Assessment and Reporting of child sexual abuse in elementery school
Jen Dritt Webinar - 1/10/13
1. Recognizing and Reporting
Child Abuse and Neglect
PROTECTING CHILDREN, YOUR
AGENCY, AND YOURSELF
JENNIFER L. DRITT, LCSW (LA)
FLORIDA COUNCIL AGAINST SEXUAL VIOLENCE
JANUARY 10, 2013
2. Abuse Defined
39.01 (2), F.S. “Abuse” means any willful act or
threatened act that results in any physical, mental, or
sexual abuse, injury, or harm that causes or is likely
to cause the child’s physical, mental, or emotional
health to be significantly impaired. Abuse of a child
includes acts or omissions. Corporal discipline of a
child by a parent or legal custodian for disciplinary
purposes does not in itself constitute abuse when it
does not result in harm to the child.
3. Child Abuse and Neglect Defined
Physical or mental injury
Excessive corporal punishment
Sexual offenses
Failure to supply food, clothing, shelter, education,
medical care
Abandonment
Encouraging delinquency
Substantial risk of abuse or neglect
4. Physical Injury (Physical Abuse)
Death
Permanent or temporary disfigurement
Impairment of any bodily organ or function
5. Mental Injury
Injury to intellectual, emotional, psychological
capacity or functioning
Existence of the impairment must be supported by
expert opinion (in court)
6. Neglect
Failure to provide food, clothing, shelter, education,
or medical care, though financially capable of doing
so
8. Sexual Abuse
If defined as a sexual offense according to the
criminal laws of Florida;
It’s not necessary to know Florida Statutes regarding
sex offenses in order to determine whether or not
something must be reported.
9. Juveniles
Juvenile sexual offender behavior ranges from
noncontact sexual behavior such as making obscene
phone calls, exhibitionism, voyeurism, and the
showing or taking of lewd photographs to varying
degrees of direct sexual contact, such as frottage,
fondling, digital penetration, rape, fellatio, sodomy,
and various other sexually aggressive acts.
10. Alleged Juvenile Sex Offender
39.01 (7), Florida Statutes
(a) A child 12 years of age or younger who is alleged to
have committed a violation of chapter 794, chapter 796,
chapter 800, s. 827.071, or s. 847.0133; or
(b) A child who is alleged to have committed any violation
of law or delinquent act involving juvenile sexual abuse.
“Juvenile sexual abuse” means any sexual behavior which
occurs without consent, without equality, or as a result of
coercion. For purposes of this paragraph, the following
definitions apply:
11. Definitions
1. “Coercion” means the exploitation of authority or
the use of bribes, threats of force, or intimidation to
gain cooperation or compliance.
2. “Equality” means two participants operating
with the same level of power in a relationship,
neither being controlled nor coerced by the other.
3. “Consent” means an agreement, including all of
the following:
12. Consent
a. Understanding what is proposed based on age, maturity,
developmental level, functioning, and experience.
b. Knowledge of societal standards for what is being
proposed.
c. Awareness of potential consequences and alternatives.
d. Assumption that agreement or disagreement will be
accepted equally.
e. Voluntary decision.
f. Mental competence.
13. Child on Child Sexual Abuse (COCSA) and Children
with Sexual Behavior Problems (SBP)
The number of COCSA alleged victims and verified victims
remained relatively stable between fiscal year (FY) 2003-04
and FY 2006-07. In FY 2003-04, the total number of
alleged victims was 4,981 and in FY 2006-07 this figure was
4,566. There were a total of 799 verified victims in FY
2003-04 and 710 in FY 2006-07.
When assessing the trends in reporting COCSA, calls to the
Florida Abuse Hotline have moderately decreased since FY
2005-06 (3,488 COCSA-related calls in FY 2005-06; 3,261
calls in FY 2008-09).
14. COCSA/SBP
The number of alleged children with SBP
consistently remains below the number of alleged
COCSA victims (3,961 and 4,383 in FY 2008-09,
respectively).
COCSA alleged victims represented about 8 to 11
percent of all Abuse Report victims (these include
those abused, neglected, threatened or harmed) over
the last five years. Further, the percent of all COCSA
referrals in which a victim was verified remained
relatively constant between FY 2003-04 and FY
2006-07 (roughly 15-16% of all COCSA referrals).
