Category: Child Sex Abuse

Is Now the Right Time to Make the Call to the State of Illinois?

Is now the right time to make the call to the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS)? Do you have enough evidence that a child was sexually abused by a camp counselor in Arlington Heights, a youth group advisor in Northbrook, or another trusted adult anywhere in the Chicago area?

You Don’t Need to Be 100 Percent Sure

Regardless of whether you are a mandatory reporter, you may want to report alleged child sex abuse to the authorities. The DCFS estimates that about 70 percent of all abuse cases (not just sexual abuse cases) are not reported and that an abused child tells an average of seven adults before a report is made.

It doesn’t have to be this way. The DCFS encourages you to trust your instincts and to report alleged abuse—even if you are not absolutely certain it occurred. The DCFS has trained social workers screen calls and investigate alleged cases of sexual abuse to determine if a child is, in fact, being hurt. However, in order to do this important job, they need to know about the suspected abuse.

Act Without Delay

This is true regardless of the victim; however, if it is your own child who has been hurt, you need to take action right away. Do not let your child continue in the activity or in the care of the person who think maybe, could have, or possibly committed sexual abuse. Instead, remove your child from the situation and find out if your child was hurt. This may require the help of a pediatrician, a counselor, and an experienced attorney.

Please follow us on Facebook and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay up to date on important information facing Illinois child sex abuse victims and their families. We hope to make this difficult time a little bit easier for you.

Illinois law requires many people to report suspected sexual abuse of children to the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the following people are mandatory reporters in the state of Illinois:

• Physicians, residents, interns, hospital administrators and personnel, surgeons, dentists, dental hygienists, osteopaths, chiropractors, podiatric physicians, physician assistants, or substance abuse treatment personnel
• Funeral home directors or employees, coroners, or medical examiners
• Emergency medical technicians, acupuncturists, or crisis line or hotline personnel
• School personnel, including administrators and employees, educational advocates, or truant officers
• Personnel of institutions of higher education
• Members of a school board or the Chicago Board of Education
• Members of the governing body of a private school
• Social workers, social services administrators, or domestic violence program personnel
• Nurses, genetic counselors, respiratory care practitioners, advanced practice nurses, or home health aides
• Directors or staff assistants of nursery schools or child care centers, recreational or athletic programs, or facility personnel
• Early intervention providers, as defined in the Early Intervention Services System Act
• Law enforcement officers or probation officers
• Licensed professional counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, or their assistants
• Field personnel of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, Juvenile Justice, Public Health, Human Services, Corrections, Human Rights, or Children and Family Services
• Supervisors and administrators of general assistance under the Illinois Public Aid Code
• Animal control officers or Department of Agriculture Bureau of Animal Health and Welfare field investigators
• Foster parents, homemakers, or child care workers
• Members of the clergy
• Commercial film and photographic print processors or computer technicians

Additionally, Illinois law encourages anyone who has reasonable cause to believe that abuse has occurred to report the abuse.

Yet, according to the DCFS, many cases of child sexual abuse go unreported, even with these reporting laws.

Don’t Let This Happen to Your Child or a Child You Know

If you have reason to suspect that child sex abuse has occurred, report it and let the professionals investigate what happened. Let the child get the help she needs to recover, and let justice be served.

If you have a child, or know a child, who goes to church in Des Plaines, plays sports in Arlington Heights, is involved in scouting in Berwyn, goes to school in Chicago, or is otherwise out of his parent’s care, please share this post on Facebook. Help raise awareness about the Illinois reporting law so that more people speak up on behalf of all of our children.

Police Officer, Rabbi, Boy Scout Leader and at Least 68 Others Charged in NYC Child Porn Case

The alleged victims range in age from newborn to seventeen.

That’s the first detail that struck us when we heard early news reports about a shocking wave of arrests in New York for child pornography charges. It is because these children were reportedly victimized that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the New York Police Department (NYPD) announced pornography related charges against more than 70 people on May 21, 2014.

The Arrests Shatter Child Porn Stereotypes

Among the 70 men and one woman who were charged were:

• A police officer.
• A rabbi.
• A Boy Scout leader who was also a youth baseball coach.
• A nurse.
• A paramedic.

Law enforcement officials have not yet disclosed the occupations of all 71 people who were charged. However, the information already released indicates that at least some of those who were allegedly involved in this child porn case held respectable jobs.

