March 2020 | Vol. 7 Iss. 03
FREE VOLUNTEER VICTIM ADVOCATES ASSIST TAYLORSVILLE RESIDENTS DURING MOST HARROWING MOMENTS By Carl Fauver | c.fauver@mycityjournals.com
W
ANTED: Someone willing to be called out of bed at any hour of the night to assist victims at their most vulnerable times. These victims may have been beaten by a spouse or parent, witnessed an unexpected death or discovered a loved one who has committed suicide. You may have to drive emotionally distraught victims well outside the Salt Lake Valley to get them assistance. Oh, and there’s NO PAY. While such an emotionally wrenching position might not appeal to a lot of us, Lisa Kocherhans had enough hearty souls answer her request for volunteers, she has now successfully resurrected a program that was forced to go by the wayside just a couple of years ago. Kocherhans is a paid civilian employee for the Unified Police Department – Taylorsville Precinct, working as its crime victim advocate volunteer coordinator. “I have been a victim advocate nearly 20 years, including eight as a volunteer,” Kocherhans said. “I came to the Taylorsville UPD precinct in 2012, from Midvale. At one point we had several volunteer victim advocates working across the valley. But eventually those numbers dropped. Then we had volunteers driving all over to respond to crime scenes. The program was abolished in the fall of 2018.” Kocherhans responds to crime victims herself, during the day. But within a year, she knew she needed her volunteer team back. “I ran an ad in the Taylorsville City Newsletter (in these Journal pages) last fall and was pleased with the response,”
UPD Precinct Chief Tracy Wyant, Crime Victims’ Advocate Coordinator Lisa Kocherhans and former volunteer JD Wood (L-R) appeared at a recent Taylorsville City Council meeting, where Wood was honored for his unpaid work with crime victims. (Carl Fauver/City Journals)
she said. “I interviewed people. Those who qualified were October.” given background checks, and those who were accepted unYou might think spending 40 hours learning about the derwent a 40-hour victim services domestic violence training horrors of domestic violence would prompt one or two volcourse through the South Salt Lake Police Department last Continued page 4
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