$3,000 donated to the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team after successful ‘No Shave’ November fundraiser
January 29, 2019 — The Blue Lake Rancheria Tribal Police Department raised $3,000 during its ‘No Shave’ November fundraiser, and chose to donate the funds to the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team (CAST) program.
For an entire month, officers refused to shave their facial hair to raise funds and help some of the most vulnerable children in Humboldt County who have been abused.
Today, BLR tribal police presented the check to CAST team representatives from the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office.
“ I have worked with the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team throughout my time in law enforcement,” Justin Gill, BLR Tribal Police Chief, said.
“ They play a vital role in the community and help law enforcement during very rough investigations that include child victims,” Gill said.
For over 20 years, CAST has conducted forensic interviews, which is a structured interview with a child about a traumatizing event he or she may have witnessed or experienced. During the interview, a team of professionals ask questions to find out if the child was abused; this is usually the first step in most child protective services investigations.
Between October 1996 to April 2017, CAST completed 2,910 forensic interviews with young, vulnerable children in Humboldt County.
The purpose of CAST is to reduce the number of interviews a child victim must undergo, and to better coordinate the response to child abuse allegations.
The local agencies involved with CAST include local law enforcement, child welfare services, county mental health clinicians, the district attorney’s office, rape crisis teams, and victim witness’ advocates. c