Child Abuse Laws

Child abuse is a social problem that affects millions of children each year. Not
only does child abuse have multiple societal repercussions, but also individual
repercussions that produce lifelong scars. There are many forms of child abuse;
sexual, physical, verbal, and emotional. Some of the facts presented in this
paper will be painful to absorb. That does not change the fact that these
problems must be addressed. It has been reported that one out of three girls,
and one out of seven boys are sexually abused by the time they reach the age of
18. The most prevalent form of child sexual abuse is now recognized to be,
incest. A study that showed approximately 27% of the women in every state of the
union, and 16% of the men said they had been sexually abused as children. Child
Abuse Laws Child abuse. Two words that should never have to be seen side by
side. Yet, child abuse is very much a reality in this world. Unfortunately, to
wish otherwise would be the same as to wish for a perfect world. We must do the
best that we can as a society with the power of laws on our side to help the
innocent young victims of child abuse. We have a responsibility as human beings
to do all that we can for these children. Some of us fulfill this responsibility
by promoting awareness, some by donating time, money, or services, some by
getting laws passed, and some by enforcing laws that protect children from all
kinds of abuse. The purpose of this study was to research child abuse from all
angles to try to understand what we as a society may be doing wrong & also
what we may be doing right to help the young victims of child abuse. To look at
all types of studies & compare them & try to break them down to better
understand them. The first things that should be understood are; the
characteristics of the offenders, the types of offenses, & some of the
societal issues that are listed as possible causes of child abuse. Studies show
that the characteristics of sexual abuse offenders are; dependent, inadequate
individuals with early family histories characterized by conflict, disruption,
abandonment, abuse, and exploitation. In 1997, over 3 million children were
reported for child abuse and neglect to child protective service agencies in the
U.S.. These figures have gone up from year to year approximately 1.7% per year.

Since 1985, the rate of child abuse fatalities has increased by 34%. Of these
fatalities, 78% were children under the age of 5. 38% were under one year of
age. The top 6 causes of child abuse listed were: 1. Drug addiction 2. Poverty
3. A violent society 4. A lack of community ties 5. A family history of violence
6. Lack of parenting skills. METHOD The information obtained in this research
paper was drawn mostly from various internet web-sites. I read all of the
pertinent issues related to this topic. All sides of the issue were accounted
for. For example; stories, facts, & figures as they are told by adults, the
children, law enforcers, law makers, the accused, the falsely accused etc. This
information then had to be sorted out according to what was fact, and what was
opinion. I was looking mostly for law related issues, and I received a lot of
other valuable pieces of information along the way. I pieced the information
together in a way that I felt would make sense to a reader who was trying to get
a good general understanding about child abuse laws. LITERATURE REVIEW /
CONCLUSIONS AND FINDINGS One valuable source of information pertained to the
American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law (established in 1978).

Its mission was to try to help improve children’s lives through advances in law,
justice, knowledge, practice, and public policy. Its work includes such jobs as;
strengthening laws, policies, and judicial procedures affecting children, and
increasing public awareness of law and justice related to children. The center
has also taken on such projects as, removing barriers to the termination of
parental rights and helping courts to improve child protection case handling
practices. They also pledged to work to establish clear standards for attorneys
in the representation of children, parents, and child protection agencies in
child abuse and neglect cases. Also, to persuade legislature to strengthen the
representation of children, parents, and child protection agencies in child
abuse and neglect cases. According to the ABA Division of