The national battle against child prostitution is coming to Georgia.
Georgia will serve as the location for a national child prostitution law enforcement training, the first time this training has been held outside of Virginia.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children chose Norcross because of the work that has already been done in the state to bring an end to what they consider an epidemic, said Ernie Allen, NCMEC president.
“Child trafficking doesn’t just happen on the other side of the world, it is happening right here in America,” said Allen. “This training is vital. It will enable us to rescue more children and represents an important step toward ending these insidious crimes.”
The training, Protecting Victims of Child Prostitution, is scheduled for November 16-20, according to NCMEC. They are expecting 63 police, prosecutors and others from Georgia as well as California, Connecticut, Florida, Louisiana, Ohio, Maine, Massachusetts and Canada. Forty one of the 64 participants will be from Georgia, said Kaffie McCullough, executive director of "A Future. Not A Past".
Georgia’s Juvenile Justice Fund is hosting the training and AFNAP is providing all of the logistical support for the conference.
NCMEC estimates that at least 100,000 children each year become victims of child prostitution in the United States. In Georgia, the Governor’s Office for Children and Families believe anywhere between 200 to 350 girls are prostituted each month.
Highlights of the training include an overview of the violence children encounter when subjected to child prostitution, investigative techniques, information on how to interview victims of child prostitution, how to prevent child victimization and resources that are available to law enforcement, said the NCMEC.
Some preventive measures include knowing what signs to look for including long unexplained absences by the child and the possession of gifts of unexplained origin.
Since 1984, NCMEC has helped to recover more than 138,500 children. To learn more about NCMEC visit its web site at www.missingkids.com. For more on A Future. Not A past. visit www.afuturenotapast.org.
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