Illinois Fact Sheet

Quick two-page fact sheet on child abuse and neglect

New Hope for Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect in Illinois: Proven solutions to save lives and prevent crime

Child Abuse News

Too many of Illinois' police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, and other police leaders are arresting or prosecuting adults who they first met as victims of child abuse and neglect. Annually, one million American children are confirmed as abused or neglected. More than 25,000 children are victims of abuse or neglect each year in Illinois. In 2003, the most recent year statistics are available, there were 25,344 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect, more than 4,000 children removed from their homes, and 58 confirmed child deaths due to abuse.

Though most abused or neglected children grow up to be productive adults, research shows that being abused or neglected doubles the risk that a child will grow up to be violent. The best available research indicates that, of the 25,344 Illinois children who were confirmed victims of abuse or neglect in 2003, more than 1,000 will become violent criminals as adults who would otherwise avoid such crimes if not for the abuse and neglect they endured as children.

The tragedy is that we can prevent most child abuse and neglect and reduce future crime, but do not do so. In-home parent coaching programs have been shown to cut child abuse and neglect in half, but due to inadequate funding, they are still unavailable to most of the at-risk mothers who could benefit. The programs provide a range of support to low-income, first-time mothers before their child is born and through the earliest years. Nurses or other trained professionals help parents manage stress, understand newborn health and nutrition needs, identify early warning signs, make their home child-safe, teach practical steps to avoid hurting their kids and more. The programs also save as much as $4 for every $1 dollar invested.

Healthy Families Illinois (HFI) is a program providing voluntary home visiting and parent coaching. Healthy Families Illinois is modeled after a program in Hawaii that has had success in cutting child abuse and neglect.

Reports

All Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Illinois reports on child abuse and neglect prevention, in-home parent coaching and foster care:

"Criminals are not born. By being the victims of child abuse and neglect, they are made. We owe it to abused kids to invest in programs that prevent child abuse and neglect."

-Chief of Police Robert Jones, Gurnee

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• A poor mother who had been abused or neglected as a child is 13 times more likely to abuse or neglect her children than mothers who were not abused.
• Children of mothers not in an in-home parent coaching program had more than twice as many arrests as the children of mothers who received services.