Abused Children Outnumber Magic Valley Advocates

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) — A program advocating for abused or neglected children in southern Idaho says there are too many cases for volunteers to handle.

The Twin Falls Times-News reports there are only 67 trained volunteer advocates in the region's Court Appointed Special Advocates program. But 525 children from the region surrounding Twin Falls were abused or neglected so badly in 2012 they had to be removed from their homes. Currently, there are more than 100 children without a volunteer.

Tahna Barton, director of the region's CASA, says children without an advocate are more likely to be incarcerated in the juvenile detention system — or bounced from foster home to foster home. Barton says one problem is some would-be volunteers think child-abuse issues arise mainly in cities like Boise, not in rural areas.