Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Child fatality in families with prior CPS history: Do those with and without intimate partner violence differ?

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Family Violence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Research indicates many children who experience maltreatment are also exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV). Some studies find that children with child protective services (CPS) history have higher risk of preventable child fatality (CF). It is not known if there are unique characteristics of families with combined CPS and IPV histories that could inform service plans to reduce risk of later CF. Information from documents published in the Innocents Lost Database was extracted and analyzed, and linked to county level census data. The sample includes CFs from 501 Florida families that occurred from 2008 to 2015. Families had a history of CPS contact, but cause of death varied. Bivariate (t-test, chi-square, correlation) and logistic regression analyses compared CF cases with and without IPV mentioned in the full sample (n = 501) and the reduced sample (n = 155 with in-depth documentation). Prevalence of IPV ranged from 34 to 46% (full and reduced sample respectively) with violent death more common for this group. CFs with noted IPV histories were more likely to involve school-aged children from larger families. Such cases were more likely to include primary caregivers with noted mental health and substance abuse concerns, and/or prior criminal justice system contact and secondary caregivers with criminal justice histories. IPV was common among preventable CFs with prior CPS histories. Caregivers in these families had substantial prior contact with both CPS and other adult service and criminal justice systems. Implications for risk screening and preventive services within adult-serving systems and schools are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adhia, A., Austin, S. B., Fitzmaurice, G. M., & Hemenway, D. (2019). The role of intimate partner violence in homicides of children aged 2–14 years. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 56(1), 38–46.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ahmadabadi, Z., Najman, J. M., Williams, G. M., Clavarino, A. M., d’Abbs, P., & Abajobir, A. A. (2018). Maternal intimate partner violence victimization and child maltreatment. Child Abuse & Neglect, 82, 23–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Annie E. Casey Foundation (2021, Apr). National partnership to reinvent child welfare expands. https://www.aecf.org/blog/national-partnership-to-reinvent-child-welfare-expands

  • Aron, SB., McCrowell, J., Moon, A., Yamano, R., Roark, DA., Simmons, M., ... Drake, B. (2010). Analyzing the relationship between poverty and child maltreatment: Investigating the relative performance of four levels of geographic aggregation. Social Work Research, 34(3), 169-179

  • Austin, A. E., Shanahan, M. E., Barrios, Y. V., & Macy, R. J. (2019). A systematic review of interventions for women parenting in the context of intimate partner violence. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 20(4), 498–519.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berger, L. M., & Carlson, M. J. (2020). Family policy and complex contemporary families: A decade in review and implications for the next decade of research and policy practice. Journal of Marriage and Family, 82(1), 478–507.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burch, A & Miller, C. (2014, Mar). The huge red flag that frequently gets ignored. http://media.miamiherald.com/static/media/projects/2014/innocents-lost/stories/paramour/

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. (2020). Underlying Cause of Death 1999–2019. CDC WONDER Online Database. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999–2019, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Retrieved from http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html

  • Chance, T., & Scannapieco, M. (2002). Ecological correlates of child maltreatment: Similarities and differences between child fatality and nonfatality cases. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 19(2), 139–161.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2020). Child abuse and neglect fatalities 2018: Statistics and interventions. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau. Retrieved from https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/fatality.pdf

  • Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2021). Child abuse and neglect fatalities 2019: Statistics and interventions. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau.

  • De Avila, C., Andrews, B., Buckman, C., Tumin, D., & Ledoux, M. (2020). Documentation of drug abuse in the family or household of children admitted to the hospital for non-accidental trauma. Child Abuse & Neglect, 109, 104696.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M. (2009). Media coverage of agency-related child maltreatment fatalities: Does it result in state legislative change intended to prevent future fatalities? Journal of Policy Practice, 8(3), 224–239. https://doi.org/10.1080/15588740902963445

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M. (2013). Case, service and family characteristics of households that experience a child maltreatment fatality in the United States. Child Abuse Review, 22(5), 311–326. https://doi.org/10.1002/car.1044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M. (2015). Using Theory to Examine Fatal Child Maltreatment Among a Sample of Children Known to Child Protective Services. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 9(3), 217–235. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2015.1041668

