THE LAW AND THE ABUSED AND NEGLECTED CHILD

Abstract

There are four broad areas of the law which impinge on the general field of child abuse and child neglect. First are those laws which mandate the reporting of suspected cases of child abuse. They are found in all 50 states of the Union at this time. The second are the traditional provisions of the penal law which make the parents or guardians, who are guilty of abusive physical conduct toward children, amenable to the normal criminal penalties. Third are the recently enacted provisions of our Family Court Act in New York which establish the comprehensive procedure for the processing of child abuse cases on a civil basis. Finally, there are the provisions of law that establish various protective services and designate the public and private agencies to deal with the problems. I shall limit myself primarily to two areas of the law, namely reporting laws and what is now known as the child protective proceedings in the Family Court. I'll do this in the form of posing questions, those questions that are most commonly raised about these matters, amid then attempting to answer them. THE REPORTING LAWS New York has one of the most comprehensive reporting laws in its Social Services Law. In New York, any physician, surgeon, medical examiner, coroner, dentist, osteopath, optometrist, chiropractor, podiatrist, resident, intern, registered nurse, hospital personnel engaged in the admission, examination, care or treatment of persons, or Christian Science practitioners, having reasonable cause to suspect that a child under 16 years of age has had serious physical injury inflicted on him other than by accidental means, or whose condition indicates some other form of abuse, is required to report to the City Department of Social Services.