Reports of child abuse fall, but actual figures remained steady during pandemic
Reports of child abuse declined in Butler County in 2020, only to rise again during 2021 as the area recovered from the effects of COVID-19 restrictions. The figures mirror the national trend.
This information comes from a report by the state Department of Human Services on child protective service. The report, delivered Sept. 6, provides information to the public on child abuse incidents and investigations.
“We were able to continue our services though,” said Charley Johns, executive director of the county Children & Youth Services team. “We were able to see children in the home throughout the pandemic. We definitely did not slow what we did during that time.”
The rate of abuse cases verified by Butler County’s Children & Youth Services team remained steady, even amid the sudden decline in reports. While the county’s total of reported cases dropped from 440 to 363 from 2019 to 2020, CYS still found between 38 and 40 cases of verified abuse each year.
This means the percentage of child abuse reports that CYS verified rose steadily and then peaked amid the pandemic, ranging from 7% to 9% across 2014 to 2019 before jumping to 11% in 2020.
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