Colorado claims a 40 percent drop in child abuse and neglect, but state data tell a different story. Hotline reports are up, while fewer cases are screened in, more are diverted to Family Assessment Response (FAR), instead of investigating the child. This looks less like safer children and more like a system that changed how it counts—and hides—childhood trauma and its victims.
Child abuse and prosecution in Texas tell a complex story that goes far beyond headline grabbing stings. Operation Soteria Shield rescued more than 100 children and led to over 200 arrests in a major FBI led crackdown on online child exploitation, while new state laws now require Texas schools to report educator misconduct and abuse more rigorously. At the same time, federal investigators have found unconstitutional conditions across Texas juvenile justice facilities, including sexual abuse, excessive force, and prolonged isolation, and judges have called the state’s use of psychotropic medications on foster youth “appalling,” with many children prescribed multiple powerful drugs without adequate oversight. Rising youth violence, racial disparities in child welfare and school discipline, and a documented child to prison pipeline mean that prosecution alone cannot keep children safe. This KARA report brings together data and sources on child abuse cases, foster care failures, juvenile justice, mental health, and recent legal reforms in Texas—and calls for trauma informed services, diversion programs, and stronger accountability to truly protect vulnerable children instead of merely reacting after the harm is done.
To understand how Child Protection Works (and doesn’t work) tracking CPS/foster youth into adulthood by linking child welfare to education, work, housing, and justice data needs to happen across America. These examples show that it can be done:
Flint’s Rx Kids program has spent about $14 million giving pregnant and new parents roughly $6,250 per baby in flexible cash—money families use for rent, food, diapers, and medical care. By contrast, CDC linked research puts the lifetime cost of a single child maltreatment case at roughly $830,000, and a year of foster care can cost $41,000 or more per child. If cash support keeps even a small share of vulnerable families out of CPS, the investment likely pays for itself many times over—while sparing children the trauma of removal and system involvement.
Each week, children are escaping brutal homes, being harmed in foster care, and caught in CPS systems that too often miss clear danger or punish families without proof. From multimillion‑dollar settlements and court battles in Texas, Washington, New York, and Illinois to new laws and policies that could reshape how abuse and neglect are investigated, this roundup highlights the most urgent child protection stories advocates, professionals, and concerned community members need to see right now.
Child abuse doesn’t stop for holidays or election years. In just the first 45 days of 2026, sad stories and new statistics are already piling up. This post tracks those cases and numbers to show how many invisible children still need our protection.
Children in Texas are dying in homes, foster care, hotels, and treatment centers that CPS already knew were dangerous. This post highlights recent child deaths, official DFPS fatality data, and the federal lawsuit that says Texas still cannot keep kids safe
Why Florida Child Abuse Reporting Matters: Florida’s child abuse and neglect is just one part of KARA’s reporting mission and our nation’s child‑death problem. Florida reviews hundreds of abuse‑related child deaths each year. This is an investigative report recently completed in Minnesota that needs to happen in all states.
This from Idaho today. The tip the iceberg reported on by Safe Passage for Children of Minnesota recently. Add to this the Federal Government’s “Bonfire of Deregulation” millions of abused and neglected children will be underserved and many more of them die of trauma and abuse in 2026.
Fixing CPS with greater transparency in Child Protective Services. This conversation is about the many things impacting the safety and wellbeing of abused and neglected children. The lack of transparency being discussed in West Virginia CPS applies to every state: A Meaningful Conversation (35 Minute Podcast). Discussed in this podcast: Kinship care partners, mentors, volunteers, stability,…
WHEN YOU Share KARA’s reporting with FRIENDS, INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK and most of all, your State Representative (find them here) change will come a little bit faster. When enough of us become informed and speak up for abused and neglected children, we will improve their lives and our communities! Child deaths classified as “unknown” or “undetermined” represent one of the most persistent gaps in child‑protection…
This article is derived from Hana Ikramuddin’s excellent Imprint News Article about Fosters not being notified of their rights – Read the Imprint article here.
Hana tells us the story of AIayna Ghost’s years in Foster Care from ages 7 to 18 and how she ran away almost every year looking for her family. From the article: In foster care, she did not learn she had an older sister until a social worker told her at age 13.
