Perpetrators of child abuse: An exploration of their relationship to the victims

This study is a retrospective chart review of 111 cases involving suspected child abuse evaluated by the Louisville Clinical Forensic Medicine Program from January 1998 through June 2000. Of these 111 cases, 77 were determined to be of an inflicted nature with 63 perpetrators identified. The majority of cases originated from the Louisville Metropolitan area and surrounding counties. The injuries were categorized by severity levels with the known perpetrators being classified by confessions and/or convictions.;The goal of this study was to identify the abusers and their relationship to the child to determine if certain groups of perpetrators may be at higher risk of inflicting injuries on children. This study examined the relationship of the perpetrator to the child victim in order to identify individuals who are repeatedly involved in these cases, in the hopes of establishing causal factors and reducing significant injury and death.;The study confirmed prior theories regarding intra-racial infliction of child abuse and the significance of the child's age on the severity of the injuries.;Conclusions of the study emphasize the need for more thoroughly trained law enforcement investigators who utilize appropriate investigative techniques resulting in the early identification of unknown perpetrators. The recommendation is made for future research in the area of known perpetrators to include the examination of various age groups with analysis of injury specifics.