Van Hollen to Address Drug Endangered Children Conference

Drug Endangered Children: Past, Present and Future

WAUSAU - The fifth annual statewide Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Conference gets underway on Wednesday, July 21. This year's conference will focus on strengthening Wisconsin's Drug Endangered Children programs in the community through proactive community efforts. Attorney General Van Hollen will present greetings during the opening session of the conference at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 21.

Drug Endangered Children Conference
July 21-22, 2010
Jefferson Street Inn
Wausau, Wisconsin

Drug endangered children are those children who suffer physical or psychological harm or neglect resulting either from exposure to illegal drugs or persons under the influence of illegal drugs, or from exposure to dangerous environments where drugs are being manufactured.

This harm may include: injury from explosion, fire or exposure to toxic chemicals found at clandestine lab sites; physical abuse; sexual abuse; medical neglect; and lack of basic care. Although often associated with children who have been impacted by the manufacture and abuse of Methamphetamine in Wisconsin, the Drug Endangered Children program assists children affected by their parents' use, manufacture or trafficking of drugs.

A DEC program is a multidisciplinary approach to protecting children found in dangerous drug environments. DEC programs develop response teams that include law enforcement, child protective services, prosecutors, health officials and medical personnel.

You can learn more about Wisconsin's Drug Endangered Children program at http://www.doj.state.wi.us/dci/FieldOperations/meth/children.asp  and more about the upcoming conference at http://www.wisconsindec.org

The conference is sponsored by:  Wisconsin DEC Alliance, Wisconsin Department of Justice, Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, Wisconsin Department of Corrections, Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, U.S. Attorney's Offices for the Western & Eastern Districts of Wisconsin and the Marathon County Sheriff's Department.