In San Angelo on Monday morning, June 2, Texas District Judge Barbara Walther signed an order that allowed more than 400 children from Yearning for Zion Ranch to go home. They had been in the care of the state’s Department of Child and Protective Services since early April.

Her order complied with earlier rulings from the court of appeals that were upheld by the Texas Supreme Court on May 29. Later in the day, she issued an additional emergency order that kept one child from returning to the ranch because the youngster “is an identified victim of sexual abuse.”

Renee Battle-Brooks is chief of the Child Abuse and Sexual Assault Unit at the Prince George's County (Maryland) State's Attorney's Office. She spoke candidly to Spectrum about the tough cases she deals with every day and how frustrating the job can be. But she sees that believing in people empowers them, and she keeps on fighting.

Question: How long have you been in your job and what led up to it? How did you pick this area of work?