Child Abuse still rampant in the U.S.

Researchers have recently made public their findings in a nation-wide study that 1 in 50 U.S. infants under one year of age are victims of non-fatal child abuse or neglect. 1 in 50 is a sobering number. The researchers counted more than 91,000 infant victims of abuse and neglect in the period October 1, 2005 to September 30, 2006. The information came from a national database of cases verified by protective services agencies in 45 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. "Things like abandonment and newborn drug addiction would qualify as neglect, not things like parents learning how to be parents," said study co-author Rebecca Leeb, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And just on the heels of this study comes the almost indescribable account of a 26 year old man beating a 2 year old girl to death with a video game remote control in York, Pennsylvania this week. Apparently the child's 19 year old mother overheard her boyfriend beating the child from the next room but did not intervene until after the boyfriend had attempted to revive the unconscious girl in a bathtub. The 2 year old was pronounced dead the following day at Hershey Medical Center, police Lt. Ron Camacho said. Youth advocates take heed and take courage! We've still got a lot to do to make this world a safer place for children.