Sienna

Severely abused in her home, Sienna was placed in foster care at 13. At 18, she aged out of the system. Homeless and penniless, she returned to the street she grew up on. There, she was violently attacked, but the police charged both her and her attacker with domestic violence.

Sienna faced up to nine months of jail time. With the help of a social worker, Sienna entered a diversion program and went to therapy, but still penniless, she couldn’t pay her court fines. The unpaid fines automatically triggered a guilty plea. The court denied Sienna’s plea to dismiss the fine. That’s when she called the Center for the Rights of Abused Children.

We worked to dismiss the case, so Sienna wouldn’t enter adult life with a criminal record simply because she was too poor to pay a fine.

Today, as Sienna celebrates her 19th birthday, she is well on her way to realizing her dream of becoming a dental hygienist. She has also established a permanent and stable home, reflecting the positive direction her life has taken with a clean criminal record.

*Details modified to protect the child’s identity.