child abuse news stories on Newser

Mom Arrested After Daughter's Punishment

Kevin Spak — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:33:05 CDT

A Minnesota woman was arrested this week after shaving her daughter's head and forcing her to pick up garbage and do windsprints wearing nothing but a tank top and a diaper. The mother allegedly imposed this punishment—which she dubbed "diaper duty"—because she wasn't happy with the 12-year-old's grades,...

Violence Can Prematurely Age Children

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 13:35:05 CDT

It goes without saying that violence has a negative impact on children—but a new study suggests that it can actually age their DNA by as much as seven to 10 years. Researchers examined children's telomeres—DNA sequences found at the ends of chromosomes that keep the chromosomes from unraveling—...

Old Psych Report Says Sandusky Was 'Likely Pedophile'

Neal Colgrass — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 13:55:05 CDT

Another fumble in Penn State's handling of the Jerry Sandusky case: Turns out a psychologist warned school police that Sandusky's behavior fit a "likely pedophile's pattern," but the warning was filed away and forgotten, MSNBC reports. “There was very little doubt in my mind [Sandusky] … was a male predator,...

8 More Accuse Red Sox Staffer of Sex Abuse

Matt Cantor — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:45:49 CST

Eight more men have claimed abuse by a Boston Red Sox clubhouse boss in what the Boston Globe is calling "the worst sexual abuse scandal in Major League Baseball history." The men—among them two former Baltimore Orioles batboys—join two ex-clubhouse attendants who recently filed a lawsuit against the...

Police: Ohio Father Pimped Out Adopted Son,10

Rob Quinn — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 00:01:00 CST

An adoptive father in Ohio has been charged with raping three boys in his care, and hiring out one of them—a 10-year-old—to other men for sex. Undercover cops were led to the man through a Craigslist advert seeking "taboo" sex, AP reports. The suspect's name is being withheld...

Girl, 9, Dies After Forced 3-Hour Run

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:04:23 CST

On Friday, Joyce Hardin Garrard found out her 9-year-old granddaughter Savannah Hardin had eaten a candy bar on the school bus, and allegedly punished her by making her run around the house, without stopping, for three hours. Savannah, who had a bladder condition that could have been aggravated by the...

Bound Children Removed From Sex Offender Home

Mary Papenfuss — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:00:00 CST

Texas authorities have removed 11 children, some bound and injured, from a group home where at least one known sex offender was living. Eight children were kept in a single bedroom with plywood covering the only window; authorities found two 2-year-old children and a 5-year-old girl tied to filthy mattresses,...

Lawyer: 200 Sex Abuse Priests Hiding in California

Mark Russell — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 02:50:35 CST

A stunning 200 priests suspected of committing sexual abuse are living in California, mostly unknown to communities, according to a lawyer who sued the LA Archdiocese on behalf of 500 plaintiffs, reports MSNBC . Because none of those priests was convicted of sex abuse, laws about identifying pedophiles and their locations...

Woman Locked in Bathroom 10 Years by Dad

Mark Russell — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:58:50 CST

A 20-year-old Palestinian woman has been freed after spending 10 years locked in bathrooms and other small rooms by her father, reports AP . There, she was beaten, fed little, and let out only at night. Her father threatened to rape, impregnate, and kill her if she tried to escape. The...