Police, Response to Child Maltreatment

During 2001, there were 168,278 substantiated child victims of physical abuse in the United States, but the true number of child maltreatment cases was likely much higher since child abuse often goes unreported. Law enforcement's role in child abuse cases primarily centers on judging whether the law has been broken, and if it has, then its role is to find the individual and arrest him or her. All 50 states have specific codes regarding child abuse, and all have one basic similarity: It is the duty of each citizen to report definite or suspected child abuse, and a failure to do so could result in incarceration.

Generally, law enforcement becomes involved in one of two ways: by a referral from a professional organization or individual such as a school, a social services agency or a physician and/or by a direct call for intervention from a parent, child, neighbor, family friend, or so on. Police officers need to be specially trained in how to handle child maltreatment since the rules are different when children are victims.

Police should receive training in the following: (a) how to interview children as well as the suspected offenders, (b) the policies and procedures concerning child maltreatment cases, (c) the specific laws that have possibly been broken, and (d) how to conduct a professional investigation without psychologically harming the victim. Once police officers have received a referral, their first job is to prepare a preliminary report, which should contain the dates of the alleged crime, who was involved, and the child's statements concerning the abuse. In addition, a multidisciplinary team needs to be formed quickly, with individuals from myriad fields including the police, physicians, social workers, and psychologists-all should be highly knowledgeable regarding child maltreatment.

The police should immediately determine whether the scene is a crime scene or social problem site. The police should determine whether the victim needs medical attention as well as should surmise which examinations are needed for collection of evidence. Then police must determine if an offense has occurred, and if so, must determine the precise date and time the crime took place. If social services have not been contacted, the police should call and explain the situation. Most important, police need to remember that if a [Page 515]sexual assault has occurred within the preceding 72 hours, a physician should administer a complete medical examination to recover evidence like semen, saliva, and blood. Although the evidence decreases if the assault occurred more than 72 hours before, the police should still have a physician examine the child as soon as possible.

Police officers receive calls for domestic disturbances on a daily basis, usually because of spousal arguments. On the other hand, children often receive the brunt of a parent's anger; hence, police should ask the adults if they have any children and if so, where they are. It is considered prudent that two officers arrive at a domestic disturbance scene. This number allows a better measure of safety for the police, but also if children are present, one of the officers may talk with them to ascertain their feelings on what transpired in their home. Once everyone has calmed down, most parents will allow an officer to talk with their children and might even appreciate the offer to soothe an upset child who might be worried that his or her parents are going to jail.

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