What is a Forensic Interview?
A forensic interview is a means of gathering information from a child victim or witness for use in a legal setting. Interviews are child-sensitive, unbiased, developmentally appropriate, and fact-finding in nature. A forensic interview is a well-coordinated event that occurs at the Warren Washington C.A.R.E. Center to avoid duplicative interviewing during the investigation.
At the Warren-Washington C.A.R.E. Center, we follow the New York State best practices in forensic interviewing standards. Interviews are conducted by highly trained professionals and are done in a safe, trauma-informed manner.
Information for Caregivers
If the child you are caring for has to be forensically interviewed, here is what you can expect:
You will be greeted by one of our friendly C.A.R.E. Center Staff and taken into our Family Waiting Room, where we will ensure that you and your family are comfortable.
- You will be introduced to an advocate who will be there to provide support and accurate information to your family throughout the entire investigation process.
- We will build a relationship with you and your child to ensure that they feel safe and reassured about our process.
- Our trained forensic interviewer will then ask your child to step into our interview room and begin the interview.
- Typically, you can expect to be at the C.A.R.E Center for 2 hours, however, this estimation may run shorter or longer depending on the circumstances.
- Following the completion of our interview, if applicable, we will summarize and provide you with whatever insights we can with the understanding that it is an active investigation.