CASPER — One of the more frequently forgotten angles of a crime is what happens to the victims after a crime is reported and investigated.

Sure, there’ll be some interviews to establish facts in an investigation, but it’s also important to make sure that victims aren’t just hung out to dry after experiencing wrongdoing.

That’s where Leslie Fritzler and her team — a blend of Casper Police staff and volunteer advocates — step in.

“Our role is to assess what the need is,” Fritzler, the department’s victim services coordinator, said.

When the victim services team first makes contact with a victim, Fritzler said it primarily starts in two situations: The team either responds to calls in the field or someone comes by the department to report something that happened to them.

In the field, Fritzler said victim services responds to nearly any call that can involve significant trauma, especially cases like sexual assault, domestic violence, death of a child or homicides.

She said she and her team work with survivors and loved ones of the victim to give them access to similar resources.

“At the scene, our main interest is making sure they have a safe place to stay, whether that’s their apartment or with a family or friend,” Fritzler said. “We can make arrangements to put them in a hotel, but that’s per our assessments of what needs to occur.”

If a suspect hasn’t been arrested and there are lingering concerns about the victim’s safety, she said, that’s when her team will step in and help move the victim somewhere safer, like a hotel.

“The following business day, we’ll connect them to counseling, victims’ compensation, and we’ll assist them with protection orders,” she said.

“Also, if they need ongoing support with housing or food assistance [or contacting the] Department of Family Services, we work with all of those programs and get them connected to those resources,” she added.

Victim advocates can also go to court with victims to support them through potentially difficult hearings or sit through interviews with authorities to provide a steady hand.

It’s worth noting that CPD acts as something of a middle-man connecting victims with resources.

The advantage of going through the department is being able to access state victim compensation so the recovery process isn’t paid for out of the victim’s pocket.

Fritzler has been in her current role with CPD for 11 years after spending time working in probation and parole.

Moving from one side of the criminal justice system to another wasn’t all intuitive, though. There’s always more to be learned.

“As I’ve grown through my position,” she said, “every case I’ve dealt with we should learn from ... I can always take something away from these scenes.”

Those around Fritzler — especially those who aren’t professionals within the department — can also  presumably take something away from every stop.

A significant amount of her team’s manpower comes from volunteer advocates, who she said “are focused on how they can help assist their community.”

“They’re laypeople. None of them have prior law enforcement background,” Fritzler said. “They might have some background in medical, but for the most part, they’re just individuals coming forward that want to help serve other people in our community.”

Volunteers receive some training, but work as a volunteer victim advocate is a far cry from a weekend helping out at the food bank, Fritzler pointed out.

The coordinator said those volunteers have to pass a 40-hour training and are provided special clothing, ID and protective equipment.

Following those 40 hours, the volunteers receive ongoing training, Fritzler said.

“Advocates work after hours, weekends and holidays,” Fritzler added. “They can sign up for a time that’s convenient for them ... and they make that initial crisis response.”

From there, matters are handed off to staff, she said.