Crusader for kids leaves the front lines

MONROE -- Some thought the 14-year-old Marysville boy would be reluctant to testify against the woman who had sexually abused him.

Bill France didn't.

France knew the teen was greatly embarrassed. The criminal case generated a lot of publicity. The accused was a teacher in the Mukilteo School District and the mother of a close friend of the victim.

France believed, however, that making the youth realize that the attacker had pushed for and been in control of the sexual activity would overcome the teen's guilt.

The 14-year-old testified. The woman went to prison.

It was a small victory in 2001. It was part of a much larger war for France against those who abuse kids.

A crusader on behalf of children, France has left the front lines and retired. He spent 21 years as a victim advocate for the Snohomish County prosecutor's office, 18 with Luther Child Center and five with King County Juvenile Court.

France, 65, has left a large and unique footprint on the justice system in Snohomish County and elsewhere in the state. He was somewhat of a maverick. He acknowledges he was hard to supervise. You always knew, however, he'd come down on the side of kids.

Ellen Hanegan-Cruse, now a victim liaison for a state board that oversees sentences of sex offenders, recalled how France approached the 14-year-old victim in 2001.

Then a victim advocate for the prosecutor, she saw France convince the teen he had been victimized by the 37-year-old woman.

"Bill helped build some boundaries around him and he realized he was a victim," ­Hanegan-Cruse said. "It helped this young man to go into a courtroom and testify."

France leaves no doubt about his role in the system.

"I clearly identify myself as a child advocate," said France, who was the temporary coordinator of the Dawson Place child advocacy center in Everett for the last eight months.

His influence on people with whom he worked was significant.

"Sometimes you go to the circus and watch the guy juggle three balls and then four," said veteran deputy prosecutor Mark Roe. "Bill seemed to be able to juggle 400. He had such a calming influence on people."

France was a big believer in telling angry and frustrated victims and their families the truth about what would happen in the legal system and why it is that way, Roe said.

"He believed in not sugar-coating and not hiding things," Roe said. "He'd explain it in a compassionate way but still an honest way."

Prosecuting Attorney Janice Ellis said France's retirement leaves a big hole.

"I will miss his presence and wisdom. I could always count upon Bill to achieve seemingly impossible results in our most difficult, most sensitive cases," ­Ellis said. "He has a presence about him that instills confidence in victims. He understands their trauma the way Army chaplains understand the impacts of war."

Seth Dawson, a former prosecuting attorney, hired France for a temporary job. France was so valuable he soon became a permanent worker. He stuck around for 21 years.

"Bill had a major influence on me in the office as far as attention to issues regarding children and child abuse and neglect in particular," Dawson said. "He's blue-ribbon, both personally and professionally."

Over his career, France has seen his share of good and bad.

He measures the good in terms of a system that puts child abusers in jail, saving children from additional abuse. Part of that is making sure the public knows that unconscionable things can happen to kids, a message that is slowly getting out, France said.

The bad is out there, too. It's seen in the faces of people who have suffered at the hands of others, France said.

He decided to retire after two cases last year brought him to an extreme high and a deep low.

The family of slain 7-year-old Roxanne Doll finally learned what had happened to the girl when the man who raped and stabbed her to death in 1995 gave a detailed account of what he had done. To get the admission, prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty.

France, who had discussed the deal with the family, was overjoyed that they got what they wanted.

"I felt so good about that I couldn't even describe it," he said.

Also in 2006, a man who was accused of raping a fellow inmate in prison was acquitted by a jury. France believed the prosecutor had proved the case. Jurors knew such things happen in prison and were unsympathetic.

"The jury just didn't care," France said.

That brought him to a low point.

"Those two cases made me realize I had to get out of here," he said. "I lost a lot of my ability to insulate myself."

France's tenure spanned four prosecutors, all of whom "have done what I consider to be significant good," he said.

His final triumph came in the last few months. He brought the child advocacy center in Everett, Dawson Place, nearly to the point of accreditation by the National Children's Alliance. Accreditation will make it easier for Dawson Place to obtain grants for continued operation.

France and Ellis both expect the center to become accredited later this year.

The center provides a single place for abuse victims to talk to police and prosecutors, and to obtain counseling and undergo physical examinations.

The idea behind Dawson Place, named after his former boss, Seth, is to seek justice while at the same time restoring a victim's physical and mental health, France said.

France first talked about the possibility of such a center in the 1980s. It finally came into being a little more than a year ago under Ellis' direction. The center helps authorities pinpoint abusers and prosecute them, which pleases France.

"Putting bad guys away and protecting kids is as good as it gets," France said. "Every time we lock someone up, we protect some kids."

Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or jhaley@heraldnet.com.