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M. (2016a). Child Maltreatment Fatalities in the United States: Four Decades of Policy, Program, and Professional Responses. Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M. (2016b). Testing if Social Services Prevent Fatal Child Maltreatment Among a Sample of Children Previously Known to Child Protective Services. Child Maltreatment, 21(3), 239–249. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559516657890

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M., & Cunningham, J. M. (2008). Recommendations from child fatality review teams: Results of a US nationwide exploratory study concerning maltreatment fatalities and social service delivery. Child Abuse Review, 17(5), 331–351. https://doi.org/10.1002/car.1044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, E. M., & Mohn, B. L. (2014). Fatal and non-fatal child maltreatment in the US: An analysis of child, caregiver, and service utilization with the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data Set. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38(1), 42–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Drake, B., & Jonson-Reid, M. (2014) Poverty and child maltreatment. In Korbin & Krugman (Eds), Handbook of Child Maltreatment, Springer, 131–148

  • Eriksson, L., Mazerolle, P., Wortley, R., & Johnson, H. (2016). Maternal and paternal filicide: Case studies from the Australian Homicide Project. Child Abuse Review, 25(1), 17–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farrell, C. A., Fleegler, E. W., Monuteaux, M. C., Wilson, C. R., Christian, C. W., & Lee, L. K. (2017). Community poverty and child abuse fatalities in the United States. Pediatrics, 139(5), e20161616. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2016-1616

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Feder, L., Niolon, P. H., Campbell, J., Whitaker, D. J., Brown, J., Rostad, W., & Bacon, S. (2018). An intimate partner violence prevention intervention in a nurse home visitation program: A randomized clinical trial. Journal of Women’s Health, 27(12), 1482–1490.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gainsborough, J. (2009). Scandals, lawsuits, and politics: Child welfare policy in the United States. State Politics & Policy Quarterly, 9(3), 325–355. https://doi.org/10.1177/153244000900900304

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gracia, E., López-Quílez, A., Marco, M., & Lila, M. (2018). Neighborhood characteristics and violence behind closed doors: The spatial overlap of child maltreatment and intimate partner violence. PLoS ONE, 13(6), e0198684.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Graham, J. C., Stepura, K., Baumann, D. J., & Kern, H. (2010). Predicting child fatalities among less-severe CPS investigations. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(2), 274–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamby, S., Finkelhor, D., Turner, H., & Ormrod, R. (2010). The overlap of witnessing partner violence with child maltreatment and other victimizations in a nationally representative survey of youth. Child Abuse & Neglect, 34(10), 734–741.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herrenkohl, T. I., Sousa, C., Tajima, E. A., Herrenkohl, R. C., & Moylan, C. A. (2008). Intersection of child abuse and children’s exposure to domestic violence. Trauma, Violence & Abuse, 9(2), 84–99. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838008314797

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herrenkohl, T. I., Fedina, L., Roberto, K. A., Raquet, K. L., Hu, R. X., Rousson, A. N., & Mason, W. A. (2020). Child maltreatment, youth violence, intimate partner violence, and elder mistreatment: a review and theoretical analysis of research on violence across the life course. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 1524838020939119.

  • Jaffe, P. G., Campbell, M., Hamilton, L. H. A., & Juodis, M. (2012). Children in danger of domestic homicide. Child Abuse & Neglect, 36(1), 71–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2011.06.008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jonson-Reid, Chance, T., & Drake, B. (2007). Risk of death among children reported for nonfatal maltreatment. Child Maltreatment, 12(1), 86–95.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jonson-Reid, M., Drake, B., & Kohl, P. (2017). Childhood Maltreatment, Public Service System Contact and Preventable Death in Young Adulthood. Violence and Victims., 32(1), 93–109.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jonson-Reid, M., Emery, C. R., Drake, B., & Stahlschmidt, M. J. (2010). Understanding chronically reported families. Child Maltreatment, 15(4), 271–281.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jonson-Reid, M., Kohl, P. L., & Drake, B. (2012). Child and adult outcomes of chronic child maltreatment. Pediatrics, 129(5), 839–845.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kovski, N. L., Hill, H. D., Mooney, S. J., Rivara, F. P., Morgan, E. R., & Rowhani-Rahbar, A. (2021). Association of State-Level Earned Income Tax Credits with Rates of Reported Child Maltreatment, 2004–2017. Child Maltreatment, 1077559520987302.

