by Derrick Vander Waal
SIOUX CENTER, IOWA – Did you know that the Sioux County Sheriff’s Department’s Communications Center received 220 domestic incident reports and 117 domestic incident in progress calls to 911 during the year 2016?
Did you know 138 calls were made to 911 for harassment?
How about 41 calls for sex crimes, 41 for assault reports and 11 for assaults in progress, 14 for child abuse, 11 for restraining/no contact order violations, and one for kidnapping/abduction?
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| A crime victim advocate is available at Promise Community Health Center to help people through a various circumstances they might be going through. |
In all, 834 calls were made to 911 in Sioux County for violent-related crime reports that also included burglary-related incidents, hit-and-run incidents with injuries, and a bomb threat. That figures to an average of nearly 70 per month.
And those are just the calls to 911. Many more incidents happen than are ever called into 911.
While some people think these types of crimes are just big city problems, the statistics tell a different narrative of life in rural Sioux County. They show that these types of crimes can happen anywhere, including here.
In each of these incidents, one or more crime victims may have been able to benefit from the assistance of the crime victim advocate based at Promise Community Health Center in Sioux Center.
Each situation is different, so the victim advocate will assess the circumstances and evaluate the best possible ways to assist each person so that his or her needs are met in a confidential and compassionate way. The advocate will link the victim to whatever resources they may need – whether that be housing, food, financial assistance, mental health counseling, or a host of other needs. The advocate can help victims navigate a complex legal system, connect them with legal advice and link them to crime victim compensation. The advocate will inform victims of their rights.
For Spanish speakers, they will have the comfort in knowing that the advocate can talk fluently with them in their own language. The advocate also will ensure that interpreters are available for appointments with law enforcement and other agencies.
If you have been a victim of a violent crime and could benefit from the services of an advocate, don’t hesitate to call Promise at 712-722-1700 or visit the health center located at 338 First Ave. NW, across from the Sioux Center city offices.
The advocate is available to talk to you five days per week, Monday-Friday.
Promise Community Health Center of Sioux Center is the only Federally Qualified Health Center serving the far northwest corner of Iowa. Promise provides medical, prenatal, dental, vision and behavioral health services. To learn more, visit www.promisechc.org and watch this video. To read more Promise news, visit promisechcnews.blogspot.com.