization
  • discrepancies in disclosure
  • lack of appropriate assessment, support and
    treatment for the child victim
  • lack of counselling and support to the victims
    family

20
The preparation of the Childrens House
primary guidelines
  • UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, article
    3.1
  • In all action concerning children, whether
    undertaken by public or private social welfare
    institutions, courts of law, administrative
    authorities or legislative bodies, the best
    interest of the child shall be a primary
    consideration

21
Multiagency Collaboration
  • The Gov. Agency for Child Protection
  • The State Police
  • The State Prosecution
  • The Police Dep. in Reykjavik
  • The University Hospital Dep. of Pediatrics and
    Dep. of child Psychiatry
  • Association of the Directors of Local Social
    Services
  • The Child Protection Services in Reykjavik

22
Missions of the Childrens House
  • to facilitate collaboration and coordination of
    the CPS, Police, Prosecution and the Medical
    profession in the investigation of child sexual
    abuse
  • to provide a child friendly setting for joint
    investigative interviews and medical examination
  • to ensure professional implementation of
    investigative interviews

23
Missions of the Childrens House cont.d
  • to ensure that the child victim and his/her
    family receives appropriate assessment, treatment
    and support
  • to establish professional work practices and
    guidelines by interdisciplinary cooperation
  • to enhance specialized knowledge on child sexual
    abuse and to mediate that knowledge as
    appropriate to professionals and the public alike

24
The creation of the Childrens House
  • The Childrens Advocacy Model Multiagency and
    interdisciplinary collaboration under one roof
  • The preparation phase awareness raising,
    training etc.
  • The operation started 1st of November 1998
  • Serves the whole country instructions by the
    State Police
  • Changes in the legal framework after eight months
    operation

25
Childrens House (Barnahus)

Joint Investigative Interviews




26
Basic functions A Investigative interviewsThe
Joint Investigative Interview
  • The Court Judge is in charge of the procedure
  • The Prosecution
  • The Police
  • The CPS representative
  • The Childs Legal Advocate
  • The Defence
  • The Alleged Offender(exceptional in reality)

27
Basic function A The CPS preliminary interview
  • At the request of the CPS
  • Disclosure is absent or very weak/ambigous
  • Offender has not been identified
  • Offender is below the age of criminal
    responsibility(15 years)

28
Basic function A Investigative Interviews
  • The importance of a child friendly setting
  • The specialised interviewer a psychologist, a
    social worker, a criminologist
  • The interview protocol(to avoid suggestibility
    and increase reliability)
  • Specially designed interview room(closed circuit
    television)
  • The video tape used for different purposes
    medical exams, assessment and therapy
  • IT-link to the courthouse

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32
Childrens House (Barnahus)
Medical Exams and Evaluation
Joint Investigative Interviews




33
Basic function B The Medical Examination
  • At the request of the Police, the CPS, the Child
    or the Parents
  • Implemented by experienced paediatrician and a
    gynaecologist
  • A child friendly examination room
  • The use of video-colposcope and its
    therapeutic value
  • Anaesthetization exceptional

34
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35
Childrens House (Barnahus)
Medical Exams and Evaluation
Joint Investigative Interviews
Victim Therapy
Family Counselling/ Support


36
Basic function C Victim therapy and family
counselling
  • The child and the non-offending parent(s) receive
    (legal) counselling immediately after the
    investigative interview
  • Victim therapy can start soon after
  • The videotaped childs disclosure is used for
    initial assessment and treatment plan
  • Cognitive-behavioural therapy group therapy not
    yet established
  • The therapist is most often important witness in
    court proceedings

37
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38
Childrens House (Barnahus)
Medical Exams and Evaluation
Joint Investigative Interviews
Victim Therapy
Family Counselling/ Support
Education, Training and Research
Networking Local/ National
39
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40
Almost four year experience
A. Statistical data November 1998 October 2002
Services Number of Children Average per year
Investigative interviews 505 127
Assessment/ Therapy 275 69
Medical examination 124 31

41
Investigative interviews implementation
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4
Joint invest. interview 80 43 47 57
CPS investigation 42 67 70 99
Total 122 110 117 156
42
Almost four year experience Signs of progress
  • Efficient, professional and child friendly work
    procedures and case management
  • End to revictimization of the child victim
  • Appropriate therapeutic services secured
  • Mutual professional trust among the different
    agencies
  • Assimilation of knowledge and experience
  • Increased public awareness and confidence in the
    authorities

43
Almost four year experience Problems in
implementation
  • Controversial changes in the legislation
  • The principle of evidential immediacy
  • The principle of adversarial procedure
  • The Court Judges discretion
  • where and how to take the child witness statement
  • if a specialised interviewer is applied
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