Child Abuse Suspect Charged with Murder After Baby Dies

An 8 week old Fort Walton Beach infant has died from her injuries in an aggravated child abuse case which is now a homicide. Infant Braelyn Thomason died late Monday night at Sacred Heart in Pensacola due to her injuries. 23-year old William Thomason had been arrested on aggravated child abuse charges. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office says it will upgrade those charges to homicide. READ MORE HERE

Four Stages of Child Molestation, Analysis

The recent discovery of Amanda Berry, Nina DeJesus and Michele Knight, three young women who suffered being abducted and, according to police reports, raped over the course of the last decade by their captors draws attention to the issue of child sexual abuse in a dramatic way. However, sexual abuse of minors is frequently less apparent, because, as specialists in the field acknowledge, there is no typical profile for child molesters, and many child abusers are relatives or friends of the family. “These are ‘nice guys’ and ‘pillars of the community,’ said former supervisory special agent, FBI Kenneth V. Lanning, who is also the author of “Child Molesters: A Behavorial Analysis” – a project awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice.  READ MORE HERE

A pedophile was jailed for 14 years today after posing as pop star Justin Bieber online to lure children from all over the world into sexual abuse. Robert Hunter’s ‘sadistic exploitation’ of young girls was described by the judge as among the worst the British courts have ever seen. His abuse involved children as young as nine, and sparked an international operation led by Interpol. The 35-year-old used Facebook, Skype and MSN to abuse girls across Europe, Asia, Canada and the United States. READ MORE HERE

ICE Releases 2,837 Convicted Alien Sex Offenders to Comply With Supreme Court Ruling

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has released 2,837 convicted criminal alien sex offenders back into American communities in order to comply with a Supreme Court decision authored by Clinton-appointed Justice Stephen Breyer, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The 2,837 sex offenders represented five percent of the 59,347 deportable aliens that have been released from detention under the supervision of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to the GAO report, which was released Thursday. READ MORE HERE

Everyone to blame but no one punished: Teachers, doctors,  police & social workers escape justice after missing 27 chances to save Daniel

A boy of four was allowed to be tortured to death by his parents because teachers, medics, social workers and welfare officers failed to ‘think the unthinkable’, a damning report found yesterday. Daniel Pelka was starved, tortured and then beaten to death in an ‘incomprehensible’ campaign of cruelty by Magdalena Luczak, 27, and Mariusz Krezolek, 34. But despite a review of the shocking case, none of the professionals involved have been disciplined over the murder. READ MORE HERE

Police have arrested a homeless man they say waited inside a gas station bathroom and attacked a young girl at gunpoint. 40-year-old Christopher Gard was arrested Sunday near I-40 and Meridian. According to Oklahoma City Police, Gard was hiding in the bathroom wearing a pair of women’s underwear when the attack happened. The girl and her family were traveling through Oklahoma when they stopped for gas. A family member took the girl inside the gas station to use the bathroom.  READ MORE HERE

Mother Charged With Killing Children, Faith And Jaelen

SANTA ANA, CA — A mother involved in a contentious custody case was charged Monday with killing her 13-year-old autistic son and 9-year-old daughter in California after a judge ordered them returned to their father in Georgia. Authorities weren’t releasing many details, but one of the special circumstances filed by prosecutors against 42-year-old Marilyn Edge alleges the children were poisoned. READ MORE HERE

Sexual Abuse / Trauma

Many people have a limited understanding of the causes, prevention, and impacts of childhood sexual abuse, probably because it’s still a taboo subject in our culture; as are other sexual and abuse related topics. A common symptom of sexual abuse is post-traumatic stress. Be sure to visit this discussion area for anonymous accounts of sexual abuse, domestic violence, incest, drug abuse, etc.

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Perpetrators

1. Can a child molester be rehabilitated?
2. Do abuser’s feel remorse?
3. How can I identify if someone might be an abuser? What are some identifying features?
4. Why do people sexually abuse children?

Statistics

1. What are the perpetrator statistics on fathers, brothers, neighbors, etc.?
2. How does alcohol play a role?
3. What are the statistics on boys vs girls who are abused?
4. For how many years does abuse usually continue?
5. Is there more sexual abuse in the US than in other countries?

