Attorney General Jack Conway and his Office of Victims Advocacy announced a week-long conference being held to train police and prosecutors on the current trends and issues involving crimes of domestic violence and sexual assault. The conference continues through Oct. 17 at the Department of Criminal Justice Training Louisville field office, located on the University of Louisville’s Shelby Campus.
The conference is sponsored by General Conway’s Office of Victims Advocacy. It is open to the media and designed to enhance cooperation between law enforcement officers and prosecutors from across the Commonwealth as they undertake their respective roles in the investigation and prosecution of domestic violence and sexual assault cases.
Conference training sessions will highlight topics such as human trafficking, stalking, sexual assault cold cases, trauma-informed victim interviewing and sexual assaults facilitated by alcohol and drugs.
“No one is immune to dating violence or domestic abuse,” Attorney General Conway said. “This invaluable training will provide police officers and prosecutors with the tools they need to help prevent domestic violence in our communities and keep Kentucky families safe from abuse. October is also designated as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and I encourage all Kentuckians to remember those who have been affected by domestic violence, as well as the advocates working tirelessly each day to end it.”
Keynote speakers at this year’s conference include Mark Wynn, a consultant for federal and state agencies on domestic violence and sexual assault issues, and members of the organization AEquitas: the Prosecutors’ Resource on Violence Against Women. The training is being funded through a grant provided under the Violence Against Women Act.
According to the Kentucky Domestic Violence Association, one in three women in the state will be a victim of domestic violence in her lifetime and more than three women are killed every day in the U.S. at the hands of their boyfriends or husbands.
Additionally, statistics show that one in three women and 5 percent of men across the country have experienced rape, physical violence and/or stalking by a current or former partner or spouse.
General Conway’s Office of Victims Advocacy provided resource referrals to more than 4,000 victims, victim advocates, and victim service providers in 2013. The Office of Victims Advocacy also trained more than 700 victim advocates, prosecutors, and law enforcement through various initiatives, including the annual Victims Assistance Conference.
Additionally, the Office of Victims Advocacy administers and monitors the Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention Board, which funds child sexual abuse prevention programs and oversees the tax check-off and license plate projects for the Child Victims’ Trust Fund.
Story provided by Office of the Attorney General
