Clinical Forensic Issues in Child Trauma Stemming from Juvenile Fire Setting and Bomb Making

Abstract

Internationally, burns stemming from Juvenile Fire Setting and Bomb Making (JFSB) represent a major healthcare problem as signaled by traumatic deaths and injuries sustained by youth involved in these unfortunate incidents. While JFSB incidents may occur with greater frequency in non-rural locales, emerging evidence shows that the clinical forensic issues secondary to these burn cases can be surprisingly more complex in rural settings. The treatment challenges that rural areas have are fueled by a limited availability of mental health emergency resources. Further compounding it, the treatment professionals accessible to families often have insufficient experience or qualifications for competently managing the traumatic issues presented by combined JFSB/Burn Survivor (BS-JFSB) cases. This chapter aims to demonstrate how trauma-focused approaches can be integrated into existing clinical forensic practices in rural settings. The treatment requires altering how the concerns presented by these BS-JFSB children are addressed within a risk assessment paradigm.