Metcalf being recognized for child protection efforts

FAYETTEVILLE — A deputy Washington County prosecutor is being recognized for his efforts to stop the human trafficking and exploitation of children.

Homeland Security Today, a nonprofit news organization for homeland security news and analysis, has selected Kevin Metcalf, 52, founder of the National Child Protection Task Force, for a 2019 HSToday Homeland Hero Award. The award recognizes people who support the mission of homeland and national security in their jobs, in their free time, or both.

The National Child Protection Task Force is a collaborative effort between law enforcement, private organizations, nonprofit foundations, service providers, and individuals. It began in 2018.

Metcalf’s organization provides training to law enforcement and prosecutors in areas such as how to identify and legally request the proper records, how to map and analyze records, how to conduct location-based investigations with no suspects, how to track cryptocurrency, and how to use data bases. The training encourages multi-jurisdictional teams that should be able to share their expertise and grow more collaborative units.

“Human trafficking and child exploitation cannot be stopped in isolation; it’s going to take a crowd-sourced effort to identify these predators, locate their lairs, and take the fight to them,” Metcalf said. “We all work very well separately with isolated effort but that can only get us so far; it’s time we set aside ego and jurisdiction to come together to attack this problem.”

Metcalf’s holistic view of the National Child Protection Task Force is much bigger than just law enforcement.

“We all share responsibility to make society a better place for everyone, especially our most vulnerable members,” he said.

Metcalf will receive his award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 11.