AHA Foundation On the Road – Peoria, AZ

On August 5th and 6th, 2013, the AHA Foundation Executive Director and Communications Director headed out west to Phoenix, Arizona, to attend a panel discussing the Noor Almaleki honor killing and to hold a training on honor violence and forced marriage in partnership with the Peoria Police Department.

The afternoon of the 5th, we had the pleasure of reuniting with old friends and fellow colleagues in the fight against honor violence, Detective Chris Boughey, lead detective in the Noor Almaleki honor killing case, his partner Detective Jeff Balson, and Laura Reckart, prosecutor in the Noor Almaleki murder trial, the first trial in the U.S. to use honor as the underlying motive in the case.  Both Detective Boughey and Reckart have been speakers at our annual conference.  The three of them were participating in a panel reviewing the Noor Almaleki case for a group of students at Phoenix School of Law.

Photo courtesy of Peoria Police Department

Tuesday morning, the 6th of August, in partnership with the Peoria Police Department, we held a training for local law enforcement and social service agencies.  Detective Boughey discussed specifics of the Almaleki honor killing including the complexities involved in investigating a crime that was committed in the name of honor.  Following Det. Boughey, the AHA Foundation Communications Director gave practical guidance on working with victims of honor violence and forced marriage as well as best practices for investigating cases.  This training was the first of its kind for professionals in the Phoenix area.

It was a fast but very productive trip.  We’re grateful for the hospitality shown by the Peoria Police Department and were impressed, as always, with the amazing work that Det. Boughey and Det. Balson are doing to protect women and girls nationwide from these abuses.

You can see related press articles from our training on the local CBS station and azfamily.com.