Chesco DA sees spike in child-abuse reports

An analysis of Chester County child-abuse reports shows a more than a sixfold increase in the past fours years, District Attorney Tom Hogan announced on Wednesday, March 16.

Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan says he has seen a dramatic increase in child-abuse reports.
Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan says he has seen a dramatic increase in child-abuse reports.

“I have talked with my colleagues around Pennsylvania. They also are seeing tremendous growth in the number of child-abuse cases,” Hogan said in a press release. “In order to keep protecting children, we are going to have to devote more law-enforcement resources to child-abuse cases. This will require more investigators and prosecutors, but that is a small price to pay for the good of our children.”

Hogan said the yearly total of child-abuse reports in Chester County was 219 in 2012, 291 in 2013, 414 in 2014, and 1,306 in 2015. Based on reports to date for 2016, the District Attorney’s Office estimates 1,700 to 1,800 child-abuse reports for this upcoming year, he said.

“The explosive growth in child-abuse reports has been caused by three main factors. First, after the conviction of Jerry Sandusky in the high-profile Penn State case, overall awareness and sensitivity to child abuse has increased,” Hogan said in the release. “Second, changes to Pennsylvania law have expanded the types of incidents and categories of people that are required to report child abuse. Third, the District Attorney’s Office, with the support of the Chester County Commissioners, has increased the focus on child abuse, leading to more cases.”

Jerry Sandusky, an assistant football coach at Penn State, was convicted in 2012 of abusing multiple child victims and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison. The investigation and conviction prompted sweeping changes to child-abuse laws in Pennsylvania in 2013 and 2014.

The new laws expanded the category of people considered “mandatory reporters,” who are required to report any suspected child abuse. Mandatory reporters now include all school employees, health care providers, child-care providers, clergy members, and other categories. Pennsylvania law also expanded the definition of “child abuse,” covering more activities,” the release said

Deputy District Attorney Deborah K. Ryan, who heads the Child Abuse Unit, says her office uses a multi-disciplinary approach to solving cases.
Deputy District Attorney Deborah Ryan, who heads the Child Abuse Unit, says her office uses a multi-disciplinary approach to solving cases.

The reports come to the District Attorney’s Office from the Department of Public Welfare and the Department of Children, Youth and Families. Every child-abuse report is reviewed by the Chester County District Attorney’s Office, then handled by the Chester County Detectives (the investigative arm of the District Attorney’s Office) or referred out to local law enforcement for investigation, the release said.

Chester County has experienced several recent high-profile child-abuse cases. In 2015, Warren Yerger was convicted of sexually abusing four children over the course of two decades and received a sentence of 339 to 690 years in prison. In 2014, Leroy K. Mitchell, a former corrections officer, received a 20- to 40-year sentence for molesting five victims: three foster children and two relatives.

Deputy District Attorney Deborah Ryan, the head of the Child Abuse Unit, said her office employs a multi-disciplinary approach. “We have outstanding investigators, health care professionals, and social service providers who work together to protect these children and pursue these predators,” she said.

Chief County Detective Kevin Dykes said his office had one sergeant and one detective assigned to child-abuse cases in 2011. He said Hogan reassigned a second detective in 2012, and, with the support of the Chester County Commissioners, added a third in 2014.

“Even with this increased staffing, our detectives and prosecutors are working incredibly hard with local police just to keep up with the caseload,” Dykes said in the release. “They know that they cannot let up even for a second, because a child could be hurt by any delay.”

 

About CFLive Staff

See Contributors Page https://chaddsfordlive.com/writers/

1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...

Comments

comments

Leave a Reply