NEW GROUP TARGETS SEXUAL VIOLENCE

Representatives from medical, law enforcement and social service fields have created a sexual assault advocacy group to serve victims in Cape Girardeau County.

Board of directors president Tammy Gwaltney said the recently-organized Southeast Missouri Network Against Sexual Violence will piece together services that until now have been partially offered by various county agencies. The organization recently gained not-for-profit status and will assist female and child victims through every step of the trauma they face as a result of sexual assault and abuse, she said.

The network will focus its efforts in two main areas. Victims will be able to receive medical, legal and social services under one roof, she said, and court advocates will be on hand to assist all victims through the entire legal process.

"Cheryl Mothes with St. Francis Hospital was responsible for getting together the initial network," said Gwaltney. "What we had were a lot of agencies out there who were doing a piece of the work. Everybody knew there was a need for this but nobody really had taken the initiative before Cheryl stepped up."

Volunteers in the effort include Gwaltney, Cape Girardeau Police Chief Rick Hetzel and representatives from the Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney's office and both local hospitals. A local doctor has provided temporary housing for the agency, but Gwaltney said a permanent facility is needed.

"He's given us temporary shelter so that we could start providing services for people," she said. "It is a very temporary arrangement, though, and we want to find a free-standing facility that won't be affiliated with any agency."

Gwaltney said the ideal location for the agency will be a house, although commercial property would work. Above all, what's needed is a facility that would be in an undisclosed location, she said.

One emphasis area for the agency will be a child advocacy center. This segment's organization will be based on a national model to service young victims of sexual assault and molestation. The services will be important in the county because children will no longer have to endure retraumatization by having to retell their experiences repeatedly to different people at different locations, she said.

"What we found was that prosecutors were losing cases because the children wouldn't want to be dragged from site to site and retell their stories over and over again," she said. "Our facility will have a formal interview area, preferably with a two-way mirror, so that everybody who needs information from them can get it at one time in one place."

What will make this network unique from others locally and nationally will be the existence of its second component, a rape crisis center, she said. The Safe Care Network donated a medical instrument needed for a sexual assault medical exam, so that victims could be examined at the site.

Computer equipment necessary to run the equipment will be purchased with a $1,000 donation raised recently through a hair show sponsored by Style Stop Impact of Jackson.

"It's unique because it puts all of the services under one roof," said Gwaltney. "We are all concerned about subjecting these victims to any retraumatization, and what we're doing is enabling them to seek care and advice in a safe, secure environment."

Anyone interested in more information or making a donation to the Southeast Missouri Network Against Sexual Violence can contact Gwaltney at 573-334-5866.