Child advocate checks expanded

The director of the North Idaho program that pairs trained advocates with kids in court can’t really spare $3,000 from her stripped-down annual budget.

But Hiedi Person said she’ll happily pay that amount if it means she can make sure local volunteers who work with children have passed a background check in every state in the union.

“Just as long as the kids are safe,” said Person, who heads the 1st Judicial District Court Appointed Special Advocates program based in Coeur d’Alene. “I don’t think I’d be able to sleep at night if something happened.”

A congressional agreement last year authorized the agency to conduct nationwide checks with the help of state law enforcement agencies, said Michael Piraino, chief executive officer of the national CASA headquarters in Seattle.

Congress approved the move as it reauthorized an $11 million grant for CASA services through the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, he said.

Thanks to an arrangement through the Idaho Supreme Court and the Idaho State Police, CASA agencies will pay about $75 for every background check on a volunteer. In North Idaho, that will put a $3,000 ding in the agency’s $142,000 annual budget, but Person said it’s worth it.

Before, local CASA offices were able to conduct regional background checks. In Idaho, for instance, there was a three-state check that verified a volunteer had not committed a crime in Idaho, Washington or Montana.

But that wasn’t adequate, said Person, whose program includes 96 volunteers. News reports about sex offenders such as Joseph Duncan, awaiting trial on multiple murder charges in Kootenai County, emphasized that predators are often too willing – and able – to travel. Duncan is charged with killing three members of a North Idaho family and has been accused of abducting and abusing children Dylan and Shasta Groene and of killing Dylan last year.

“I think it’s important for everyone to know that it’s the anniversary of the Groene crime, but there are heinous crimes that happen here every day,” Person said.

CASA volunteers are part of the team that helps children recover when crimes affect their families. They advocate for children’s interests as their cases move through court. Locally, there are more than 600 assigned cases; about half are active. Every month, about 20 new cases are opened in Idaho’s five northern counties; about 10 of those are in Kootenai County.

While background checks are vital for volunteers, they’ve only rarely excluded someone from the program, said Person and Piraino. That’s likely because the screening is so thorough before potential volunteers ever get to that point, they said.

Idaho’s agreement to conduct the checks is only advisory, Person said. That should change with the next legislative session.

Volunteers are always needed, she added. The next training session is scheduled for June 8.