NCJ Number
190586
Date Published
September 2000
Length
80 pages
Annotation
This booklet presents an overview of child deaths in California related to abuse and neglect during the period 1996 to 1998.
Abstract
An overview of child deaths in California provided the initial framework in which to view the magnitude of the problem of child abuse and neglect (CAN) fatalities. In 1996, an estimated 3 million children throughout the country were reported as alleged victims of child maltreatment. California reported 463,000 of these children, a higher rate of reported CAN than the national average. More than 182,000 children were confirmed CAN victims, also a higher substantiation rate than the rest of the Nation. Based upon California Department of Health Services Vital Statistics Death Records, 5,079 children aged 17 and under died in 1998 in California, while 5,342 died in 1997, and 5,684 died in 1996. This continued a recent downward trend in the total number of child deaths within nearly every category of causes since 1990. The underlying causes of child deaths were noted as being due to either natural or injury causes. Injury was further divided into unintentional, intentional, and undetermined intent. Seventy-five percent of all child deaths for the years 1996-1998 were categorized as natural deaths. The top three natural causes were related to perinatal conditions, congenital anomalies, and sudden infant death syndrome. The report acknowledged that the number of CAN deaths recorded in the official Vital Statistics Death Records represented a significant undercount of the actual number of annual CAN fatalities. Previous research had suggested that as few as 15 percent of CAN fatalities may be coded correctly in these records. Notes, figures, tables, appendixes