About the Children's Act & Domestic Violence
The Violence Against Children Act of 2009 recommended many safeguards and protection for children. The federal government promised support in criminal cases involving children and required reporting of cases. The act mandated training and guidelines for those working child abuse cases. Finally, it addressed safety issues in preventing gangs and increasing school safety.
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Criminal Assistance
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The children's act made it a federal crime to deliberately injure anyone under age 18. States, localities and Indian tribes would still maintain jurisdiction and try cases, but the federal government offers prosecutorial and forensic help. For example, if in an act of domestic violence, a father severely injured or killed his son, the state would prosecute the crime, but federal resources would be available for gathering evidence, technical support or prosecuting the case.
Reporting System
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Under this act, any state, locality or Indian tribe receiving assistance is required to report any proven violence against a child to the National Incident-Based Reporting System. This system is part of the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. Since all levels of government law enforcement report to this program, it provides nationwide data on crime. Information on research, training and management is also available to city, county and state legal officials.
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Social Worker Standards and Medical Assistance
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Under the children's act, the secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) is required to provide models of appropriate case management for child abuse cases, effective training techniques for social workers and caseload standards so that workers are not overwhelmed. Social workers who have a large number of cases have a more difficult time monitoring homes with the potential for domestic violence. The act also provides some medical funding for victims.
Gang Prevention
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This legislation provides guidelines on gang prevention. The act mandates the establishment of the federal Interagency Gang Prevention Task Force. Specifically, it targets areas of the country where gang activity is high. The goal is to reduce gang membership and provide nonviolent activities. Mynisha's Law is the part of this legislation that tries to decrease gang violence. Mynisha was an 11-year-old girl killed in November 2005 by a stray bullet from a gang fight.
School Safety
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Guidelines to improve school safety included increasing surveillance equipment both as a crime deterrent and for evidence. An amendment to the Crime Control Act of 1968 would modify how school security grants are used and allow for the creation of hotlines or tip lines on which students could report crimes or dangerous situations. A federal task force specifically on the quality of school safety was recommended.
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References
- Photo Credit children image by Mat Hayward from Fotolia.com
