• 42 children in Georgia died from abuse and neglect in 2000.
• Everyday in Georgia an average of 190 incidents of child abuse and neglect are reported.
• Every 15 minutes, a child is the victim of confirmed abuse or neglect.
• Over 200 incidents of child abuse and neglect are reported daily.
• 99 children died from abuse and neglect in 2004.
• The biological parents are responsible in approximately 75% of these cases.
• About 85% of these children are victimized in their own homes. About 1 child out of every 6 is sexually abused before his/her 18th birthday.
• Georgia ranks as the 5th highest state in the nation in the number of children who have been abused and neglected.
• Every month in Georgia more than 14,000 children are in the legal custody of the state.
• Children who suffer abuse or neglect are 53% more likely to become juvenile delinquents, 38% more likely to be arrested as adults, and 38% more likely to become violent criminals.
• Interrupting the cycle of abuse is the focus of a CASA volunteer.
• A safe, permanent home is CASA's goal for each child.
• CASA is the only organization of volunteer advocates who have been trained to speak as an independent voice in court for children's best interest. The U.S. Department of Justice has recognized CASA as a model program and views CASA as "a safety net for abused and neglected children."
• There are over 900 CASA programs throughout the U.S., with over 50,000 CASA volunteers.
• In 2000, CASA programs in Georgia had over 1000 volunteers accounting for over 80,000 volunteer hours, serving over 4500 children. That is about 33% of the children in Georgia who need a CASA.
• Over 1 million children have been served since CASA was founded in 1977.
• In fiscal year 2006, over 8,300 children were served by over 1,600 CASA volunteers.
• 47 CASA programs serve 115 counties and 44 of the 49 judicial circuits.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?
By becoming a CASA volunteer, you can act as an advocate for an abused or neglected child in Clayton County. Your voice for them in court will help ensure that permanency is found in the best interest of the child in an expeditious manner.

WHY CASA?
CASA adds insight. CASA volunteer are appointed by a juvenile court judge to gather information about the child's case and to give an independent recommendation to the judge based on the information, according to the best interests of the child. CASA gives the judge extra information that he or she needs to make crucial decisions about the child's future.

CASA saves tax dollars. CASA is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that provides trained, screened and supervised volunteers to act as GALs for abused and neglected children involved in juvenile court deprivation proceedings. Thus CASA saves the state tax dollars which would otherwise be used to hire attorney GALs for these children. In addition, CASA often helps decrease the amount of time that these children spend in the foster care system resulting in the additional savings to the state. last year CASA save the state of Georgia more than 1.4 million in foster care costs.

CASA offers hope. CASA volunteers are often one of the few consistent figures in the child's life. While a child may have many case workers, foster parents, schools, and residences, the CASA stays with the child throughout the duration of the case. Because they carry an average of only two cases, CASA are able to give the children what no one else in the system can -- TIME. CASA's main focus is to ensure that every child has a safe, permanent home as quickly as possible. By doing this, CASA helps to not only end the abuse or neglect experienced by one particular child, but to break the cycle of violence and abuse that will otherwise continue through that child.