Nurture and protection come together here
Susie’s Place provides forensic interviews to child victims or witnesses of crime in a safe, neutral place.
Our work promotes healing and justice, along with the prevention of abuse and further violence against kids. Everything we do is focused on the child’s needs.
A maze of hard-to-navigate services…
About 15 years ago, kids who were victims or witness to a crime in our community lacked a cohesive response.
Well-meaning detectives, police officers, caseworkers and prosecutors lacked a single place to come together.
Kids found themselves telling and re-telling their traumatic experience in a confusing, disconnected, and sometimes scary maze of services.
…come together at Susie’s Place
Today, the maze of services is gone in favor of a single destination: Susie’s Place.
When kids and families visit Susie’s Place today, they receive:
- High-quality forensic interviews
- Child and family advocacy
- Urgent supplies, such as toiletries, gas cards, clothes, and backpacks
- And much more
Meanwhile, a multidisciplinary team of law enforcement, medical and mental health professionals, DCS caseworkers, and more are made available, often without the kids seeing them.
How did Susie’s Place start?
Susie’s Place Child Advocacy Center is committed to strengthening the community’s ability to nurture and protect children and respond to child abuse in our community.
In 2005, Emily E. Perry joined the Indianapolis Institute for Families as a Clinical Associate and Director of Special Programs. At that time, the Indianapolis Institute for Families had provided the Child Abuse Treatment Program to Hendricks County for over 20 years. Shortly after joining the Institute’s team, Emily identified an opportunity within Hendricks County that had the potential to systematically improve the county’s ability to investigate reports of child abuse while maintaining the child as the first priority. Hendricks County needed a Child Advocacy Center.
In December 2007, Emily coordinated an informational meeting to introduce the concept of a Child Advocacy Center to Hendricks County. Representatives from
- Virtually every law enforcement jurisdiction in Hendricks County
- The Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office
- The Hendricks County Department of Child Services
- Hendricks Regional Health, and
- The Indianapolis Institute for Families attended this informational meeting.
- From that meeting, a Child Advocacy Center Steering Committee was developed.
Through the support and dedication of many individuals who participated on the steering committee,
Susie’s Place Avon celebrated its grand opening in April 2009. An additional Susie’s Place center was opened in Bloomington in 2011, and the Terre Haute center opened in 2017.
Susie’s Place has conducted well over 12,000 child forensic interviews with 70+ different law enforcement agencies, dozens of county Department of Child Services offices, and with child abuse investigators in 13 other states, the FBI, and Homeland Security.
Who was Susie Austin?
Susie Austin began her career with the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Department in 1968. By 1978, Susie was the first female Merit Deputy in Hendricks County and worked diligently to further her career with the Sheriff’s Department. Susie eventually became a Detective and finally a Lieutenant.
Susie paved the way for women in law enforcement and investigating crimes against children in Hendricks County.
- As a Detective, Susie specialized in crimes against children and sex crimes. She was a constant advocate for the rights of children, families, and victims and strived to protect children while seeking justice.
- Founded Officer Teddy 1988, providing a teddy bear to each child victim of reported abuse or neglect, rape victims, and children traumatized by domestic violence.
- Founded Teach-a-Bodies Program, offering Good Touch/Bad Touch programming in schools, churches, and local hospitals. The program spurred countless child molestation investigations, resulting in numerous convictions.
Sadly, Susie was stricken with cancer in May 2002. After 32 years of service, Susie was forced to retire from the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Department in December 2002. In February of 2003, the Hendricks County community experienced a great loss in the passing of Susie Austin. Susie is survived by her daughter, Marisa (Vanek).
According to Susie’s family, Susie would be proud of the ongoing efforts to protect the children of Hendricks County from child abuse and honored that she was thought of during the development of the Hendricks County Child Advocacy Center. It is because of Susie Austin that Susie’s Place finally came to fruition.
