200+ on-demand webinars to choose from!
A Story of Triumph Over Tragedy
She never aspired to be the subject of the Top Story on the evening news, but Michelle Corrao’s abduction was the final crime in a string of assaults on women in Central Indiana. The events of September 12, 1996, would change the entire course of her life. In the days that followed, she could not imagine how she could ever live a normal, happy life; and she certainly never wanted to talk about it.
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When Victims of Crime Become Defendants: Should Context Matter?
What does justice look like when a victim of a crime becomes a defendant? This session will inspire every kind of professional to consider context in their response in these cases. Incarcerated women experience staggering rates of sexual assault and domestic violence across the life span leading up to the offenses for which they are charged or convicted.
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What You Focus On Grows: Stop Justifying Victims’ Behavior and Focus on Offenders’ Predatory Conduct
All too often investigators and prosecutors seek to justify a victim’s behavior, instead of focusing on the offender’s conduct. This session re-imagines offender focused investigations in a meaningful way and gives participants concrete ideas to create system changes within their own community. In this session, Dr. David Lisak, who has spent his career interviewing ‘undetected rapists’ will highlight some of his findings and help participants better understand the predatory nature of sexual violence.
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Justice Begins with a Trauma-Informed Approach: Reflections and Visions
Victims and survivors of sexual assault measure “justice” in many ways. There are evolving community expectations and demands for trauma-informed approaches to victims and survivors. This has led to new professional standards for trauma-informed care in our response, investigation, and prosecution of sexual assault cases, and more importantly, for victims and survivors; “Justice begins with a trauma-informed approach.”
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Ten Steps to Consider When Conducting a Criminal Sexual Assault Investigation
This presentation will focus on lessons learned from a 25-year law enforcement career which has placed the presenter in a variety of communities. Whether inner-city Atlanta, Georgia, the St. Regis Mohawk Indian Reservation, or on a college campus, sound trauma-informed investigative principles around gender-based violence and sexual assault should apply equally to all.
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“Fight, Flight, Freeze” to “Survival Mode” and “Reflexes and Habits”
The phrase “fight or flight” is still commonly used to describe how people react while being sexually assaulted, yet it fails and harms many sexual assault survivors on a daily basis. In reality, many victims of sexual assault don’t fight or flee. Adding “freeze” as a third possible response, which has become common, doesn’t fix the problem, for two reasons: First, any phrase that starts with “fight or flight” doesn’t reflect the reality for many survivors and leaves them feeling like their response was abnormal or wrong. Second, many survivor behaviors during sexual assault don’t fit under “fight,” “flight” or “freeze” because they’re habit-based behaviors, in which they aren’t “frozen” but rather behaving politely and submissively.
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Digital Violence: Understanding Trauma-informed Methods of Care
What is digital violence and what does it look like when we're reliant on technology to stay connected? This session will help service providers better understand digital violence and the trauma impact on those who have experienced it. Trauma from digital violence often goes unrecognized due to providers lack of assessment and understanding. This training helps to identify tech facilitated abuse and understand it within the lens of gender-based violence. The mental health impact of being abused through digital methods and platforms can have devastating effects on a person’s global functioning, including their ability to communicate through technology. For those who have suffered online abuse, connecting through digital methods can reactivate trauma symptoms and destabilize them in personal and professional settings.
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The Future of Victim Services- 2021 and Beyond
One in five people have been the victim of crime over the past ten years, but less than one in three report receiving help. Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) report receiving help from police in less than 20% of cases, and primarily turn to loved ones, health care providers and community-based services. Recent research confirms the long lasting emotional, physical, and financial struggles crime victims endure long past the crime event.
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Traditional Law Enforcement Interrogation Methods Versus the Trauma-informed Interview Process
Traditional interview and interrogation methods have been used for years to the detriment of survivors of sexual violence, including the way questions were asked and how a victim’s answers were scrutinized using deception detection techniques. However, over the last several years, progressive law enforcement agencies have come to realize why a trauma-informed response to survivors of sexual assault is a significant improvement. This is especially true in how law enforcement has begun using a trauma-informed interviewing process for survivors. What if we extended these same trauma-informed techniques to victims of other crimes, witnesses, and even suspects?
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Transforming Secondary Trauma: Providing Support When Empathy Runs Out
In this digital age, where mobile technology plays an omnipresent role in our lives, it is particularly important for victim service professionals to set appropriate boundaries and exercise self-care. For anyone in a helping profession, working with victims/survivors of violence can take a significant toll on their professional and personal well-being. With the added stress and anxiety of a worldwide pandemic, it’s more important than ever to find ways for service providers to take care of themselves and minimize harm, both to themselves as well as their clients.
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