On the surface, the Penn State scandal would seem to be another example of an institution of trust failing in its moral obligation to protect children. In fact, what the tragic web of human actions and inactions behind this outrage really shows us is that child sexual abuse is close to the perfect crime.

WHITMORE, Calif. — A young mother is facing murder charges after the mummified body of her baby girl was found dead at a boarding school for troubled teens in eastern Shasta County.

Jessica Nicole Bradford, 23, was arrested Sunday at Julian Youth Academy near Whitmore, east of Redding.

KRCR News Channel 7 has learned Bradford is a current employee of the Julian Youth Academy and lived in a dorm on the 250-acre property on Tintagel Lane.

The Child Welfare Policy Manual conveys mandatory policies that have their basis in Federal law and/or program regulations. It also provides interpretations of Federal statutes and program regulations initiated by inquiries from State Child Welfare agencies or ACF Regional Offices.

DENVER — A contract teacher at Denver’s Barney Ford Elementary School has been cited for “wrongs to a minor” after allegedly choking a 6-year-old boy. The boy’s mother Danielle, who does not want to use her last name, says her son told her the teacher put one hand around the boy’s throat and squeezed. She says it scared and hurt her little boy.

DENVER, CO– A woman who survived a brutal attack by a man who had already killed another young woman is speaking out about the terrifying ordeal that left her in a coma for 5 weeks. In an interview with ABC’s 20/20, Lydia Tillman, reveals details of the attack and talks about her struggle to overcome the injuries she suffered in the vicious assault. Her nightmare began innocently enough at a 4th of July fireworks show in Fort Collins.

Ashley Billasano kept the pain locked inside her for years, allowing only a handful of people closest to her to have a glimpse. On Monday, the 18-year-old Rosenberg high school student let it all out in a torrent of messages on Twitter – the sexual abuse that she said ruined what should have been some of the best years of her life, her inability to see justice done on her behalf. Then she killed herself.

BALTIMORE — At the center of the Penn State University sex abuse scandal are children who were allegedly victimized.Experts said it’s important for parents to know the warning signs of sexual abuse, but one of the best ways to prevent it from happening in the first place is to have constant dialogue with your kids.According to the Baltimore Child Abuse Center, only 10 percent of child sex abuse cases are ever reported.

To neighbors, she was the brave single mother… — Raising her five kids alone in a rundown section of Sacramento, Theresa Cross Knorr seemed like the ultimate survivor. But her youngest daughter, 16-year-old Terry, told police another story: one almost too terrible to believe. — But accused of imprisoning her children in a house of horrors…

Dressed as Father Christmas, with a girl perched on his lap, this is Father Wilfred Baldwin, accused of raping children at a Roman Catholic Church-run home. It is an image which still haunts the alleged victim who won her High Court battle yesterday. ‘There are things I have hated for years because of it,’ she said. ‘I can’t stand Christmas because he used to abuse me dressed as Father Christmas.’

A young mum came home from work, cooked herself a late-night meal and slept at least an hour, unaware her daughter had died in her room from an assault by the mother’s boyfriend, a court was told in Napier yesterday.

A high court judge rules that the Catholic church is legally responsible for priests charged with child abuse, in a landmark case. The ruling, which has far-reaching consequences, now means that victims of abuse can sue the church itself, rather than being forced to pursue the individual priests. The Catholic church has always argued that it is not “vicariously liable” for the actions of priests. In a three-day hearing in July before Mr Justice Alastair MacDuff, the church argued that priests are not employees.

A Lutz mother who accused a Veterans Elementary School teacher of child abuse now faces a charge of filing a false police report. According to a Pasco County incident report, Michele Bella, 41, told deputies a teacher at the Wesley Chapel school shook her son in the cafeteria on Sept. 27.

Known for their “white outs” that make Beaver Stadium a sea of white, Nittany Lions football fans have declared a “blue out” for Saturday’s big game against Nebraska at noon. From the Penn State Football Facebook page, an event which already has nearly 5,000 attendees:

For many families in the United States who celebrate Thanksgiving, it is time of year filled with wonderful memories of families getting together. Thanksgiving (like any other holiday) often mean that families get together, routines are changed, and there is also the added stress of cleaning and preparing meals. These issues alone can be extremely stress-producing. Unfortunately the reality is that there are parents who are already inclined to use their children as an outlet for emotions and urges, and they are more likely to do so when under the pressure of increased anxiety.