Become an observer for Fox Valley Court Watch

On Friday, Sept. 23, the Fox Valley Court Watch, a nonprofit organization, is providing a training session for interested volunteers in Kane or Kendall counties.

The Fox Valley Court Watch Program currently monitors the bench and jury trial judicial process in domestic violence courts in judicial centers in Kane and Kendall counties.

Court Watcher Observers are volunteers from the community, trained in domestic violence dynamics and court procedure which monitor, evaluate and advocate improving services for victims of domestic abuse. Through Court Watch, volunteers document observations of all trial activities in misdemeanor and felony domestic violence cases, with an eye toward identifying strengths and weaknesses in the Kane or Kendall county judicial system. Volunteers must be 18 years of age and have an e mail address and daily email access.

Volunteers are required to attend one court session to observe our function in the court room before making that final commitment. Kane County has reported publically an increase in domestic violence/abuse cases for the year 2015 vs. the year 2014. Other crimes decreased during this same time frame.

Training will be held Sept. 23 in Room JC100 at the Kane County Judicial Center, off Route 38 in St. Charles. It will begin at 8 a.m. with a continental breakfast and training will end at 4 p.m.

Registration begins at 8 a.m. There is no charge. Lunch is included in this event.

To register for training, visit www.foxvalleycourtwatch.org for the application form or click on "Contact Us" to indicate you will attend training Sept. 23 and bring the application form to the training class.