Spokanites Search For Answers About 100 People Turn Out At Forum To Seek Ways To Stop Child Abuse

Outraged by the killing of a 9-year-old girl, about 100 Spokane residents gathered Tuesday to discuss ways they could stop the kind of violence that ended Rachel Carver’s life.

One woman said more education is needed so people are able to spot signs of child sexual abuse. Another suggested that people turn to churches for support. One man said Spokane residents need to be more aware of what’s happening in their neighborhoods.

“Know what’s going on,” said Jack Wilson, who lives near the North Ash home where Rachel Carver had lived before she was killed in June. “Do something.”

Wilson knows the horror of a child’s murder from personal experience. He was related to 6-year-old Tricna Cloy, who was abducted from her Spokane home in 1988 and killed.

Now, Wilson said, he makes note of suspicious cars and people in his neighborhood and reports unusual behavior to police.

Organizers of The Spokesman-Review-sponsored forum at Shadle Park High School hoped to bring the community together to find tangible ways to stop child abuse.

People became angered when they learned of the sex abuse in Rachel Carver’s life and alarmed that her uncle, a convicted sex offender, had been allowed to care for her.

Hundreds of volunteers turned out to search for the girl after she didn’t arrive for her last day of school in June.

The next day, her body was found in Riverside State Park and her uncle, Jason Wickenhagen, was arrested.

A seven-member panel, which included a school official, legislators and police officers, offered perspectives during the forum’s first hour.

“We have many Rachel Carvers in Spokane and across the state of Washington,” said Cheryl Steele, a West Central resident who coordinates the city’s community policing effort.

Then audience members were invited to share ways they could become involved in fighting crime.

Mimi Cooper, a member of Westgate Christian Church, said Christians need to help struggling families and pregnant teens.

She said churches need to open their doors to those who need them.

“You need a moral structure,” Cooper said. “It’s not coming from the broken homes.”

Nancy McLaughlin said residents should become involved in neighborhood policing efforts. She’s a member of the North Hill Neighborhood Observation Patrol.

“There are things you can do,” McLaughlin said.

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