A representative from New York’s ICE office has reportedly told CBS New York that child porn, “is not something that is just done by unemployed drifters who live in their parent’s basement….If this operation does anything, it puts the lie to the belief that the people who do this are not productive members of society.”

Can This Case Make a Difference to the Children of NYC, Chicago, and the Nation?

If there is any good to come from this disturbing news, it is that:

• The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will be attempting to identify the children in these pornographic pictures and videos so that they can get the help they need.
• A large case like this may have a deterrent effect locally in New York City and around the nation. Boy Scout leaders, baseball coaches, nurses, paramedics, rabbis, police officers and others in Chicago, for example, may take this case as a warning and not participate in making, viewing, sharing, or possessing child porn.

We will continue to monitor this case and other cases of child pornography around the country. Please check back often for updates.

A Person Who Is Sexually Abused as a Child May Suffer Health Problems as an Adult

Child sex abuse can cause serious long-term consequences for a child’s mental health, and a new study now suggests that the long-term health effects may not be limited to the child’s emotional health. Instead, the study suggests that physical consequences of childhood abuse or neglect may last well into adulthood.

What Is the Risk?

According to the study, which is scheduled to appear in the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, individuals who suffer abuse as children, including children who suffer sexual abuse, may have trouble regulating their hormones in adulthood. More specifically, the individuals in the study who suffered the most severe abuse as children had:

• Higher leptin levels. Leptin regulates appetite and is linked to fat levels.
• Higher irisin levels. Irisin regulates energy metabolism.
• Lower adiponectin levels. Adiponectin reduces inflammation.

Together, the effect of these hormone imbalances could lead to obesity or diabetes in adults. While the study found a link between childhood abuse and obesity and related complications in adults, it did not prove that childhood sexual abuse caused these future health problems. Instead, researchers hope this information can lead to better interventions to prevent health complications for adult survivors of childhood abuse.

What to Do If You’ve Been a Victim of Child Sex Abuse

If you are the victim of childhood sexual abuse, we encourage you to talk to your doctor about your risk of future illness. We also encourage you to learn more about your legal rights by watching our free videos and contacting us for a free and confidential consultation.

How to Protect Your Child After Sexual Abuse Has Occurred

When families learn their child has been sexually abused, they experience many different emotions. Parents and children alike are angry, sad, scared, and eager to make things better. All of these emotions are important and all require your attention. However, right now, we want to focus on what you can do to make things better.

Three Things You Can Do to Protect Your Child Now

Whether your child has been hurt by a mentor, a coach, a teacher, or a clergy member in Chicago or the surrounding suburbs, it is important for you to do the following to protect your child after sexual abuse:

• Watch for signs of physical harm. These can occur directly or indirectly from abuse.
• Give your child a voice. This will depend on age and personality. However, it is important that your child does not keep everything bottled up. Talking, writing, and drawing are all outlets that can help your child express his emotions in a safe way. For some children, filing a civil lawsuit against the person who committed the abuse and the organization that allowed the abuse to occur can also help with healing.
• Look toward the future. This is, undeniably, a part of your child’s life and will always be a part of your child’s history, but it is not the only part. Help your child to move forward.

Has your child been the victim of sexual abuse? What did you do to help your child through this difficult time? Please leave a comment in the space below and share your ideas. Your comments may help another family provide the support and help they need for their child.

Your child was not touched inappropriately by anybody—for that you are grateful. However, what did happen to your child was appalling at best and permanently harmful at worst. As a result, you may be wondering whether your child was sexually abused without physical contact.

It is Possible

Sexual abuse can take many different forms. It can occur without an assault of physical touching. For example, your child may have been sexually abused if he was:

• A victim of sexual harassment, including repeated sexual insults, comments, or verbal threats
• A victim of sexual advances
• Made to watch pornography
• Forced to participate in pornography
• Required to perform sexual acts on himself
• Made to observe someone else performing sexual acts
• Otherwise victimized without touching

Whether your child comes home from a Hyde Park party reporting inappropriate sexual behavior, or you begin to detect signs of sexual abuse over time, it is important to take your concerns, and your child’s health, seriously.

Your Child May Need Help

Sexual abuse without physical contact can have the same devastating effects as sexual abuse with physical contact. It is no less important to protect your child’s health and his legal rights in this type of situation.

We know how hard this is for your child and for your whole family. Our highly trained and experienced lawyers want to provide you with a safe place to explore your legal options so that you can make an informed decision about how best to proceed. You can get in touch with us quickly and easily by filling out the contact form at the top of the page.