This morning’s ebrief from Safe Passage for Children of MN is spot on. Their legislative effort to stop the practice of advance notice of child protection visits to perpetrators is crucial in ending child abuse. Also,allowing perpetrators in the room with a child during the interview is traumatizing to the child and has a profound impact on what the child will say. Giving perpetrators prior notice of investigations allows them time to threaten and coherse a child. As a long time CASA guardian ad Litem, this is all too familiar.
Most children are not aware of how wrong their abuse is – what happens at home is by definition normal. My youngest sexual abuse case was 2 years old. My worst visit to a hospital was to a traumatized 4 year old in the suicide ward. Her 7 year old sister was kicked so hard by her abuser that she went into convulsions requiring emergency medical attention. Her abuser had been sexually assaulting her for four years and he was never made a party to any court cases in child protection. He went on to abuse children for eleven more years. Yes to #ProtectChildrenToo
