SAGINAW, MI -Suspect after suspect, court case after court case. Shocking cases of child abuse. Abuse that seems to be an apparent epidemic in Mid-Michigan. In just the past week, three high-profile cases. “In our children’s advocacy center we are definitely seeing children coming for suspected physical or sexual abuse, definitely younger and younger, more and more 2- and 3-year-olds,” says Suzanne Greenberg, President and CEO of Saginaw County’s Child Abuse and Neglect Council or CAN.

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Syracuse, NY –The Syracuse man who walked into an elementary school and molested a first-grade teacher in front of her class, pleaded guilty this morning and was promised a sentence of 12-years to life. Garth Hill, 28, of 2100 Bellevue Ave. pleaded guilty to third-degree burglary and first-degree sexual abuse, both felonies.

UNION COUNTY, NC – The trial begins Thursday morning for a woman accused of leaving her infant baby to die in Union County. Investigators say Erica Denise Kelly dumped her newborn baby girl in Waxhaw near a burn pile. The infant’s umbilical cord was still attached when it was discovered February 2009. Two of the child’s limbs had been severed.

West Bengal, India (KTLA) — A 12-year-old girl in West Bengal committed suicide so that she could donate her organs to her sick brother and father only to be cremated a day before her wishes were discovered in a suicide note, it was reported Thursday.

Former kidnap victim Elizabeth Smart has reportedly been hired by ABC News to serve as a contributor. The 23-year-old will comment on missing persons cases, according to the network. A spokesperson for ABC told CNN that Smart could be on the air within a matter of weeks.

ORLANDO, FL — Casey Anthony will be released from jail next Wednesday, a court spokeswoman announced Thursday. Judge Belvin Perry sentenced Anthony Thursday to four years in jail — one year for each of her four convictions of lying to authorities — but with credit for time served and good behavior, her release date was set for July 13.

LOS ANGELES– A suspected serial killer accused in the death of actor Ashton Kutcher’s former girlfriend is now being charged with the 1993 murder of a Chicago teenager. Michael Gargiulo is already being held for a series of other alleged crimes, including the 2001 stabbing of Kutcher’s ex-girlfriend, 22-year-old Ashley Ellerin. Today, prosecutors in the Chicago case charged Gargiulo with first-degree murder in the death of 18-year-old Tricia Pacaccio.

Casey Anthony trial verdict has made a majority of those who have been following the trial gasp in shock as Casey was let off from first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated manslaughter. However, she was convicted for four misdemeanor counts of providing false information to law enforcement officials.

A group of fourteen defendants accused of sexual crimes against an 11-year old Texas girl are expected in court today, facing a series of sexual assault charges. Fourteen men, along with five juveniles are being charged for crimes that occurred late last year. Four of the accused face charges of continuous sexual abuse of a child, while the majority of the men have been charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child. All defendants are expected to appear in the Liberty, Texas courtroom today for status updates, according to the Associated Press.

SALISBURY — Two juveniles who allege they were sexually abused by a Mardela Springs foster father have filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against him and the private foster care placement agency. The lawsuit, which names Stephen James Merritt and MENTOR Maryland as defendants, asks for more than $200 million in compensatory and punitive damages, according to sources.

A Century man is behind bars facing felony kidnapping and child abuse charges. Bond for Devonick Dejon Thomas, age 20 of Freedom Road, is set at $125,000. According to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office arrest report, witnesses told deputies that Thomas forced the 17-year old female victim into his car and start slapping her and eventually drove away.

OKEECHOBEE COUNTY — Two people were arrested last month after Okeechobee County Sheriff’s investigators found two children — one with a broken leg and fractured ribs — in a vehicle with them, a release states. Carla Carolina Camargo, 27, faces charges including aggravated child abuse/neglect (medical), while Dionicio Aguilar Rodriguez, 32, was arrested on charges including aggravated child abuse/neglect (medical), aggravated child abuse (malicious punishment) and driving while license revoked with knowledge.

Over 3 million reports of child abuse are made every year in the United States. This statistic, dispatched by Childhelp®, a leading national nonprofit dedicated to helping victims of child abuse and neglect, indicates the alarming prevalence of this disturbing form of violence. Author C.L. Thompson details her own story of abuse in the emotive memoir If Only Regrets Were a Good Thing (published by AuthorHouse). Detailing a childhood of molestation, brutality and grief, Thompson writes with candor and introspective acumen.