  • Langenderfer-Magruder, L., Alven, L., Wilke, D. J., & Spinelli, C. (2019). “Getting everyone on the same page”: Child welfare workers’ collaboration challenges on cases involving intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Violence, 34(1), 21–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, K. A., & Douglas, E. M. (2021). An Exploratory Study of the Prosecution of Fatal Child Maltreatment: Criminal Charges Filed Against Presumed Perpetrators in the United States in 2017. Violence and Victims, 36(5), 638–650. https://doi.org/10.1891/VV-D-19-00191

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Loman, L. A. (2006). Families frequently encountered by child protection services: A report on chronic child abuse and neglect. St. Louis, MO: Institute of Applied Research.

  • Lyons, V. H., Adhia, A., Moe, C. A., Kernic, M. A., Schiller, M., Bowen, A., ... & Rowhani-Rahbar, A. (2020). Risk factors for child death during an intimate partner homicide: a case-control study. Child Maltreatment, 1077559520983901.

  • McDonald, R., Jouriles, E. N., Ramisetty-Mikler, S., Caetano, R., & Green, C. E. (2006). Estimating the number of American children living in partner-violent families. Journal of Family Psychology, 20(1), 137–142. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.20.1.137

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mersky, J. P., Topitzes, J. D., & Reynolds, A. J. (2011). Maltreatment prevention through early childhood intervention: A confirmatory evaluation of the Chicago Child-Parent Center preschool program. Children and Youth Services Review, 33(8), 1454–1463.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Miami Herald. (2015). A Miami Herald I-team investigation: Innocents lost. Retrieved from http://media.miamiherald.com/static/media/projects/2014/innocents-lost/

  • Michaels, N. L., & Letson, M. M. (2021). Child maltreatment fatalities among children and adolescents 5–17 years old. Child Abuse & Neglect, 117, 105032.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Millett, L. S., Ben-David, V., Jonson-Reid, Echele, G., Moussette, P., & Atkins, V. (2016). Understanding change among multi-problem families: Learnings from a formative program assessment. Evaluation and Program Planning, 58, 176–183.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miyamoto, S., Romano, P. S., Putnam-Hornstein, E., Thurston, H., Dharmar, M., & Joseph, J. G. (2017). Risk factors for fatal and non-fatal child maltreatment in families previously investigated by CPS: A case-control study. Child Abuse & Neglect, 63, 222–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neger, E. N., & Prinz, R. J. (2015). Interventions to address parenting and parental substance abuse: Conceptual and methodological considerations. Clinical Psychology Review, 39, 71–82.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ogbonnaya, I. N., Keeney, A. J., & Villodas, M. T. (2019). The role of co-occurring intimate partner violence, alcohol use, drug use, and depressive symptoms on disciplinary practices of mothers involved with child welfare. Child Abuse & Neglect, 90, 76–87.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palusci, V. J., & Covington, T. M. (2014). Child maltreatment deaths in the U.S. national child death review case reporting system. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38(1), 25–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parks, S. E., Mirchandani, G., Rodriguez, S., & Hellsten, J. (2011). History of maltreatment among unintentional injury deaths: Analyses of Texas child fatality review data, 2005–2007. Injury Prevention: Journal of the International Society for Child and Adolescent Injury Prevention, 17(Suppl 1), i14-18. https://doi.org/10.1136/ip.2010.026336

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Parrish, J. W., Schnitzer, P. G., Lanier, P., Shanahan, M. E., Daniels, J. L., & Marshall, S. W. (2017). Classification of maltreatment-related mortality by Child Death Review teams: How reliable are they? Child Abuse & Neglect, 67, 362–370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, M. C., Kaczor, K., Acker, D., Webb, T., Brenzel, A., Lorenz, D. J., . . . Thompson, R. (2017). History, injury, and psychosocial risk factor commonalities among cases of fatal and near-fatal physical child abuse. Child Abuse & Neglect, 69, 263–277

