The heartbreaking situation that exists for a surprising number of our nation’s children is one reason for the this year’s Law Day theme of “Celebrate Your Freedom: Protecting the Best Interests of Our Children.” Consider the following statistics:
* According to the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, reporting in 1999, 2,000 to 3,000 children and youth are murdered each year by parents or caretakers, and the toll is rising.
* Responses from the states to the 1999 National Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting System (NCANDS) (http://wwww.calib.com/nccanch/stats/inde... indicated the following:
- There are an estimated 826,000 victims of maltreatment nationwide. The 1999 rate of victimization, 1.8 per 1,000 children, decreased from the 1998 rate of 12.6. (Victims of maltreatment are defined as children who are found to have experienced a substantiated or indicated maltreatment or are found to be at risk of experiencing maltreatment.)
- Almost three-fifths of all victims (58.4%) suffered neglect while one-fifth (21.3%) suffered physical abuse; 11.3% were sexually abused. More than one-third (35.9%) of all victims were reported to be victims of other or additional types of maltreatment.
- The highest victimization rates were for the 0-3 age group (13.9 maltreatments per 1,000 children of this age in the population); rates declined as age increased.
- Rates of many types of maltreatment were similar for male and female children, but the sexual abuse rate for female children (1.6 female children for every 1,000 female children in the population) was higher than the sexual abuse rate for male children (0.4 male children per 1,000).
* Child fatality estimates, based on data recorded by Child Protective Service agencies and/or other agencies, indicated the following.
- An estimated 1,100 children died of abuse and neglect, a rate of approximately 1.62 deaths per 100,000 children in the population.
- Slightly more than 2 percent (2.1%) of all fatalities occurred while the victim was in foster care.
- Children younger than a year old accounted for 42.6 percent of the fatalities, and 86.1 percent were younger than 6 years of age.
- Maltreatment deaths were more often associated with neglect (38.2%) than with any other type of abuse.
To draw attention to the urgent needs of the children that should be addressed, the American Bar Association (ABA) Center on Children and the Law has scheduled a number of events in connection with the Law Day theme:
* On May 1st, the center’s National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues is holding an invitational meeting on fairness in the provision of services to abused and neglected children and their families. Many of the nation’s top social scientists with expertise in the child welfare system have been invited to discuss how to better study whether such services are funded and distributed in an equitable manner, particularly for children in foster care.
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