Wyoming's Joint Symposium on Children & Youth is underway in Cheyenne this week. The multi-disciplinary training event brings together professionals who are responding to crimes against children. That includes law enforcement, attorneys, educators, medical professionals and victim advocates.
Samantha Kanish with the Wyoming Division of Victim Services co-chaired the planning committee. She said the workshops cover a range of topics including how to identify and investigate crimes against children, as well as how to help kids heal.
Kanish said the goal is to, "understand what trauma does to these kids, and how our mental health professionals and those in victim witness programs are able to help them heal and get through what they've gone through."
Kanish said this is the largest symposium on children and youth that Wyoming has hosted.
"We have 400 attendees from all over the state. We even have some from Texas, some from Montana, North Dakota, and then the surrounding regions, even Colorado," said Kanish.
This year's event included a workshop track focused on human trafficking in Wyoming.