Trauma Recovery

1. What is traumatic dissociation or amnesia of childhood sexual abuse? Is it real?
2. If I have memories of sexual abuse, how do I know if they are accurate?
3. Does childhood sexual abuse affect adult relationships?
4. Can sexual abuse make individuals gay/homosexual?
5. Why do so many people who were sexually abused wait so long to report it?
6. Shouldn’t adults who were abused as children try to let it go?
7. If I, or someone I know was sexually abused, what can I do to help recover?
8. What is it like to tell someone you’ve been abused and not be believed?
9. Is it okay to give support to both the abuser and the abused in a family?

Legal Issues

1. Are there changes in laws that protect children?
2. In what ways are children sexually abused? Is it always physical?
3. Does pornography promote sexual abuse?
4. Is there more sexual abuse than there used to be?
5. I am an adult who was abused as a child, should I tell someone? Should I go to counseling?
6. How can I tell if a child is being abused? Should I investigate? What should I be doing? Call the police? Question the child?
7. What is the age of sexual consent? Is it sexual abuse if a brother and sister about the same age, or a few years apart engage in sexual activity? If there is a line, where is it drawn between experimenting and abuse?
8. Are there national or federal laws that pertain to childhood sexual abuse?

Sauk Village, Illinois – Robin Erwin, a 31-year-old south Chicago woman, was jailed Saturday after she allegedly stabbed her teen son to death during an argument over ice cream. According to police, Erwin and her son were arguing about ice cream that morning when Erwin stabbed her son directly in the heart. The victim, 17-year-old Diontae Erwin, was rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead at 12:41 p.m. READ MORE HERE

UPDATE: Missing 10-YO MI Boy Found Dead In Flat River

Dive teams discovered the body of a Michigan boy after an exhaustive two-day search around the Flat River, reported WWMA-TV. Devon Morrison of Belding, Mich., was found dead on Monday, after the FBI joined the operation to find the 10-year-old boy, who was last seen Saturday afternoon with his fishing pole, heading to a nearby river. READ MORE HERE

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10-YO boy goes missing while fishing; prompts large search

Update: FBI joins search; disappearance called ‘suspicious’

BELDING, MI — Authorities in Belding are searching for a young boy who went missing yesterday after telling his parents he was going fishing. A dive team has been called in to search the Flat River for missing Devon Morrison, whom Ionia County sheriff’s dispatchers say went missing Saturday, Sept. 14 in Belding. Morrison left his home near Harrison Street and North York Street on Belding’s northeast side to go fishing alone on Saturday and never returned. His mother reported he was last seen wearing a red hooded sweatshirt and black jeans. READ MORE HERE

New ICE app tracks sexual predators and alerts public

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has launched a smartphone app to track sexual predators. The app is part of a federal effort called “Operation Predator.” It aims to protect children from sexual predators, including child traffickers and those who travel overseas for sex with minors. READ MORE HERE

A jury on Thursday exonerated him of 12 charges of child sexual abuse

Michael Le Vell has said he forgives the teenager who falsely accused him of rape, but revealed that he believes the girl’s mother is ‘hell bent’ on destroying him. The Coronation Street star, 48, who was dramatically cleared of rape and indecent assault this week, told his family he believes his two-year ordeal was the result of a vindictive campaign. But he added: ‘I know I am a good man and an innocent man, now the world knows that too. In time I do think I will be strong enough to forgive.’ READ MORE HERE

PHOENIX — A Phoenix woman has been arrested after two young children she was babysitting were found to have severe bruises when their parents picked them up. Shan Marie McDonald, 36, is facing two felony counts of child abuse and one count of aggravated assault. READ MORE HERE

Father charged with son’s death after 18-month-old was left in car for 5 hours

PONTIAC, Michigan – An Oakland County man is facing a felony charge after he allegedly left his 16-month-old son in a hot car on Thursday. The young boy was killed by the intense heat. Henry Ogene has been charged with Child Abuse – Leaving a Child in a Vehicle Resulting in Death. Police have determined the boy was in the car for 5 hours. The child has been identified as Odeshi Ogene. His family released the following statement: READ MORE HERE