Failure to prevent physical child abuse despite detection of risk factors at birth and social work follow-up

Abstract

It is important to identify state-level policy regarding the use of law enforcement in child abuse and neglect investigations. We hypothesized that distinct features in the incorporation of law enforcement in child abuse and neglect investigations would emerge. The feature of interest that emerged was whether policy indicates that the child protection agency predominates in the handling of the case, a Therapeutic Model, whether there is substantial sharing of responsibility, a Hybrid Model, or whether law enforcement predominates, a Justice Model. We examined what these features imply for children's rights. Examination of state level law and policy shows the Hybrid Model to be the most prevalent. Furthermore, the Hybrid Model offers the best potential for securing a full range of children's rights.