The National Sex Offender Registry: All 50 states and the District of Columbia and Guam participate. Cyber Tipline: The Cyber Tipline handles leads from individuals reporting the sexual exploitation of children. The Child Protection eNewsletter Volume 8, Issue 53 September 1, 2010 Child abuse cases continue slow rate of decline... Child abuse rates in the United States declined between 2007 and 2008 despite the onset of the economic recession, a new study has found. HealthDay story here Cases of child sexual abuse decreased 6 percent, physical abuse declined 3 percent and child neglect fell 2 percent, according to researchers at the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire. Researchers led by center director and professor of sociology David Finkelhor said the decreases are especially noteworthy because 2008 was the first full year of the current recession and tough economic times are believed to be associated with increased family stress and child abuse. "This is good news, but we need to be very cautious. It could be that discouragement and despair in families about their deteriorating economic situation take longer than a year to show their effects," Finkelhor said in a university news release. However, the study did note that the recent decrease is part of a downward trend in physical and sexual abuse that's continued for more than 15 years. "The long-term improvement for sexual and physical abuse may be related to a generation-long effort to educate and respond more effectively and aggressively to the problem," Finkelhor said. "If successful prevention efforts are behind the declines, then the improvements may persist even in the face of social stressors like the recession." The report is available online at unh.edu. German bishops adopt new guidelines... Germany's Roman Catholic church introduced new guidelines Tuesday on handling reports of sexual abuse that require prosecutors to be informed of any suspected case unless the victim objects to that. AP story here The expanded guidelines come in response to hundreds of allegations of abuse at the hands of clergy that emerged earlier this year and rocked the church in Germany, Pope Benedict XVI's homeland. Most cases date back years, if not decades, and the statute of limitations has passed on the majority of them. Often victims were afraid to report abuse, and the Catholic Church has been accused of covering up abuse cases it knew about, and not telling prosecutors about them. Stephan Ackermann, the bishop of Trier who was tapped by church authorities to lead the revision of guidelines drawn up in 2002, said special attention had been given to the issue of involving law enforcement officials. "Because in the past it has led to misunderstandings, I stress again that the investigations by church authorities and by prosecutors are parallel investigations," Ackermann told reporters in Trier on Tuesday. The earlier guidelines only "advised" that priests contact prosecutors on their own in "proven cases" of abuse. Church authorities were not required to contact law enforcement officials. Yet critics charged Tuesday that the revamped rules do not go far enough in addressing the issue of abuse, by failing to clarify issues of financial compensation for victims and by allowing offending clergy to continue to serve within the church. Meanwhile, the former head of Belgium's Roman Catholic Church has acknowledged that he should not have held a meeting with a victim of serial sexual abuse and suggested a cover up until the offending bishop retired. Fox News story here The April 8 meeting that retired Cardinal Godfried Danneels held was secretly taped by the victim and the conversation was published in two newspapers over the weekend. Since the tapes' publication, Danneels, 77, has faced fierce criticism for his suggestion that the sexual abuse be kept secret and that the victim should consider forgiving the bishop, his uncle, as part of seeking closure. Finally, The Vatican will determine whether to defrock a priest accused of fathering a child with a high school graduate, a relationship that became public after the girl's parents captured the couple on a video camera secretly set up in the parents' basement. AP story here Meanwhile, the Berks County district attorney said Tuesday his office won't press charges against the Rev. Luis A. Bonilla Margarito because a police investigation determined that the relationship started when the girl was 18. For more on clergy abuse, visit childprotectionguide.org. In other news... Parents pulled their children out of class and protested outside a Washington state school Monday, the day a teacher convicted of inappropriately touching female students was scheduled to return to work. AP story here The state opened a file on Moulton in January 2009 after the superintendent of the 285-student Morton School District contacted the professional practices department in the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, said Catherine Slagle, director of professional practices. Moulton served 16 days in the Lewis County Jail after pleading guilty through an Alford plea on charges of inappropriately touching four girls in 2008. In an Alford plea, a defendant pleads guilty but does not admit guilt. The school district had previously suspended Moulton without pay for 12 days for the 2008 incidents. When the district tried to fire him for the same offenses, Moulton appealed that decision and the hearing officer who heard his appeal ruled the school district had already punished him. Now that the district and the courts are done with their investigation of Moulton, the state review of his teaching certificate has begun but he's legally allowed to teach until that has finished, Slagle said. In what has been referred to as "sextortion", a 20-year-old California man faces being sentenced up to four years and 8 months on prison after he was found guilty of sex with a minor and threatening her, according to the Yolo County District Attorney's Office. News10 story here A letter of apology Jeannine Campbell read to the family of the boy she was seen abusing on a nanny cam did not sway a judge from sentencing the 53-year-old woman to eight years in prison and seven additional years of probation. New4-Jacksonville story here When a death list with the names of 69 people first surfaced on Facebook, authorities dismissed it as a joke. ABC News story here But now that three Colombian teenagers included on the list have been killed in 10 days, local reports say federal officials are taking a closer look. From 1997 to 2007, emergency department visits for concussion in kids aged 8 to 13 playing organized sports doubled, and the number of visits increased by more than 200 percent in older teens, according to a new study. HealthDay story here In related news, the American Academy of Pediatrics has issued new guidelines on what to do about sports-related concussions, with advice for both parents and physicians. The study and guidelines are published online and in the September print issue of Pediatrics. The San Francisco Chronicle has a feature story on the Afghan cultural tradition of "bacha baz" in which older men take boys as lovers. Chronicle story here Literally it means "boy player." A federal judge says a suburban Philadelphia school district embroiled in a laptop spying scandal must pay a family's lawyer about $260,000. ABC News story here Lower Merion School District was ordered to pay attorney Mark Haltzman for work done in a civil case involving allegations school officials improperly used webcam-enabled laptops to spy on students. Approximately 2,000 people came out for a candlelight vigil Sunday in honor of Alicia DeBolt, the 14-year-old Kansas teen whose charred remains were found at an asphalt plant last week. CBS News story here According to the U.S. Justice Department, a startlingly 43 percent of teenagers report being victims of bullying by phone or Internet. CBS News story here And as technology improves, so do the opportunities for bullies to strike. For more on bullying, visit childprotectionguide.org. *for access to member only sites like the New York Times, use the ID "JohnDoeID" and the password "whatever". On sites asking for an email address, feel free to use "info@childprotectionprogram.org" Subscribe Email Address (required) Your name: Address: City: State Province: Postal Code: country Unsubscribe Email address:

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