During the 19 Days of Activism, the Child Advocacy Center has two goals. The first goal is that the 19 partner agencies will sponsor press releases to educate our community about child abuse, with a focus on the impact of opioids and substance abuse on children.  

Here's how Smyrna Police Department helps:

The Smyrna Police Department in a partnership with the Child Advocacy Center is proud to participate in the 19 Days of Activism. The Smyrna Police Department considers every case of child abuse to be a very serious offense.

Currently, we have a Family Services Unit which consists of two detectives, a detective sergeant, and the community services coordinator. All of these people are responsible for investigating child abuse cases, domestic violence cases, sexual assault cases, and other areas of concern that would fit under social services.

This unit receives extensive training in the proper way to investigate these type of crimes that occur within a family. Since Jan. 1, 2018 this investigative unit has investigated more than 1,100 cases.

This unit works in conjunction with the Department of Children’s Services, Our Kids, Child Advocacy Center, and the District Attorney’s Office to assure that a full investigation is completed. After the investigation is completed all of these respective agencies meet together which comprises the Child Protection Investigative Team (CPIT)and they together determine if a crime was committed.

In 2018 62 reported cases of child abuse have been assigned to detectives at the Smyrna Police Department. Of these cases 9 have been cleared by an arrest, 25 were determined unfounded, 10 cases are inactive, 6 were exceptionally cleared, and currently, there are 12 cases still actively being investigated.

The Smyrna Police Department recognizes the importance of C.P.I.T. And we are proud to partner with our other agencies in the 19 Days of Activism.