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WHEN IN NEED
“We have the tools and equipment to adequately prosecute what I consider predators... and they’re in our community.”
Lisa Chauncey, left, sexual assault advocate, and Donita Garner, Child Advocacy Center coordinator, have been supporting victims with Hope Unlimited for several years.
Organization gives hope in victims’ darkest times By KAYLA BANZET kayla@iolaregister.com
Register/Steven Schwartz
From left, David Toland, Wade Bowie and Jared Warner discuss the possibility of a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) unit in Allen County.
When Lisa Chauncey gets a call of a sexual assault, she responds in a moment’s notice. “I will meet the victim and family members if they are there,” Chauncey said. “If they desire, I can be with them for the examination or sit with the family members.” Chauncey is a sexual assault advocate with Hope Unlimited. Once at the Chanute hospital, Chauncey explains the services Hope Unlimited provides and gathers information from the victim for a follow-up encounter. “I follow up at the first available date to see where they’re at and let them know I’ll be with them for the process,” she said. Volunteers at Hope Unlimited make sure victims of sexual assault know they are not alone. During the examination
a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner or a SANE nurse will undress the victim and bag the clothing for evidence. The nurses take samples of pubic hair, clean under the victims’ fingernails, and swab their cheek, anal and vaginal areas. The nurses use an ultra-violet light to look for bodily fluids and a special camera to see bruises that haven’t yet developed. This process can take up to three hours or longer. Because there is not a SANE nurse at Allen County Regional Hospital, victims must travel to Neosho Memorial Regional Hospital to be examined. The advocate can ask for breaks for the victim during the exam, said Dorothy Sparks, executive director for Hope Unlimited. Although the hospital provides brochures explaining the exam process, advocates sit with the victim and exSee HOPE | Page A2
Local entities advocate for victim support, medical examiners By STEVEN SCHWARTZ steven@iolaregister.com
Sexual assaults are an often underaddressed aspect of society, involving victims robbed of their security and innocence. To help assuage some of their pain, local organizations are pushing to make the investigation of a sexual assault a bit easier. When a victim is assaulted, they are to contact law enforcement officers who make a report and investigate the crime. If the victim wants to press charges against their assailant, they must be examined by a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE). In Allen County, and in many counties across the state, there is no SANE unit. Victims must be sent to Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center
in Chanute or in the case of children, to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. “We don’t have that resource available in our community,” County Attorney Wade Bowie said. He has been pushing for the unit since he became county attorney in 2011. Thrive Allen County Executive Director David Toland, Iola Police Chief Jared Warner and Bowie discussed the need for a SANE unit in Allen County on Thursday morning. “It’s already traumatic enough for them (the victims),” Bowie said. “It’s almost like re-victimizing the victim,” Warner chimed in. Bowie said he has seen video footage of the 30-minute drive to ChaSee EXAMINER | Page A4
Courtesy of Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence
In the above map of Kansas, the highlighted counties have SANE-registered nurses and examination equipment ready for assault victims. There are only 23 fully equipped facilities in the state’s 105 counties.
Bruno: quite ‘paws’sibly our smallest news carrier By STEVEN SCHWARTZ steven@iolaregister.com Register/Steven Schwartz
Bruno has been retrieving The Iola Register for Arla Faye Brown since they moved into Moran in 2005. Vol. 115, No.207
75 Cents
MORAN — Maybe Bruno the dog should be on the Register payroll. When Arla Faye Brown rescued Bruno 11 years ago, little did she know that he would be her little “paperdog.” Brown, who moved into Moran from a farm outside of town in 2005, brought the dachsund with her. “He wasn’t getting the care he needed,” Brown said of the loyal pet. Brown said the dog was originally meant to be bred, but a problem with his back legs made him less than desirable. When Brown got him, he was “flea-bitten and starved.” Family was slow to warm up to the dog. Brown said a niece declared Bruno as “the ugliest dog I ever saw.” Never mind. Bruno is a faithful companion for Brown — and even a useful helper. When Brown says “go get the paper,” he does just that. On Wednesday afternoon, Bruno demostrated his skills. When Brown announced See DOG | Page A6
Iola, KS