Dear Friends,
This week I traveled to North Idaho to strengthen our partnerships with local law enforcement in the fight against child exploitation. The trip included meetings with police chiefs, time with our Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) investigators, and important discussions about how we can better protect children across Idaho.
I attended the Idaho Chiefs of Police Association Conference, where I had the opportunity to thank police chiefs from across our state for their dedication to protecting Idaho communities. I wanted them to know that my office is here as a resource, ready to assist with investigations and prosecutions, especially when it comes to ICAC cases. Our ICAC investigators do incredibly demanding work to protect vulnerable children from online predators, and they can’t do it alone.
The reality is that building strong partnerships with police departments across Idaho is essential to keeping kids safe. At the conference, I spent time at our ICAC booth speaking directly with chiefs about collaboration opportunities and the resources available to their departments. These conversations matter because protecting children requires all of us working together.
I also joined our ICAC investigators and team members in Post Falls for their biannual Mental Health and Resiliency training. This training is conducted by Dr. Alex Crampton and Dr. Ross Ginkel, the contracted psychologists for our ICAC team. These investigators are heroes who work tirelessly to protect children in Idaho. Every day, they confront horrific images and disturbing cases as they conduct search warrants and arrest online predators.
What many people don’t realize is the emotional toll this work takes on the men and women who do it. My office ensures these investigators have mental health resources available whenever they need them, and it was an honor for me to join them for part of this critical training. We hold these full-team mental health trainings in different locations across Idaho to accommodate investigators statewide and bring the entire team together.
I then met with Captains Mark Brantl and Jason Mealer at the Post Falls Police Department to discuss ongoing collaboration between local law enforcement and our ICAC Task Force. Our ICAC Unit works with the Idaho ICAC Task Force, a coalition of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, to investigate and prosecute individuals who use the internet to criminally exploit children.
These partnerships aren’t just professional relationships, they’re critical lifelines in our mission to protect children in our state. When local departments have the support they need and our investigators have the mental health resources to sustain this difficult work, children in Idaho are safer.
As both a parent and your Attorney General, I know there’s no more important work than protecting children from those who would harm them. This trip reminded me that we have dedicated professionals throughout Idaho who share that commitment, and together, we’re making a difference.
Best regards,
