EUGENE, Ore. — Growing up in Ohio, Lewis Luchs and his three younger siblings slept on a single mattress on the floor. “We were so cold, and our mother wasn’t there, that we built a fire of newspapers on the floor,” he said. “During the night, I could feel the paws of rats running across the top of the blankets, and once in a while, whiskers on my face.”

Just as bleak were two years he spent in an Ohio orphanage after being abandoned by his biological parents.

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http://www.kval.com/news/94872379.html

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – 22News is taking a closer look at the clergy abuse scandal that’s rocked the Catholic church over the last decade. Many Catholics are furious that former Bishop Thomas Dupre never served jail time for child abuse. Now there’s a push to change the laws to further protect children.

Former Springfield Diocese Bishop Thomas Dupre is currently living in a retirement home for priests in the Washington area, but clergy abuse survivors wish he were in jail.

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http://www.wwlp.com/dpp/news/local/bill-proposed-to-help-rape-victims

Program to help daycares prevent child sex abuse

WINNIPEG — A new national program, piloted in Manitoba, will help child-care centres across Canada detect and deal with sexual predators.

About 650 daycare centres across Manitoba — and 10,000 organizations across Canada — will soon receive information kits detailing policies, strategies and a step-by-step plan for reducing the risk of child sexual abuse. The new program encourages organizations to take a more active role in protecting kids in their care.

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http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Program-to-help-daycares-prevent-child-abuse–94495104.html

10 Things the Catholic Church has learned about Child Abuse…

Diane Knight, MSW, chair of the National Review Board of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, noted in an interview ten points that the Board members have learned in dealing with victim/survivors of sexual abuse of minors by clergy. Knight, a native of Milwaukee, is a social worker with 30 years experience in child protection. She was named to head the Review Board in 2009.

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http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?id=33205&t=Ten+Things+the+Catholic+Church+has+learned+about+Child+Abuse

Most Comprehensive List of Depression Resources on the Web

Today, depression is one of the leading disorders facing adults, teens, and children, and while an increasing number of people seek help, an even larger contingency of the population suffer in silence. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has stated that everyone will at some point in their lifetime be affected by depression, either through experiencing it themselves, or through a close friend. Recovering from depression is a long and treacherous rode, often requiring the treatment of underlying causes of depression as opppossed to merely a chemical imbalance.

Of course, the first step to recoving from depression is recognizing that you have a problem. The following list of articles and statistics are designed to help you learn more about what depression is, the symptoms of depression, how to seek help, and how to begin to recover.

SOURCE:  http://www.guidetohealthcareschools.com/tips-and-tools/depression

Parenting Tips: When abuse happens in the family

There can be unique challenges when a child is sexually abused by another family member, especially a member within the close or immediate family. Since more than half of all victims of sexual abuse are abused by a parent or relative this is a real issue that families may face. This can be difficult for both the victim of the abuse as well the child’s non-offending caregivers. Here are some challenges that both victims and caregivers may struggle with when sexual abuse has occurred within the family.

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http://www.journalstandard.com/news/x289818774/Parenting-Tips-When-abuse-happens-in-the-family

UTAH (ABC 4 News) – Ethan Stacy’s murder is putting a spotlight on child abuse in broken families.  The boy’s biological mother Stephanie Sloop is accused of covering up his murder. Ethan’s biological father lives in Virginia.

He learned about his son’s death shortly after the 4-year-old’s body was found.  ABC 4 is taking a closer look at what a parent can do to protect their children from an ex-spouse or partner.

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http://www.abc4.com/content/news/state/story/Protecting-children-from-abuse-in-broken-families/mb_dsu6H00KkYgLwlSikZQ.cspx

Being a parent sometimes requires a measure of tough love. But even according to some of the leading law enforcement minds in the state, the line between discipline and abuse is sometimes unclear – specifically when it comes to spanking.

There are many methods of correcting a child by spanking – with a hand, a belt, an extension cord, a wooden spoon, etc.

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http://www.whptv.com/news/local/story/Special-Report-Discipline-vs-Child-Abuse/Sh2o2ZaO8ky7vZMr4vhufA.cspx

Signs of physical abuse include visible marks of maltreatment, such as cuts, bruises, welts, or well-defined burns, and reluctance to go home. Also, the agency notes, “If you ask a child about how he or she got hurt and the child talks vaguely or evasively about falling off a fence or spilling a hot dish, think hard before you accept the child’s story at face value.”

People should also be alert to signs of sexual abuse such as inappropriate interest in or knowledge of sexual acts, seductive behavior, a reluctance or refusal to undress in front of others and fear of a particular person or family member.

READ MORE HERE:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/themombeat/2010/05/recognizing_child_abuse_and_kn.html

What You Need to Know

As part of our ongoing investigation into domestic violence, this week, we look at the issue of child abuse.

The term child abuse itself is often a non-descript term as so many issues fall under the term. FindLaw.com reports that child abuse is broadly defined, in many states, as any type of cruelty inflicted upon a child, including mental abuse, physical harm, neglect, and sexual abuse or exploitation. Specific crimes charged in instances of child abuse can include assault and battery.

Over three million reports of child abuse are made every year in the United States; however, those reports can include multiple children. In 2007, (the most recent national numbers available), approximately 5.8 million children were involved in an estimated 3.2 million child abuse reports and allegations.

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http://www2.mountaintimes.com/community/Child_Abuse_is_Your_Business%3B_What_You_Need_to_Know_id_001300

According to the Bullying Information Center, bullying victims often attempt to mask what’s going on and display symptoms, including depression, anxiety, safety concerns, sadness, aggression, academic issues, low self-esteem, deficits in peer relations and substance abuse. Other possible warning signs include numerous lost belongings, frequent injuries or damage to clothes or property, spends time primarily with younger students, avoids recess before, during and/or after school, arrives to school late or just at the starting bell, appears to be alone most of the time at school, obtains an excessive or insufficient amount of sleep and complains of headaches, stomachaches, etc.

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http://westlibertyindex.com/article.php?viewID=3273

Ending child abuse community effort

Reporting suspected abuse early key to helping children

You really can save the life of a child, or protect them from lasting physical and psychological damage, by being able to recognize the signs of abuse and knowing what to do about it. I’ve dedicated my career to protecting children, first as a detective working child abuse cases, and now as the sheriff of Clackamas County.

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http://www.estacadanews.com/opinion/story.php?story_id=127308377254399600

Victims of child abuse rarely lie

Child abuse is a difficult topic to talk. Child sexual abuse is even harder to acknowledge.

Often, adults ask me if children lie about being sexually abused. It is not easy to believe that a person could harm a child in such a way. Children do not lie about sexual abuse. Statistics show that children are truthful 99.5 percent of the time. Because children disclose abuse in a variety of different ways, this often can be misunderstood and interpreted that the child is being untruthful.

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http://www.coloradoan.com/article/20100502/LIFESTYLE/100430030