Coordinated Community Response to Child Abuse Victims

Welcome to the New Mexico Children's Safehouse Network!

What is a Safehouse?

A Safehouse is at the center of a coordinated community response to allegations of child abuse. A child is taken to a Safehouse for a forensic interview when there is suspicion of child abuse or when a child is a witness to a violent crime. Our interviewers are highly trained specialists who use research-supported interview techniques. We provide child-friendly spaces for the interview. These interviews are video and audiotaped and are given to law-enforcement to be used as evidence.

What is an MDT?

Seven disciplines form a multi-disciplinary team (MDT) to lead the investigation. Those agencies are the Safehouse forensic interviewers, law enforcement, child protective services, prosecution, mental health services, medical professionals, and victim advocacy services. Safehouses coordinate active case reviews, where information can be shared among the team members. The MDT works together in an effort to reduce the trauma victim’s experience (reduce the number of interviews) and to improve the community’s response to child abuse and create better outcomes.                                   

Safehouses work to provide hope and healing to victims and their families. With our family advocates and in coordination with social services, we seek to connect victims and non-offending family members to a variety of resources and services, and help them understand the system of investigation and prosecution. Our family advocate services help fortify non-offending parents and help child victims become kids again!

Every Safehouse is different based on the community it serves. Many offer prevention programs, providing outreach to schools and the community. Our community outreach efforts are aimed at prevention of child abuse.

To report child abuse/neglect in New Mexico call #SAFE (#7233) from a cell phone or 1-855-333-SAFE.