A mother has tearfully told a court how the horrific abuse her infant son suffered at the hands of his uncle has changed her family’s life forever and she doubts the man is ever capable of rehabilitation. Elise Webber described the traumatic impact of the abuse at Gosford District Court, north of Sydney, on Friday. ‘You have taken from Bobby the life he was supposed to have lived,’ she said in a victim impact statement. ‘I hope my son’s face haunts you for the rest of your days.’ READ MORE HERE

A girl who was repeatedly sexually abused by her parents scratched ‘trapped’ into the wooden framework of the chicken shed she was raped in and buried the garden tools with which her father used to disfigure her. Her desperate attempts to escape the sickening abuse meted out by her mother and father, whom are described as well-regarded professionals, was revealed at a sentence hearing on Thursday. The NSW father, who cannot be identified, started abusing his daughter when she was five years old and it continued until she was 19, Judge Sarah Huggett told Sydney’s District Court. READ MORE HERE

Oluremi Oyindasola charged with 2nd degree murder, 1st degree child abuse

A Maryland woman working as a nanny has been arrested after police said she force fed an eight-month-old baby girl who then died. Oluremi Oyindasola, 66, of Glenarden, Maryland, has been charged with second-degree murder, first-degree child abuse resulting in death and other offenses, Prince George’s County Police said Wednesday. A home surveillance system recorded Oyindasola napping when the crying child, eight-month-old Enita Salubi, approached in a toddler walker, according to police. READ MORE HERE

MRI scans reveal how child molesters may be wired differently

Pedophilia is often thought of as synonymous with child molestation, but this is not always the case. Not everyone diagnosed with pedophilia will commit child sexual offences, and some people who sexually offend against children are not pedophiles. Now a new study has shown there are differences in the brains of those who attack children and pedophiles who have never molested anyone, and the findings could help predict whether or not a pedophile might go on to offend. READ MORE HERE

Scholarships for Survivors of Crime

National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence

Scholarships For Sexually Abused Children – Grants – Financial Aid

Dr. Phil Foundation – Grants for Victims of Abuse

Grant Links | Pandora’s Project

Money & Help For Victims of Crimes

Scholarship Fund – The Genesis Alliance

Sexual Abuse Specialist Training Scholarship Program

College Scholarships for Students Living with PTSD or Mental Illness

Children Impacted By Crime Scholarship Fund

Funding Opportunities | National Child Traumatic Stress Network

Financial Aid and Scholarships : Kids Matter Inc.

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Educational Opportunities for Survivors of Domestic Abuse

The best thing that a battered woman can do for herself is to further her education. This way, she can become independent so she can support herself and her children all on her own; but the first thing she must do is to get out of the abusive relationship that she is in. Once she finds the courage and the help that she needs to get out of the situation she is in, she will want to better her chances of finding stable employment through higher education. For this she will need funding. Fortunately for her, there are several organizations that provide scholarships and grants to survivors of domestic violence. With a little research, women will find that there are many groups out there that want to help them get the education they need in order to turn their lives around. READ MORE HERE

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR DV SURVIVORS:

Domestic Violence: Grants for Survivors and Advocates

National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence

College Scholarships for Domestic Violence Victims

College Grants & Scholarships for Domestic Violence Abuse Victims

Domestic Abuse Victim College Scholarships – FinancialAidFinder

Find College Scholarships and Grants for Domestic Violence Victims

FBI rescues 82 children in sex trafficking sweep

PHILADELPHIA – An FBI operation focused on combating child sex trafficking around the world resulted in the arrests of 15 suspected pimps and associates in the Philadelphia region, authorities announced Tuesday. Eighty-two minors were rescued and 239 alleged traffickers and their associates were arrested as part of this year’s Operation Cross Country, an annual international crime-fighting effort, according to the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. READ MORE HERE

Mom murdered son when he learned of affair she was having with his grandfather

SICILY – A mother who murdered her eight-year-old son when the boy allegedly discovered she was having an affair with his grandfather has been jailed for 30 years in Italy. Veronica Panarello throttled her son Loris Stival with electrical cables and abandoned his body in a remote gully in Santa Croce, Sicily. Panarello had tried to pretend her son had been abducted, telling police she had taken him to school and that he had disappeared by the time she came to collect him in the afternoon. READ MORE HERE

The FBI is asking for help finding a suspected serial child abductor caught on surveillance footage. The suspect is wanted for the May 21 abduction of a six-year-old girl in Cleveland and forensic evidence has tied him to the attempted abduction of a 10-year-old girl in Elyria, Ohio, in February, the FBI said in a press release. A $20,000 reward is being offered for any information that leads to an arrest. READ MORE HERE

Advice for Child Abuse Survivors: How to Overcome Social Anxiety at College

Social anxiety can be a result of many things, and is often seen in adults or young people who suffered from abuse or bullying as a child. For students with social anxiety, getting a college degree can be a lot more difficult, as for them, simply going to class could be something that makes them feel like having a panic attack. However, along with the right treatment and support, there are many things that you can do in order to make college easier on your social anxiety. Use college to your advantage in order to overcome social anxiety and achieve your college degree.

Online Classes

Many colleges offer online classes as an alternative to classes on campus. The best thing about studying online for your degree is that you can do it on your own, from the comfort of your own home. Although it’s good to get as used to being around other people as much as possible in order to help you overcome your anxiety problems, having the option of online classes for when you’re having a particularly bad day can be comforting. Online classes are available for a range of different degree topics, for example this master of science in nursing at Bradley University.

Counseling

Many colleges will have free counselling and therapy services which students are welcome to attend. Although you may also be getting counselling from a therapist or other health professional recommended by your doctor, it’s also a great idea to take advantage of any free additional counselling services offered to you by your college. College counsellors are specifically trained to help students in situations such as yours.

Making Friends

Social anxiety can make you become your own worst enemy when it comes to making friends. However, true friends will always stick by you even when your anxiety is bad, and they won’t judge you or make fun of you for it. College is one of the best times in your life when it comes to making friends, and with so many people there, it’s no surprise that most people meet their best friends for life when they’re studying for a college degree. Don’t worry about ‘fitting in’ – simply be yourself, and you’ll attract the right friends for you.

Relaxation Therapies

When it comes to managing social anxiety at college, there are plenty of things that you can do at home. Therapies such as mindfulness meditation have been proven to be highly effective when it comes to dealing with anxiety and stress problems, and can help you to regain control. Along with that, art and music therapies are also becoming more and more popular when it comes to managing anxiety issues, for example adult coloring books, which can provide you with a great distraction when you need to relax and wind down. These can be very useful if you’re doing a stressful course, such as a masters of science in nursing.

College can be a stressful time in the life of any young person, but if you have social anxiety, it can be even more difficult. Thankfully, your college years are the best time to work on overcoming your social anxiety for good.

Sexual abuse survivors often begin the healing process during college

College-student survivors of incest and other child sexual abuse

Fifteen-year-old Kayla Berg, of Antigo, Wisconsin vanished in 2009

• Authorities are asking for public help to determine the origin of a video posted months after she vanished

WISCONSIN – Authorities in Wisconsin are asking for public help to determine the origin of a disturbing video posted online in 2009 that some believe may show a missing girl tied up in a basement. The video, titled ‘Hi Walter, I got a new gf today!’ posted by the user ‘Hi Walter, it’s me, Patrick!’ shows a man talking to the camera about his new girlfriend, then shows a female, apparently bound, in a small bathroom crying. Fifteen-year-old Kayla Berg, of Antigo, vanished a couple of months before the video was posted in 2009. READ MORE HERE

VIDEO: Content May Be Disturbing To Viewers

MISSING: 15-YO KAYLA BERG

Does This Mysterious Video Show Missing 15-Year-Old Kayla Berg Gagged And Bound?

Police investigate YouTube video in Kayla Berg’s 2009 disappearance

Antigo police have forwarded the video to the FBI, which has long been involved in the case and has offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to Berg or an arrest.

THE ORIGINAL YOUTUBE ACCOUNT – Created October, 2009
(Note: all content and videos have since been deleted, but you can still read his “About”)
https://www.youtube.com/user/hiwalter/about

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The Student Needed Emergency Trauma Surgery to Repair Punctured Lung

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado — A middle school student in Colorado was stabbed in the chest with a pencil during a fight, but the school did not call police or an ambulance. Kyle Nipper was stabbed when he got into a fight with another 6th grader at Carmel Middle School on Friday. The School District released a statement saying his injuries “did not appear to be severe at the time.” READ MORE HERE

Colorado 6th Grader Stabbed In Chest With Pencil, Lung Is Punctured, School Doesn’t Get Him Medical Treatment

Parents: 6th grader stabbed in chest with pencil suffered punctured lung but school didn’t call 911

6th Grader Stabbed In Chest With Pencil

One girl under 15 is married every seven seconds, according to a report by Save the Children released on Tuesday, with girls as young as 10 married off – often to much older men – in countries including Afghanistan, Yemen, India and Somalia. Early marriage not only deprives girls of education and opportunities but increases the risk of death or childbirth injuries if they have babies before their bodies are ready. “Child marriage starts a cycle of disadvantage that denies girls the most basic rights to learn, develop and be children,” said Save the Children International CEO Helle Thorning-Schmidt. READ MORE HERE

HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania — A convicted child rapist will serve 50-100 years in prison. Jonathan Tyrrell, 54, formerly of the 1200 Block of Chestnut Street of Harrisburg, was sentenced today by Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Deborah E.Curcillo. Tyrrell was convicted of Rape of a Child with Serious Bodily Injury; Unlawful Contact with a Minor; and Corruption of Minors after a jury trial in July of 2016. The victim, who was 8 years of age at the time of the rape, described the assault in her testimony at trial. She also relived the aftermath which required her to receive reconstructive surgery at Harrisburg Hospital. READ MORE HERE

WEST VIRGINIA – An infant is clinging to life, and her mom’s boyfriend is behind bars in association with what authorities are calling the “worst case of sexual assault” that they’ve seen in 20 years. The Dreamin Demon reports that 32-year-old Benjamin Taylor is facing a variety of charges, which stem from the horrifying incident that took place on Monday morning. Police in Ripley, West Virginia say that they became aware of Taylor’s alleged actions when his girlfriend called 911 to report that her infant daughter was unresponsive. The nine-month-old victim’s mother told authorities that she woke up from her sleep to find that the little girl was missing — and so was her 32-year-old boyfriend. It didn’t take long for her to locate the infant, however, but under absolutely terrifying circumstances. The nine-month-old baby girl was found in the basement of the apartment building where the family has been residing. She was reportedly covered in blood and unconscious at the time of the discovery. READ MORE HERE

Man charged with sexual assault of 9-month-old child

West Virginia man charged with sexual assault of 9-month-old child