Civil forfeiture funds to enhance service to Kamloops child victims

Kamloops City

2024-08-01 08:43 PDT

File # PSA

Assets seized from crime will be helping Kamloops RCMP Detachment child interviewers provide better supports to young victims, thanks to a recent funding announcement.

Last month, members of the Kamloops RCMP Detachment’s Sex Crimes Unit received a Civil Forfeiture grant for approximately $10,000, in response to an application submitted late last year. The funding supports specialized training provided by Dr. Heather Price to assist police officers trained in advanced child interviewing – a unique skillset which often requires a variety of approaches.

View larger image: from left, Constable Phil Whiles, Dr. Heather Price, and Cst. Sam Rogers inside the interview monitoring room at the Big Bear Child Youth Advocacy Centre.

We’re really looking forward to enhancing the skills of our child interviewers, which then helps the community by improving our ability to obtain quality, evidentiary statements in a trauma informed way, said Constable Phil Whiles of the Kamloops RCMP Sex Crimes Unit.

A child interview format generally occurs with those who are under age 12, but can be used with older teens on a case-by-case basis, depending on the complexity of the investigation.

Cst. Whiles applied for the grant in late 2023, on behalf of the local detachment. Kamloops police officers currently work closely with Dr. Price in her role as a child interview consultant with Big Bear Child Youth Advocacy Centre, one of the RCMP’s community partners.

With this funding, we will be able to further utilize Dr. Price’s expertise through the training, which includes in-depth reviews of child and youth interviews, recommendations and guidance, and mentorship on how to effectively monitor interviews to provide relevant feedback to co-workers based on what is observed, said Cst. Whiles. The additional support will help child interviewers in various investigative units learn techniques to help further avoid revictimization, assist with memory recall, develop rapport, and help children and youth feel comfortable and safe.

The training will include Kamloops RCMP members from the Sex Crimes Unit, General Investigation Support Team, and frontline officers who regularly conduct approximately 70 plus child and youth interviews a year at the Big Bear Child Youth Advocacy Centre. The interviews are obtained in partnership and collaboration with child protection agencies, Victim Services, and the Suspect Child Abuse Clinic, with the collective goal to reduce the trauma experienced through the process.

The evidence is pretty clear that watching and receiving ongoing feedback on your interviews is required to improve and maintain growth in the process of obtaining child and youth victim statements, and making sure we’re not drifting away from best practices over time, said Dr. Price, who has provided similar training to other RCMP detachments as well. The process helps them grow and develop from professionals into experts by keeping their skills improving and up to date with best practices.

Through the training, Dr. Price will review complex interviews obtained by the participants in a collaborative workshop format, in which they’ll receive feedback and advice on restructuring techniques. She’ll also help teach participants how to be strong monitors, which will contribute to increasing their interviewing skills as well. A monitor’s role is to observe and provide assistance to the primary interviewer.

Participating in the training really shows that the interviewers truly care about what they’re doing in that they sought this funding in order to increase their skillset for the benefit of the child and youth in their community, said added.

The training will also include how to effectively evaluate peer interviews and how to incorporate community partners within the different stages of an investigation. Approximately six to eight investigators will be involved in the process, which starts this fall.

Released by:

Email: crystal.evelyn@rcmp-grc.gc.ca
Website: kamloops.rcmp.ca

Follow Us: