Niki Svik, Judicial Branch Education Trainer from Lincoln, and Kevin Patras, Community Based Intervention Officer in Norfolk, will join hundreds of members of law enforcement, prosecutors, and victim advocates from across the nation who work with female victims of crime and have been awarded scholarships to participate in the highest quality workshops, computer labs, and case studies at the fourteenth annual Conference on Crimes Against Women (CCAW). This scholarship provides access to critical training for communities who would otherwise be unable to attend due to increasing budget constraints that public service agencies face. Presented by Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support and the Dallas Police Department, CCAW is a national clearinghouse for training and best practices regarding the identification, investigation, and prosecution of all types of violent crimes against women, including domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking. This year the conference will welcome over 2,800 professionals from all 50 states.

Hosted in Dallas, Texas, the 2019 conference will be held April 8th through 11th. Nebraska State Probation has been selected as a 2019 scholarship recipient to attend the fourteenth annual Conference on Crimes Against Women. Because scholarship proceeds cover registration, travel, and hotel costs, teams are able to attend the conference and then return to their departments with newfound knowledge of how to combat the many and varied forms of crimes against women. The conference promotes strategies that improve public safety and support victims of crime across the nation. Classes are taught at CCAW with the intention of not only educating attendees, but also equipping them with the necessary tools to convey information to their departments and colleagues, thereby systematically improving agencies and increasing collective skill and competency levels. Ultimately, this training facilitates improvement of policies, practices, strategies, and collaborative responses to all crimes against women.

This year, the conference will feature keynote speaker, Kristen M. Gibbons Feden, Esq. As a nationally--‐acclaimed litigator, Feden is most notably known for her involvement in the Bill Cosby trials. Serving as special prosecutor, she secured a conviction of three counts of sexual assault against the comedian formerly known as “America’s Dad.” Consequently, Bill Cosby is currently serving between three and ten years in prison.