A babysitter has been accused of slitting the throat of a four-year-old boy and sending a photo of his mutilated body to his mother to prove that he had killed the boy. Terry Joe ‘TJ’ Volner took a series of photos after allegedly killing the boy, including one showing the dead boy’s chin propped up by a stick. Prosecutors said the 22-year-old man took the gruesome ‘trophy’ photos to prove to his mother Tina Miller, that he had killed the Dusty Guenther, the only son of Gina Guenther who Volner knew very well.

Angela Goss even refused to take the toddler to hospital for treatment and instead went to a methadoneclinic rather than miss her appointment. The toddler was eventually taken to a hospital by her grandmother – while Goss passed out in a car outside. Police in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, said Goss had injured her daughter by dragging her across the floor after she wet herself and the floor while using a bathroom.

The U.S. Marshals Service has added a Detroit man to its 15 Most Wanted fugitive list: Corey D. Gaston, a child rape suspect who got away twice. Gaston was featured in a Free Press story in August. He is charged in the 2007 rape of a 10-year-old Detroit girl who was kidnapped from her bedroom while she slept. Police got a lucky break in the case: The attacker dropped his cell phone at the scene, leading to Gaston’s arrest. At his arraignment, Gaston was released on bond and fled the state. He was picked up in Georgia days later and brought back to Detroit.

As we watch the story of the sexual abuse scandals unfold at Penn State and now Syracuse, the first response for many was shock and concern for the boys who lives were so profoundly affected. In speaking with many parents, the next response was “could this happen to my kid, and would I know if it did?” It is a mistake to assume they would tell us, if something like this happened to our kids. Most children who suffer this kind of abuse never tell their parents. If the child is very young they may stay silent simply because they just don’t understand what has happened to them. It is also common that the victim may assume that if something this awful happened to them, they somehow must have deserved it. Of course no child ever “deserves” this treatment.

Two North Texans were arrested on charges of injury to a child on Friday. An off-duty paramedic was called to the home of Justin and Brittany Alston in rural Hood County by a teenager who was visiting their home. The Hood County Sheriff’s Department said the teenager had discovered an 8-month-old baby was starving and living in bad conditions.

A Hamden woman and her boyfriend were arrested last week on child abuse charges after the woman’s two-year-old son was hospitalized in September with what police said could have been life-threatening injuries. On Sept. 28, police were called to the couple’s home at 42 Warner St., Apt. 89 on the report of a sick child, police spokesman Capt. Ronald Smith said.

Fears that persisting economic woes would increase child abuse in the U.S. have proved unfounded, according to the latest federal data. A comprehensive new report, to be formally unveiled Wednesday, shows overall abuse and neglect figures declining slightly between 2008 and 2010, and child fatalities dropping by 8.5 percent during that span. “The recession hasn’t had the draconian effect that some feared,” said Richard Gelles, dean of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice and an expert on child welfare. “The doom and gloom predictions haven’t come true.”

Herbert and Catherine Schaible, the Rhawnhurst couple who practiced faith-healing as their 2-year-old son died of bacterial pneumonia, will not be going to prison. They will, however, be taking their seven surviving children to a doctor from now on.

A new truancy court in Palm Beach, Florida aims to cut down on the state’s absentee rate for young children by punishing parents who don’t take their kids to school. Florida law says parents of children under 16 who let their kids miss 15 days of school within three months can be sent to jail for up to two months as punishment. The Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Palm Beach prosecutors say the two-month jail sentence will be a last resort, after government and nonprofit workers try to fix whatever problem is keeping parents from getting their kids to school.

IRVINE, Calif. — An Irvine couple who suspected their 15-year-old son of smoking turned to a man believed to be relied on in their church to violently discipline children, authorities said. The parents asked Paul Kim, 39, to discipline their son after finding a lighter in his possession, dropping the boy off at Kim’s Chino Hills home with permission for the beating, San Bernardino County sheriff’s spokesperson Cindy Bachmann said Saturday.

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation announced today the Okfuskee County District Attorney has filed first-degree murder charges against 25-year-old Kevin Sweat of Henryetta for the 2008 shooting deaths of 13-year-old Taylor Placker and 11-year-old Skyla Whitaker. Hear the entire news conference from the OSBI . The two girls were shot multiple times on a rural road near Placker’s home in Weleetka.

Childhood sexual abuse is running rampant, yet it’s the best-kept secret in our nation today. Its victims grow into adulthood with their little child’s heart trapped in the pain and torment of their past. Nicole Braddock Bromley shares her own story and the steps to moving from silence to healing. Hush exposes the harsh realities of childhood abuse, explains the pain it causes, examines the false beliefs it creates, and empowers survivors to begin a personal journey toward healing by breaking the silence.With words of understanding and comfort, Nicole tells the real-life stories of those whose voices would otherwise never be heard. She is straightforward enough to pierce the hearts of those in a survivor’s circle of influence, yet careful to tread lightly on what could be tender words.

SACRAMENTO, CA – A California jury deliberated nearly four days before finding an American Baptist pastor guilty on 11 of 12 child molestation charges Dec. 8. Tommy Gene Daniels, 49, faces sentencing Jan. 13 for crimes involving five girls ages 5-8 alleged to have occurred between 2003 and 2005. Daniels, arrested a year ago, remains listed as pastor of First Baptist Church in Rio Linda, Calif., a congregation affiliated with Growing Healthy Churches, formerly known as American Baptist Churches of the West.

GUTHRIE, Oklahoma — Logan County authorities arrested seven people Monday for allegations of child sexual abuse and neglect after an investigation into incidents that occurred from 2008 to 2010 in the Meridian and Coyle area. Authorities learned about the alleged abuse from a tip into the Oklahoma Child Abuse Hotline.