MARION POLICE DEPARTMENT NEWS AND SPECIAL BULLETINS

The Month of April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

The Smyth County Department of Social Services has been hard at work placing blue and silver pinwheels and blue ribbons throughout the county to help draw awareness to Child Abuse Prevention Month. The pinwheels have been placed at schools, rescue squads, fire departments, Marion and Saltville Town Halls, and at the Smyth County Office Building. Additionally, police officers throughout the county will be wearing a small blue ribbon on their uniform.

History of National Child Abuse Prevention Month

Increasing public awareness of the need to ensure the safety and welfare of children led to the passage of the first Federal child protection legislation, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), in 1974. While CAPTA has been amended many times over the years, most recently by the Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003, the purpose of the original legislation remains intact. Today, the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the Federal agency charged with supporting States, Tribes, and communities in providing programs and services to protect children and strengthen families.

In the early 1980s, Congress made a further commitment to identifying and implementing solutions to child abuse. Recognizing the alarming rate at which children continued to be abused and neglected and the need for innovative programs to prevent child abuse and assist parents and families affected by maltreatment, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives resolved that the week of June 6-12, 1982, should be designated as the first National Child Abuse Prevention Week. They asked the President to issue a proclamation calling upon Government agencies and the public to observe the week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

The following year, April was proclaimed the first National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Since then, child abuse and neglect awareness activities have been promoted across the country during April of each year. The Office on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) within the Children's Bureau coordinates Child Abuse Prevention Month, providing information and releasing updated national statistics about child abuse and neglect each April.

In 1989, the Blue Ribbon Campaign to Prevent Child Abuse had its early beginnings as a Virginia grandmother's tribute to her grandson who died as a result of abuse. She tied a blue ribbon to the antenna of her car as a way to remember him and to alert her community to the tragedy of child abuse. The Blue Ribbon Campaign has since expanded across the country, and many wear blue ribbons each April in memory of those who have died as a result of child abuse. In other communities, special fundraisers are held to support prevention activities and treatment facilities for victims, and candlelight vigils are held as a remembrance. Most recently, the focus has shifted toward a more positive message of celebrating "blue ribbon" individuals, organizations, and communities who have done much to prevent child abuse and neglect.

In Title II of the CAPTA amendments of 1996, the Children's Bureau was charged with identifying a lead agency in each State for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) grants. These grants support the development, operation, and expansion of initiatives to prevent child abuse and neglect, as well as the coordination of resources and activities to strengthen and support families to reduce the likelihood of child maltreatment. CBCAP grantees within each State often take a leadership role in coordinating special events and preparing materials to support Child Abuse Prevention Month. Regardless of their role, CBCAP grantees are required to report annually on their Child Abuse Prevention Month activities.

In 2003, as part of the 20th anniversary of the original Presidential Proclamation designating April as Child Abuse Prevention Month, OCAN recast the National Child Abuse Prevention Initiative as a year-long effort. This initiative was launched at the 14th National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect, which was devoted to the theme of prevention. A national press conference there was the setting for the release of the publication Emerging Practices in the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.

The expansion of the Child Abuse Prevention Initiative was consistent with priorities of the Administration for Children and Families and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. OCAN and Child Welfare Information Gateway (formerly, the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information) partnered with the broader child abuse prevention community to raise awareness of the issue through a variety of tools, resources, activities, and public awareness events. Many of these materials have been made available in print and on the web to related Federal agencies, organizations, and concerned citizens in communities nationwide.

In 2004, there was emerging consensus among national child abuse prevention organizations and related Federal agencies that building public will for child abuse prevention required engaging the public in efforts to strengthen and support families and enhance parenting skills. Building on this national momentum, OCAN shifted the focus of its child abuse prevention resources to incorporate a family strengthening message promoting parenting and community support. Today, the Child Abuse Prevention Initiative is an opportunity for communities across the country to keep children safe, provide the support families need to stay together, and raise children and youth to be happy, secure, and stable adults.

Information for this article copied from the website www.childwelfare.gov.

School’s Open!

It’s almost vacation time again, but remember with warm weather upon us, school is still in session. Be alert for children as they wait for the school bus, and observe the posted speed limit in school zones. Be watchful for stopped buses making pick ups.

Welcome to the new officers:

Officer Steven McVey joined the Marion Police Department in January of 2009. Officer McVey previously served with the Damascus Police Department.

Officer Josh Ball also joined the Marion Police Department in January of 2009. Officer Ball previously served with the Glade Spring Police Department.

Officer Amber Eades joined the Marion Police Department in March of 2009. Officer Eades previously served with the Saltville Police Department.

New patrol vehicles are on the road:

In January, two new 2009 Dodge Chargers were added to the fleet of vehicles at the police department. The Chargers are assigned to the Sergeants and are equipped with high intensity LED lighting, and as you will notice in the photo below, are not equipped with the conventional lightbar that most of our patrol vehicles have. The LED lighting has several advantages over conventional halogen and strobe type lighting systems that we have used in the past. The light output is brighter, the electrical demand on the vehicle is significantly less, the life expectancy of the light heads are in excess of ten years, and the cost of the lights is a fraction of the cost of other lighting.

A recently announced grant will allow the department to add two more Chargers to its fleet in the very near future.

Click It or Ticket seatbelt safety checkpoints:

In the above photo, Marion Officers prepare to conduct a “Click It or Ticket” seatbelt safety checkpoint. Read on about the Click It or Ticket Program:

America's Seat Belt Campaign
Click It or Ticket (CIOT) is the most successful seat belt enforcement campaign ever, helping create the highest national seat belt usage rate of 83 percent. Coast to coast, day or night, the message is simple - Click It or Ticket.

CIOT National Mobilization
The cornerstone of NHTSA's seat belt communications program is the national Click It or Ticket May Mobilization. The primary audience continues to be men ages 18 to 34, which research shows are less likely to wear seat belts.

Day and Night, Cops are Cracking Down
Every year during this holiday period, law enforcement agencies join forces day and night, from coast-to-coast, for an enforcement blitz that delivers on our message Click It or Ticket. The mobilization is supported by national and local paid advertising and earned media campaigns aimed at raising awareness before the blitz that ...

Day or Night - Click It or Ticket!

New Police Department location:

In April of 2008, the Marion Police Department moved from their South Park Street location to the old Atmos Energy building at 555 South Main Street. The move to the new location not only eliminated the overcrowding that we had experienced at the old location, but put our department back onto Main Street, where it is easier to locate, and more accessible to the citizens we serve.

Thanks to the hard work of off duty officers and manpower from the Town Shop, the cost of work that was performed at the new building was kept to a minimum. An Open House is planned for the near future.

GO BACK TO FRONT PAGE

Copyright 2009, Marion Police Department