There are few states that report out egregious harm or death of children at the hands of their parents. Minnesota Nonprofit Safe Passage for Children of Minnesota has recently compiled this report on 88 of the 200 children dying at the hands of caregivers. It should be a model for all states. How they died, why they died, and what wasn’t done that allowed these children to live such tortured lives and die so tragically. Share the report with your State Representative with a note about keeping at-risk children alive.
37% of children overall and 44% of Black children are reported to child protection services in America
by the time they turn 18. (American Journal of Public Health 1.17)
7.8 million children a year are reported to child protection services.
The following CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) investigations demonstrate the cost savings and economic impact of CASA programs in child protection across the nation. They do not include the value a trained community volunteer brings to each child caught up in the difficult institutional court process of Child Protective Services. What’s it like being a…
how over decades, Northern European voters vote for child and family friendly initiatives compared to American voters. Following posts in this series dive deeper into programs and policies that are making life either better or more difficult for U.S. children and families. Sharing these posts with your State Representative will have some impact on the policies and programs necessary to improve the lives of at-risk children and families where you live.
The combined cuts to child friendly programs will impact some states more than other. This article presents a snapshot of what different states will be experiencing. Send KARA information concerning what’s happening in your state (send to info@invisiblechildren.org with CUTS in the subject line).
California:
Why do so many fosters aging out of care struggling in school, becoming homeless, addicted, have criminal records and unable to hold down a job?
Reckless & ill-Advised Public Policy For Endangered Children
37% of children overall and 44% of Black children are reported to child protection services in America
by the time they turn 18. (American Journal of Public Health 1.17)
7.8 million children a year are reported to child protection services.
WHEN YOU Share KARA’s reporting with FRIENDS, INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK and most of all, your State Representative (find them here) change will come a little bit faster. When enough of us become informed and speak up for abused and neglected children, we will improve their lives and our communities! Please support KARA’s work with a small monthly donation: CLICK…
KARA compiles child abuse and neglect stories and data about
abused and neglected children
Teachers feel undervalued and overwhelmed.
Turnover his high and a number of states are using
unqualified people to fill positions.
Fear and Firing of Mandated Reporters of Child Abuse – A lawsuit and threatened firing of a 40-year veteran nurse and mandated reporter in California is ruining my week. This will bring fear to nurses and other mandated reporters of child abuse everywhere.
Intake notes from County CPS
These are a tiny sample of County intake notes
social workers and guardians ad Litem are assigned each week;
What parents should do after a child’s suicide attempt? Answering caregivers’ frequently …
Read more below to follow the conversation
about the absence of transparency in
Child Protective Services
Sign up HERE for KARA’S free Friday updates Support KARA Programs Here KARA Maintains this site with the hope that this information will compel you to share it with media contacts, lawmakers and other changemakers. change won’t come without you. KIDS AT RISK NONPROFIT EIN: 510570258 INVISIBLECHILDREN – KARA (KIDS AT RISK ACTION Who represents me in…
New Child Fatalities Database (thank you Safe Passage for Children of MN)
We all care about the best interests of children. “We all know that – despite what everyone wants – right now, there are too many children
suffering from abuse and neglect.
Today’s Safe Passage for Children of MN’s action request to keep children safe in Child Protection: A small effort with big dividends. Share this with your State Representative (find them here). On Monday, a group of us gathered at the Capitol to meet with key legislators about Minnesota’s child protection system. We shared the stories…
Follow KARA’s reporting on child abuse & well-being in your state here; stories, statistics and articles about the things most important to at risk children
These stories, articles and statistics tell the stories of childhood trauma and death in America over the past few months –
INVITE KARA’S INVISIBLE CHILDREN Program into your community.
The National Poison Data System, researchers found more than 1.6 million cases of 10- to 24-year-olds attempting to kill themselves by poisoning from 2000 to 2018. More than 70% of the suicide attempts by poisoning were in young women.
U.S. youth emergency psychiatric hospitalizations and suicide attempts are escalating at alarming rates.
Among children between the ages of 5 and 17, annual emergency department encounters for suicidal ideations and attempts have more than doubled from 2008 (0.66%) to 2015 (1.82%)7. That equates to an increase of 35,266 encounters for SI or SA during the period of 2008-11 to 80,590 encounters from 2012-2015.
current news about at risk children bringing transparency and attention to our youngest and most vulnerable citizens.