RSSLaw enforcement joins call to fund abuse prevention
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YAKIMA, Wash. -- Advocates of child abuse prevention programs, lawmakers and local law enforcement officers gathered at Children's Village on Tuesday to urge Gov. Chris Gregoire not to cut funding to such programs.
Roughly $1.5 million in state matching funds are put toward child abuse prevention programs statewide.
But if the state doesn't receive $480 million in federal Medicaid assistance program funds, Gov. Gregoire could call for a special session or make across-the-board cuts to keep the budget afloat this biennium.
Gregoire has given herself a deadline of Aug. 9 to decide which route to take if the state doesn't receive the Medicaid funds from Congress, said spokeswoman Karina Shagren in Olympia.
As it is, officials say only about 11 percent of families statewide who qualify for child abuse prevention programs take part because of limited funds. Federal money provides about the same amount as the state matching funds.
At Tuesday's gathering, Yakima police Chief Sam Granato and Yakima County Sheriff Ken Irwin explained the direct correlation between child abuse and crime.
Irwin and Granato are among 4,000 police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors and violent crime prevention advocates statewide who belong to the anti-crime group Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Washington.
"Violence breeds violence," Irwin said after reading from a report prepared by the anti-crime group.
The report revealed that abused children are more at risk to commit crimes and join gangs.
Local programs provide home visits to poor, young, first-time parents to give them parenting skills and teach them how to keep their children from trouble.
The report showed that at-risk children whose parents did not participate in such programs were twice as likely to commit a crime than those whose parents did.
Both Granato and Irwin said that funding such programs is cheaper than sending youths through the justice system.
"I am convinced that if we are serious about combating these crimes, we need some intervention early on," Granato said.
* Phil Ferolito can be reached at 509-577-7749 or pferolito@yakimaherald.com.
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