Dawn McKee said the most difficult cases she handles as a victim/witness advocate are the ones involving children.

"Of all types of cases, the child victims are the hardest ones to watch and work with," McKee said. "It is sad to see the long-term effect that the crime has on the child."

McKee served as the Centre County victim/witness advocate for six and a half years at the district attorney's office until last June. The victim/witness program informs victims of crimes about court procedures and the status of their cases, McKee said. The service is availible to any victim whose case is being prosecuted.

"I don't tell the victims what to say," McKee said. "I just try to help prepare them for what lies ahead. I am interested in the crime, but it is not as important to me as their healing. The most important thing for a victim to know is that 'bad things do happen to good people.' "

Centre County District Attorney Ray Gricar said McKee is superb in working with victims of domestic violence, rape, sexual assault and child abuse.

"She is highly skilled in dealing with people in a sensitive way," Gricar said.

McKee credits her ability to her supportive family, her interest in people and her studies in sociology and criminology.

"I have always been people oriented," McKee said. Even back in elementary school, she said, she recalls being interested in the different ways people live their lives. She tended to focus on social-service courses while in college.

The victim/witness advocate helps communicate the victim's feelings to the district attorney. This helps survey the impact of the crime in order to request a fair sentence for the defendant, Gricar said.

McKee serves as a vital link of communication between the victim and the district attorneys, Centre County Assistant District Attorney April Chamberlain said.

"If the issue comes to plea negotiations, for example, we ask Dawn to contact the victim and see how they feel about it before we make any decisions," Chamberlain said, adding that victim's rights are important to the Centre County distict attorney's office.

"They have been victims of some kind of crime to begin with. We don't want them to be victims of the court process by being neglected or uninformed. It would be great if all attorneys could take time to work with the victim, but this is just not feasible with our case load," she said.

McKee was recently hired to work on the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. As project coordinator for the commission's Victim Services Training and Technical Assistance Project. McKee's job is to train other victim/witness advocates to help crime victims.

The state stole McKee away from the distict attorney's office, Gricar said. "That alone tells you how competent she is," he said.

The goal of this new program is to bring all 57 statewide programs up to model standards, McKee said.

"Our hope for the future is that people will be more prepared for their trials, and that this will ultimately end in more convictions," McKee said. "We want to make the victim a better witness."

Most victims have never been through a trial before and do not understand the criminal justice system, Chamberlain said.

"Dawn helped keep them informed and answered questions such as, 'When will the medical bills get paid?' and 'When will the defendant be released?', " Chamberlain said.

By thoroughly explaining the court procedures, McKee helps ease the victim's anxieties. A victim once called McKee at home the night before a trial concerned about where to park at the courthouse.

"It sounds like a little thing, but even worries like where to park can keep the victim from focusing on their testimony," McKee said.

Recently, the criminal justice system has only focused on the rights of victims, McKee said.

"The system was designed to protect the rights of criminals. The victims issue has only really been around for about twenty years," McKee said.

Chamberlain said that this is due to a growing awareness of victim's needs.

"Over a long period of time we started to recognize victim's rights to be as important as criminal rights," Chamberlain said. "Also, when crime rate was not as high, prosecutors had more time to work with victims. They were not as burdened with work."

From McKee's experience working at a drug and alcohol outpatient center in Philadelphia, she learned about the other side of the system with offenders. She still follows advice from a colleague there who told her to "always watch her back."

"Working with victims makes me realize how vulnerable people are," McKee said. "And we are not prepared emotionally for what happens in the court system."

McKee will be missed, Gricar said, adding that she is a tough act to follow. But he said he is pleased that her expertise can be used to promote the program throughout the state.