Advocates fear child abuse cases will go unreported during coronavirus school closures
A significant set of eyes that once looked out for children was lost once schools were shut down in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Organizers of groups dedicated to protecting children and helping families through instances of child abuse speculate that the loss of the involvement of watchful teachers and other school employees has led to a downward trend in child abuse reporting.
This is a predictable occurrence yielding a predictable result, according to Marissa Gonzales, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services spokeswoman.
Although reports of child abuse to state agencies and the Fort Worth Police Department have decreased, incidences of abuse are likely on the rise, experts say. The numbers of calls to some nonprofit organizations with missions to help families and children have increased. And there are signs of an increase in severe child abuse while many families are sheltering in place at home. Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth reported seven cases, including two children who died, between March 17-21. On average Cook Children’s see six deaths from child abuse in a year, according to hospital officials.
Also, since many of those reports indicating physical child abuse have occurred in the past few days, it’s possible that some incidents that are still being investigated haven’t reached the stage where they can be included in the child abuse statistics.
“Historically, we see a decrease in reports when children are out of school,” Gonzales said. “Teachers and other school staff make up one of largest groups of professionals who report abuse or neglect, second only to medical personnel.”
For example, while crimes against children reports compiled by Fort Worth police have declined by 19 percent, service calls to the Shaken Baby Alliance have increased in the past nine days ending Tuesday by 400 percent, according to the nonprofit’s figures.
Again, not surprising, said Bonnie Armstrong, Shaken Baby Alliance executive director.
Armstrong is mostly responding to calls from parents in need, not those reporting a child who has been injured. The calls Armstrong is fielding are indications of the stress that drives parents over the edge toward abuse.
Desperate for diapers
“Most of the calls we are getting are for simple things,” Armstrong said. “People who are desperate for diapers, food, baby supplies, wipes, toilet paper. Typically, the families we hear from are living paycheck to paycheck. They see their supplies going down and get worried about what they are going to do for the next meal.”
On Thursday, Fort Worth detectives with the Crimes Against Children Unit were investigating the deaths of three children in unrelated cases. No arrests have been made. Very few details were available for public release because detectives were in the early stages of their inquiries, police said.
No information was provided by police in the case of an infant girl who died at home on Tuesday. A 4-year-old boy who died March 21 was being given CPR when officers arrived, according to police. The boy was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at Cook Children’s Medical Center. A bruised 3-year-old girl arrived at Cook Children’s by private vehicle earlier on March 21 and was also pronounced dead at the hospital, according to law enforcement records. The 3-year-old died of multiple blunt-force injuries, and her death has been ruled a homicide, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Privacy laws prevented hospital officials from commenting except to say there were two deaths in suspected child abuse cases at Cook Children’s on March 21.
Two of the calls that ACH Child and Family Services received Thursday were from parents who were at their wits’ end and who said they needed help before they hurt their children, ACH Chief Executive Officer Wayne Carson said.
Getting those calls made him happy because the parents were seeking help, Carson said.
“’My kids are not in school, and I don’t know what to do with them and if I don’t get some help, I don’t know what’s going to happen,’” one parent said, according to Carson. “Those are the kinds of calls we like. That’s a really smart parent that’s making that call. For the Tarrant County providers that I know, that is seen as a sign of strength, not a sign of weakness. That’s a parent who cares about their kids and they want their kids to be safe and they’re looking for help.”
ACH maintains an intake line that families can use to access resources, and the reason people most often give for not reporting child abuse is because they do not want to see the children taken away from the family, Carson said.
“’We don’t want them to lose their kids, we want them to get some help,’” Carson said some people who are reluctant to report child abuse tell him.
But his reply is that reporting helps to keep children safe, Carson said.
Carson estimates that about 85 percent of the time, those who are reluctant to report child abuse get their wish. Sometimes, the children are temporarily placed with a family member until the parent can do better, or the parent receives training while the child remains in the household until the setting is designated as safe for the child.
Only a small percentage of children end up in the foster care system, Carson said.
All adults have a duty
Another set of eyes looking out for children and their parents would be useful right now, according to Katia Gonzalez, director of community engagement with the Alliance for Children, a child advocacy organization that works to end child abuse.
State law says it is the duty of all adults who are in a child’s life to make sure the child is safe and report reasonable suspicions of child abuse to Child Protective Services, Gonzalez said. With the eyes of school officials sequestered by school closures and in social isolation, the people who are most likely to communicate with families are friends, neighbors and relatives.
“Most children who are being abused will not tell you they are being abused,” Gonzalez said.
Reports can be made anonymously and are kept confidential, she said.
Hotline tips to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services fell from 11,179 a week to 9,344 between late February and mid-March, the Texas Tribune reported.
“Traditionally, educators have been our number one reporters of child abuse, and at this time, with children not being in school, a lot of children are at home with their abusers and they don’t have the safety net of a school or educators that are there to be the eyes and ears that make sure the child is safe,” Gonzalez said.
If you notice signs of injuries that are outside of the types of injuries that children get when they play, or if you see patterns of injuries, that’s a sign of a problem that may need reporting. If you see a parent who seems unable to care for their child, that also is an indication of a problem that may need reporting, Gonzalez said.
Sometimes a friend, neighbor or relative can do something simple, like making a phone call to let that friend vent, or take over a dish to slightly ease a burden. Sometimes, parents must focus on taking care of themselves, Gonzalez said.
“At this time, we recognize that parents may be experiencing some stress,” Gonzalez said. “Some are having to deal with a loss of income, they are isolated in homes with their children, which tends to create some risk factors that tend to lead to abuse. If you’re just at your wit’s end and you’re frustrated with your child, it’s OK to just walk away for a little bit. Just make sure the child is in a safe place and just walk away until you have time to clear your head.”
The following are some resources to contact for help:
Report abuse to Texas DFPS by phone at 1-800-252-5400 or online at txabusehotline.org.
ACH Child and Family Services support for families in crisis: Call 817-335-HOPE (4673).
