Law Homework Help

250 words each agree or disagree each questions

Q 1.

I think for most people this subject is hard to talk about but for parents it’s even worse. The idea that something could happen to your child scares that life out of you. For this week’s post we focus on someone would investigate child abuse and the signs and warnings that may not seem clear but are sitting right in front of the eye. Child abuse can be considered any intentional harm or mistreatment to a child under 18 years old is considered child abuse(mayoclinic.gov) Child abuse can physical, mental, emotional, sexual, medical or even neglect. Symptoms can vary and be wide in range from being withdrawn, to constant crying or acting out. In the realm of the criminal justice aspect, how can things change? How does one stop a child abuse act or even begin to create new ways and processes to fix the situation? The 1st step in changing this would be to identify the warning signs in the child and ask questions. Keep vigilant and if something seems off that most likely it is. According to Hunyl Kim and Christopher Wilderman, 37% of children receive an inverstigation by Child protection services by there 18.(Kim. Et al) The conclusion is simple that, most people do not realize how bad child abuse and maltreatment is in the world today. The outcomes from child abuse are  linked to child maltreatment include degraded neurologic capacity to deal with stress, worsened general physical health,, elevated levels of risky health behaviors,, mental health problems ,impaired intellectual and cognitive development.

In juvenile cases where there is an offender convicted, states differ in how they see things.(Sandler et al) ) Policies and acts that are passed such as the The Wetterling Act or The Adam Walsh act are possible long term solutions to a problem but again are different in every state. Wetterling Act was focused on adult offenders and did not require the application of registration and notification policies to youth adjudicated as minors. The Adam Walsh child and protection safety act guided law makers to hat all convicted sex offenders be placed into one of three different risk tiers that would be based upon the level of the crime committed(Sandler,et al.) ) Some states pose an attitude of a rehabilitative mindset awhile other states look to throw the hammer at the offender.According to Sandler, Letorneau, and Vandiver there is a study extends research efforts by evaluating the association between juvenile sex offender registration and notification  policies and juvenile reports for sexual crimes using data from four states: Idaho, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia. For some of the states the juvenile processing of a sex crime has been pleaded down to a lesser charge. Does this help the convicted out in the long run or just hurt the essence of society by doing this? In Idaho, South Carolina, and Utah  youth are required to register as sex offenders if charged with a sex crime. In Virginia youth are not required to register right away(Sandler et.al) but the court may deem it necessary to register. 

Sandler, J. C., Letourneau, E. J., Vandiver, D. M., Shields, R. T., & Chaffin, M. (2017). Juvenile sexual crime reporting rates are not influenced by juvenile sex offender registration policies. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 23(2), 131–140. doi: 10.1037/law0000118 Kim, H., Wildeman, C., Jonson-Reid, M., & Drake, B. (2017). Lifetime Prevalence of Investigating Child Maltreatment Among US Children. American Journal of Public Health, 107(2), 274–280. doi: 10.2105/ajph.2016.303545 Child abuse. (2018, October 5). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/child-abuse/symptoms-causes/syc-20370864

Q 2. 

gain I apologize for not participating as I should be but my internet has been horrible since March. While I fully understand we should have a backup plan that can be nearly impossible when you live in remote areas where internet is limited especially during the hours I can study. At least I am here trying. 

This weeks discussion concerns investigating child abuse. Before I proceed into what the lesson states I would like to share an experience with you concerning the subject. 

When I filed for a divorce a few years ago and made the claim that my children were being abused and therefore should not be permitted to live half time with their father the courts fought me. I hired a guardian ad Litem and even though the children finally spoke a little about the abuse their statements were ignored and the findings of the court was to share the children 50/50 with the father and his new wife having the extra day and the school jurisdiction. I was so angry the system had failed my children. One day not long after, I picked up the boys and when we got home the youngest called 911 and reported his father and his wife were being mean to him. The officer that came to the home spoke to my son alone and was very sympathetic. The officer ordered I take the child immediately to his physician. Once there she brought out a black light type of device and she could see fingerprints and marks under his skin so of course, she immediately contacted DCF and immediately the father signed away his rights to me to keep from being investigated further. Technology has advanced and that makes it easier to investigate child abuse but I feel the system needs to be more attentive to claims of abuse from children despite their age. When there is a concern of abuse it would benefit the child if initial visitations were supervised and the interaction was closely observed. Investigators need to be more observant of the emotional signs displayed by children being abused. 

Sadly, sexual abuse was overlooked during the first half of the 20th century when children were not credible in the eyes of those in authority. It was not until around 1975 that more sympathy was extended to victims. (Meyers 1999) Even then a child was considered to be an unsworn witness and without evidence, there was no conviction. I can understand this because without evidence an innocent person could face charges. It was also damaging to the case when the child was too afraid to testify.

Sometime in the late 1980’s certain legal aspects of child abuse changed. Those changes are still effective today. In 2013 twenty-three states removed the statute of limitations of child abuse and eleven other states are being pushed to do the same. This allows the victim time they may need to feel confident enough to reveal what they experienced.

To investigate child abuse the investigator must gather evidence which includes photos. The investigator will also observe signs of psychological or emotional abuse. The child’s ability to know right from wrong is also taken into consideration. A child unable to remember various events may not see his day in court. The investigator will be able to determine the time of abuse by the color of bruises on the child but they are only visible two weeks. There may be pattern bruises which identify the object the child was hit with, holding patterns or bite marks. The investigator will also look for evidence of the shaken baby syndrome

Additionally, the investigator may come across Munchausen which is usually a form of abuse carried out by the mother. The mother will cause the child to experience illnesses in an attempt to get attention. Sometimes the mother will even poison her children.

References

Connolly, D. A., Coburn, P. I., & Chong, K. (2017). Twenty-six years prosecuting historic child sexual abuse cases: Has anything changed? Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, Vol. 23, Iss. 2, 166-177. DOI:10.1037.

Gosselin, D. K. (2010). Heavy hands: An introduction to the crimes of family violence. 5th ed., Pearson College Division. (Investigating Abuse & Adolescent Perpetrators)