Anonymous wrote:Parents should push for age-appropriate health education at every grade level.

Many privates in this area do not start any kind of health education until grade 4, which is too late. It’s important that kids know the appropriate terminology for their own bodies at an early age. Pre-K students should know what parts of their bodies are called and whether it’s okay to touch or be touched. That’s a safety issue on so many levels.

Anonymous wrote:Not OP, but involved in the Wahington Hebrew nightmare.
First, both Capitol Melda Group and Spring Valley will get your child in first day for this sort of issue. Pediatricians (at least these ones) are trained to be able to ask the screening questions in an appropriate manner. They then call in Safe Shores, police, etc.

Second, while Wash Hebrew and NCRC are different cases, it is unlikely that not children were abused at NCRC and Beauvoir, they just haven’t gotten to that part yet. Currently the case is just on internet activity, but it does likely include children as well, so it’s important parents of young kids know how to address it.

Third, it is almost impossible to screen for pedophiles, as they are wonderful skilled liars. This is why parents need to know what to look for and not allow administration to brush off unusually behavior. I cannot stress enough reading this to know what to ask your chidlren’s schools, teams, activities. Some of the things to be on alert for at incredibly basic and overlooked. Here is a link to questions to ask and things to look for- https://www.d2l.org/education/5-steps/step-2/

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised if a general pediatrician is able to do a same day appointment and has the time to do a detailed interview/exam. Usually, they refer to the specialists at a children's hospital who do have the expertise/space/time and can videotape the interview.

Pediatricians do not have the training to conduct forensic interviews. But they can help you (out of the child's earshot) decide whether a referral for a forensic interview is needed and help with that referral. In DC, the group that conducts most (all?) pediatric forensic interviews is Safe Shores. They're very good.

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised if a general pediatrician is able to do a same day appointment and has the time to do a detailed interview/exam. Usually, they refer to the specialists at a children's hospital who do have the expertise/space/time and can videotape the interview.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Was WHC ever held responsibile for anything? My DC was there during the time, and no one interviewed us. I never felt it was handled well, and rules were broken. No adult should have been alone with the children. That is why there were 2 teachers for every class.

Schools have an interest in making these problems go away. It is the parents responsibility to protect their child at the end of the day.

Anonymous wrote:As a parent who dealt with this at Washington Hebrew, I want to pass along some words of advice. If you suspect your child has been a victim here or any other time in their life, immediately speak with your pediatrician (they will fit you in same day and are, sadly, very familiar with this process) or go to the police who will have a forensic psychologist speak with your child.

DO NOT ask them a million leading questions about if they have been touched by, creeped out by, etc by the accused. It goes against every fiber of a parents being, but do not do it.
If you have a young child, they can only be questioned ONCE by a professional and that one time can count as their statement and their testimony as well. Young children do not take the stand and cannot be re-interviewed and re-questioned, as it can be damaging for them.

If you ask your child many questions prior to their speaking with police or a doctor, that can be considered "leading" and, because they cannot be cross examined on the stand, result their statement/complaint to be dismissed or not included. This is one of the big reasons the case against the Washington Hebrew offender never went to trial.

No one tells you this until it is too late!

Adding on to this, Darkness 2 Light - https://www.d2l.org/education/5-steps/step-1/ - is an amazing organization that can help parents identify and prevent sexaul abuse. Once we all better informed, we can hopefully notice and help stop this horrible behavior. 1 in 10 American children will be sexually abused by the time they are 18, only 86% of cases are ever reported, and 90% of children know their abuser!

Anonymous wrote:Was WHC ever held responsibile for anything? My DC was there during the time, and no one interviewed us. I never felt it was handled well, and rules were broken. No adult should have been alone with the children. That is why there were 2 teachers for every class.

Anonymous wrote:Was WHC ever held responsibile for anything? My DC was there during the time, and no one interviewed us. I never felt it was handled well, and rules were broken. No adult should have been alone with the children. That is why there were 2 teachers for every class.

Anonymous wrote:Yes.

Even with a small child, teach your children about private body parts and who and in what contexts they should and should not be touched. If someone violates their boundaries, teach them to come to you with that information and that you will support them without judgement or blame.

If you have a child at NCRC, make sure to inform their PCP of this arrest as soon as possible even if your child doesn’t seem to have been victimized.

This NCRC case is very different from the case against Washington Hebrew as it is not solely built on victim testimony.