During the Navajo County Board of Supervisors meeting last week, Catherine Doyle, director of the Navajo County Family Advocacy Center, a non-profit branch of the Navajo County Attorney’s Office, offered insight as to what that organization provides for the county.
In her presentation, Doyle reported on statistics exclusive to Navajo and Apache counties, which show that every 36 hours a child crime is committed. “Eighty-four percent of the victims we see are below the national poverty level, meaning they don’t have access to food, running water or have their basic needs met and they are being handed this on top of everything else,” explained Doyle.
Her statistics show that 85% of all the victims in their care are 14 or younger, 70% are female, 29% male and 1% identify as non-binary. “In 2025, and 2024 as well, 99% of our victims knew their offender. So the people that are hurting these kids are people that they know, people that they trust and people that they can easily identify,” she said. “We continue to see an increase in victims. In 2023 to 2024, we saw a 60% increase and from 2024 to 2025 we saw a 45% increase, so we continue to grow our services.”
The organization has two locations, one in Show Low at the Navajo County Attorney’s Office and another in Holbrook on Buffalo Street. They can house families for up to 24 hours until safe housing or at the very least a safe bed can be located. “Typically, we are able to keep that under five hours for a safe housing placement,” Doyle said.
The center also participates with a multidisciplinary team (MDT). This team includes law enforcement officers, a forensic interviewer, advocates, court advocates, prosecution team therapists, tribal members, tribal police, Department of Child Safety Counseling and any else that can benefit a given case. “By having a really strong MDT we’re able to make sure that every investigation has equal footing. Everyone is able to respond in the same way and we’re not losing kids; we’re not having them fall through the cracks.”
The center also assists many adults who have been subjected to kidnapping, trafficking, neglect, drug endangerment or witnessed a violent crime. “As long as they don’t have a broken bone and are medically cleared, they’re able to come directly to us instead of having to go through the hospital and wait in the emergency room,” said Doyle.
The center provides even more, including clothing, hygiene products and toys to provide comfort for the kids. “We also have two counselors on staff that see our kids. They don’t have a wait time. The process of getting a juvenile counselor in Navajo County is typically about six months, where with our kids we have them in the same or next day.” Also offered is legal system navigation through the Navajo County Attorney’s Office. In addition, the center has a 24-hour crisis line along with their regular access for immediate needs.
County Attorney Brad Carlyon added to the discussion, “Every 36 hours we have another child victim in northeast Arizona. That is traumatic to our community as a whole. We started the Family Advocacy Center to try to minimize the trauma for children who become victims in our communities. Too often it was local law enforcement officers who weren’t provided adequate training on how to do a child interview. They would be faced with someone wearing a gun, usually a large burly man in an interview room, in a police station,” he said, adding that the interview room used at the center is more akin to a family room in a home. He also noted that the center provides services for parents. “As a parent myself, if something had happened to one of my children, I would want to know how to react besides anger. So we had to provide services not only for the children but also the parents.” In addition, advocates go into schools to provide information to kids who may be experiencing abuse but don’t know how to reach out whether out of fear or guilt.
As a non-profit, this organization welcomes donations. To learn more about what and how to donate, contact the Family Advocacy Center by calling 928-532-6047. To learn more about the center, visit https://www.ncfac.org/.
