Every month the Rutherford County District Attorney’s Office receives 40-50 serious child abuse referrals, including child sexual abuse and extreme physical abuse cases. General William C. Whitesell, Jr. and the District Attorney’s Office work child abuse cases as part of a multidisciplinary team with the Child Advocacy Center, Department of Children’s Services, mental health counselors from the Guidance Center, law enforcement detectives from Murfreesboro Police Department, Smyrna Police Department, LaVergne Police Department, and the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office. In the last ten years, General Whitesell and the Child Protective Investigative Team have worked over 6,000 child abuse cases.Earlier this week, General William C. Whitesell, Jr. was recognized by the Tennessee Chapter of Children’s Advocacy Centers at the Connecting for Children’s Justice Conference in Nashville for dedicating his career to prosecuting child abuse perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law. Whitesell was presented with the State of Tennessee Child Protective Investigative Team Leadership Award. This award is given to a member of a Child Protective Investigative Team that has demonstrated leadership, exemplifies the collaborative spirit, advocates for the team approach to child abuse investigations, and has dedicated their career to protecting children.
Bonnie Beneke, the Executive Director of the Tennessee Chapter of Children’s Advocacy Centers, presented the award to General Whitesell. Beneke stated the following information when she presented the award:
“Over the last 10 years, General Whitesell has worked tirelessly to advocate on behalf of child abuse victims and prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law. Whitesell has been the driving force in establishing Child Advocacy Centers in Rutherford and Cannon Counties, the CPIT Teams in Rutherford and Cannon Counties, CPIT Management Team, and in getting all the agencies to work together as a team and functioning effectively.