15. Signs of Sexual Abuse
Consider the possibility of sexual abuse when the
child:
Has difficulty walking or sitting
Suddenly refuses to change for gym or to participate
in physical activities
Reports nightmares or bedwetting
Experiences a sudden change in appetite
16. Signs of Sexual Abuse
Consider the possibility of sexual abuse when the
child or youth:
Demonstrates bizarre, sophisticated, or unusual
sexual knowledge or behavior
Becomes pregnant or contracts a venereal disease,
particularly if under age 14
Runs away
Reports sexual abuse by a parent or another adult
17. Identifying Predators
The establishment and eventual betrayal of trust is
central to the child molester’s interactions with
children.
Grooming is a process.
Predators often target children and youth with
obvious vulnerabilities: a child who feels unloved
and unpopular, has family problems, spends time
alone and unsupervised, lacks confidence and self-
esteem, is isolated from peers
18. Identifying Predators
May use a combination of forced teaming and
charm;
Offer to play games, give rides, buy treats, gifts, and
other tokens of friendship;
Offer drugs and alcohol to older children or
teenagers;
Always offer a sympathetic, understanding ear (Your
parents and friends don’t understand you? Well, I
do.)
19. Identifying Predators
Successful predators find and fill a void in the child’s
life;
Introduce secrecy into the relationship;
Introduce threats after secrecy;
Forge an emotional bond that leads to physical
contact;
20. Signs of Sexual Abuse
Consider the possibility of sexual abuse when the
parent or other adult:
Is unduly protective of the child or severely limits the
child's contact with other children, especially of the
opposite sex
Exhibits jealousy when youth would rather spend
time with others
Is secretive and isolated
Is jealous or controlling with family members
21. Four Preconditions to Child Sexual Abuse
There must be an offender with the motivation to
sexually abuse;
The molester must overcome internal inhibitions
against abusing;
The molester must overcome external barriers to
abusing; and
The molester must overcome resistance by the child.
(Finkelhor, 1984)
22. Reporting prior to 10/1/2012
All citizens were required to report suspected abuse or
neglect committed by someone responsible for the child’s
welfare;
“Mandatory reporters” – meant to refer to certain
occupations that must provide his/her name when making
a report – led many to believe that only people with those
occupations or in those professions were required to report
child abuse;
Reports of child abuse committed by someone not
responsible for a child’s welfare were not required; and
Consequences for failure to report were minimal.
23. Reporting after 10/1/2012
Any person who knows or has reasonable cause to suspect
that a child is abused, abandoned, or neglected must make a
report immediately to the Department of Children and
Families via the central abuse hotline, which consists of the
statewide toll-free telephone number, a web-based reporting
option, web-based chat, and a fax reporting option.
It is very clear that ALL persons are mandatory reporters,
though only certain professions and/or occupations must
provide their names when making a report.
Consequences for failing to report are substantial: 3 rd degree
felony (term of imprisonment not exceeding 5 years, $5,000
fine). Consequences are even greater if the person charged is a
habitual felony offender.
24. What Hasn’t Changed?
All reports are confidential. Access to the reports is
limited by specific criteria in Chapter 39 and 415 of the
Florida Statutes.
39.203 Immunity from liability in cases of child abuse,
abandonment, or neglect.— (1)(a) Any person, official,
or institution participating in good faith in any act
authorized or required by this chapter, or reporting in
good faith any instance of child abuse, abandonment, or
neglect to the department or any law enforcement
agency, shall be immune from any civil or criminal
liability which might otherwise result by reason of such
action.
25. Must Provide His/Her Name When Making a Report
Physician Other school official or
Osteopathic Physician personnel
Medical Examiner Social Worker
Chiropractic Physician Childcare Worker
Nurse Foster Care Worker
Hospital personnel engaged Residential worker
in the admission, Institutional worker
examination, care, or Practitioner who relies solely
treatment of persons on spiritual means for
Health or Mental Health healing
Professionals Law Enforcement Officer
School Teacher Judge
26. When to Report
Law requires report to be made when there is
“reasonable cause to suspect”
Does not require the reporter to have conclusive
proof
Does not require proof beyond a reasonable doubt
Information must be such that a reasonable person
would rely upon it, including hearsay
27. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting
Knowledge or reasonable cause to suspect
You must report (can’t simply cause a report to be
made)
28. Confidentiality
DCF must keep the identity of the reporter
confidential
May share the name of the reporter with law
enforcement to further the investigation.
29. Immunity from Liability
Reporters are immune from civil and criminal
liability for reporting child abuse and neglect in good
faith
Law presumes that child abuse and neglect reports
are made in good faith
30. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: responding to the child
DOs
DO immediately tell the child you believe him/her.
DO tell the child that s/he was right to tell you and
was very brave to do so.
DO use the child's language or vocabulary.
DO acknowledge that it is difficult to talk about such
things.
DO tell the child that this has happened to other
children and that he/she is not the only one.
31. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: responding to the child
DO tell them that they are not responsible for what
happened and did not deserve it.
DO tell them that sometimes adults do things that
are not OK (avoid saying that the offender is "sick").
DO everything you can to support, comfort and
reassure the child.
DO ensure that the child feels safe following
disclosure. You might need to stay physically close to
give an extra sense of physical security - the offender
may have used threats.
32. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: responding to the child
DON’Ts
DON'T make promises you can't keep - especially if
the child asks you to keep it a secret.
DON'T panic or show that you are shocked. It is
important to remain calm and in control of your
feelings.
DON'T give the impression that you might blame
the child. e.g. Don't ask: "why did you let him?", "what
were you doing there anyway?" or "why didn't you tell
me before?".
33. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: responding to the child
DON’Ts
DON'T ask intrusive questions. Listen but don't pry.
Respect the child's need for privacy.
DON'T be over protective.
34. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: making the report
As soon as possible
Do not assume the role of CPS investigator
Do not wait for proof
Providing name is preferred
Follow organizational procedures, but don’t forget
that
You are individually required to report
35. Where and How to Report:
http://www.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/abuse-hotline/howtoreport
Florida Abuse Hotline:
Telephone: 1-800-962-2873
TDD (Telephone Device for the Deaf): 1-800-453-
5145
FAX: To make a report via fax, send a detailed written
report with your name and contact telephone or FAX contact
information using the Florida Abuse Hotline’s fax reporting
form to:
1-800-914-0004.
Web Reporting should not be used for situations
requiring immediate attention
36. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: information sharing
Child’s name
Age, race and gender of all adults and children involved
Address (directions, especially in rural areas)
Present location (again, directions)
Names and ages of siblings
Parents names and addresses
Reasons for concerns
Relationship of alleged perpetrator to the child
Any known history of violence in the home or other risks to
investigator(s)
37. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: documentation
Document the basis for your concern, including the
physical and behavioral signs
Document the child’s statements to you, use the
child’s words
Record the child’s demeanor
Record the date and agency individual to whom you
spoke
38. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: dealing with parents
It is best not to contact parents about your
suspicions before making a report
Never accuse a parent of wrongdoing
If necessary, explain that you are legally responsible
to report
39. Nuts and Bolts of Reporting: follow-up
Telephone reporters will always be told prior to
concluding the conversation, whether the
information provided has been accepted as a report.
Other than information about whether or not the
report has been accepted, reporters are not entitled
to other information regarding DCF’s response to the
report.
Even if report isn’t accepted for investigation, DCF
will keep a record of the report.
40. Final Thoughts about Mandatory Reporting
Must report if you have “reasonable cause to
suspect”
Do not worry about retaliation
Presumption that reports are made in good faith
DCF and law enforcement must keep your identity
confidential
41. Protecting Your Organization
Policies and Procedures:
Training: engaging with youth: what are the appropriate
boundaries;
Training: How and why working with adolescents is
challenging for everyone, but especially for younger adults;
Adopting policies intended to prevent abuse – creating
external barriers and helping children resist;
Reporting abuse;
Documenting information received and action taken;
Regular, consistent training and review of policies and
procedures, not just when new staff are hired;
42. Policy Examples
Two adults involved in/leading all activities with
youth;
No one-on-one contact, unless clinically necessary
(therapy, etc.), and then only when there are other
adults in close proximity;
Adults respect the physical privacy of youth and are
appropriately private, themselves.
No secret or separate groups apart from those
sanctioned by the organization;
Appropriate attire for all activities;
43. Helping Children Resist
Boy Scouts of American calls this the “Three R’s of
Youth Protection:
Child needs to RECOGNIZE situations that place him/her at
risk of being molested, how child molesters operate, and that
anyone can be a molester;
The child needs to know that if s/he RESISTS, most child
molesters will leave her/him alone; and
If the child REPORTS attempted or actual molestations, s/he
will help protect her/himself as well as other children from
further abuse, and will not be blamed for what occurred.
(BSA, Youth Protection Guidelines: Training for Volunteer Leaders and Parents)
http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/pub/PreventingChildAbuse.html - Preventing Child Abuse in Youth-
serving Organizations: Getting Started on Policies and Procedures
44. Florida Council Against Sexual Violence
1820 E. Park Avenue
Suite 100
Tallahassee, Florida 32301
(850) 297-2000
(888) 956-7273
www.fcasv.org
45. Lauren’s Kids, Inc.
18851 N.E. 29th Avenue
Suite 1010
Aventura, Florida 33180
1-877-554-3701
www.laurenskids.org