This Friday, Utah Lt. Governor Greg Bell has organized a free summit on "Community Violence: Developing a statewide system of trauma informed care for families and young children."---

It's taking place between 9 a.m. and noon at the Hilton Hotel, 255 S. W. Temple, Salt Lake City.

 It's being held because of, according to Bell's statement on the invitation, "my grave concern about random acts of violence in communities across our country. Research has shown that the root cause of such acts is often based in unresolved early childhood trauma. This summit will bring together private and public sector representatives to discuss how to reduce violence and trauma and ensure that children suffering from trauma get they help they need." 

Among those speaking are Brent Platt, director of DCFS. 

Bell was the recent subject of a CW cover story -- The Audit They Couldn't Refuse -- regarding his involvement in a child-abuse case brought by DCFS and the attorney general's office against the family of a friend of his.

This is a week for interesting conferences. Thursday night at the Marriott in Park City, Noel Gardner, MD, will be talking about "assessing competency in religious zealots," a fascinating topic in Utah.

Friday, as part of the same conference being put on by the Utah State Hospital, Utah State prison officials will be talking about "Identification of the mentally ill offender, inpatient vs. outpatient services and suicide prevention in prison settings."