Attorney General Josh Stein and local leaders promote sexual assault and child abuse awareness
NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein came to the Cape Fear on Monday to talk about sexual assault.
Stein is celebrating a milestone involving untested rape kits, but there are still some obstacles to overcome.
“We will always fight to protect vulnerable people from abuse, and we could not do the work without service providers like Carousel Center,” Stein said.
Stein made a stop at the Carousel Child Advocacy Center in Wilmington. It’s an organization that helps survivors of child abuse and neglect. He was joined by District Attorney Jon David and local victim services advocates.
“At some point along the way, children come to the realization that crime is not something that has to define, it’s something that happened to them,” David said.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Child Abuse Prevention Month.
D.A. Jon David addressed the recent arrest of a Bladen County School bus driver accused of several sex crimes involving children.
“Eight families have now come forward with their daughters in the age range of six to seven. All of those interviews are going to be concluded by this time tomorrow afternoon and I’ll be meeting with folks in Bladen County, all those families on Thursday, to talk about the road ahead and express our shared commitment,” David said.
Monday’s news conference follows Attorney General Stein’s announcement earlier this month that the state’s rape kit backlog had been cleared.
“We have to send a clear message that, to survivors, we support you and we’re gonna do everything we can to keep you safe. To offenders, no matter how long it took, District Attorney David and others, we will hold you accountable,” Stein said.
Stein said that victim advocates and service providers are “severely underfunded.” He said federal funds by the Victims of Crime Act, or VOCA, are projected to be $23 million this year, compared to the $42 million allocated last year.