  • Pitts, W. J., Givens, E., & McNeeley, S. (2009). The need for a holistic approach to specialized domestic violence court programming: Evaluating offender rehabilitation needs and recidivism. Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 60, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-6988.2009.01029.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pruitt, S. L. (2008). The number of illegally abandoned and legally surrendered newborns in the state of Texas, estimated from news stories, 1996–2006. Child Maltreatment, 13(1), 89–93. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559507307840

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2011). Report of maltreatment as a risk factor for injury death: A prospective birth cohort study. Child Maltreatment, 16(3), 163–174.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2012). Preventable Injury Deaths: A Population-Based Proxy of Child Maltreatment Risk in California. Public Health Reports, 127(2), 163–172.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam-Hornstein, E., Cleves, M. A., Licht, R., & Needell, B. (2013). Risk of fatal injury in young children following abuse allegations: Evidence from a prospective, population-based study. American Journal of Public Health, 103(10), e39–e44.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam-Hornstein, E., Wood, J. N., Fluke, J., Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., & Berger, R. P. (2013). Preventing severe and fatal child maltreatment: Making the case for the expanded use and integration of data. Child Welfare, 92(2), 59–75.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam-Hornstein, E., Schneiderman, J. U., Cleves, M. A., Magruder, J., & Krous, H. F. (2014). A prospective study of sudden unexpected infant death after reported maltreatment. The Journal of Pediatrics, 164(1), 142–148.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rebbe, R., Eastman, A. L., Adhia, A., Foust, R., & Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2021). Co-reporting of child maltreatment and intimate partner violence: the likelihood of substantiations and foster care placements. Child Maltreatment, 10775595211007205.

  • Rizo, C. F., O’Brien, J., Macy, R., Ermentrout, D., & Lanier, P. (2019). Reporting maltreatment to child protective services in the context of intimate partner violence research. Violence against Women, 25(2), 131–147.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rizo, C. F., Wretman, C. J., Macy, R. J., Guo, S., & Ermentrout, D. M. (2018). A novel intervention for system-involved female intimate partner violence survivors: Changes in mental health. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 88(6), 681–690.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, W. H. (1993). Regression standard errors in clustered samples. Stata Technical Bulletin, 13, 19–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schnitzer, P. G., & Ewigman, B. G. (2005). Child deaths resulting from inflicted injuries: Household risk factors and perpetrator characteristics. Pediatrics, 116(5), e687–e693.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shou, Y., Sellbom, M., & Chen, H. (2021). Fundamentals of Measurement in Clinical Psychology. Reference Module in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Psychology, Elsevierhttps://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818697-8.00110-2

  • Sissoko, D. G., & Goshin, L. S. (2019). Mothering under community criminal justice supervision in the USA. In The Palgrave Handbook of Prison and the Family (pp. 431–455). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

  • Sousa, C. A., Siddiqi, M., & Bogue, B. (2021). What do we know after decades of research about parenting and IPV? A systematic scoping review integrating findings. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 15248380211016019.

  • Stover, C. S., Easton, C. J., & McMahon, T. J. (2013). Parenting of men with co-occurring intimate partner violence and substance abuse. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 28(11), 2290–2314.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Suchman, N. E., Pajulo, M., & Mayes, L. C. (Eds.). (2013). Parenting and Substance Abuse: Developmental Approaches to Intervention. Oxford University Press.

  • Temcheff, C. E., Letarte, M. J., Boutin, S., & Marcil, K. (2018). Common components of evidence-based parenting programs for preventing maltreatment of school-age children. Child Abuse & Neglect, 80, 226–237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Troy, V., McPherson, K. E., Emslie, C., & Gilchrist, E. (2018). The feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness, and effectiveness of parenting and family support programs delivered in the criminal justice system: A systematic review. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 27(6), 1732–1747.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2021). Child Maltreatment 2019. Retrieved from https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/report/child-maltreatment-2019

  • Vaithianathan, R., Rouland, B., & Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2018). Injury and mortality among children identified as at high risk of maltreatment. Pediatrics, 141(2).

  • Wang, C. T., & Daro, D. (1998). Current trends in child abuse reporting and fatalities: The results of the 1997 annual fifty state survey. National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wathen, C. N., & MacMillan, H. L. (2013). Children’s exposure to intimate partner violence: Impacts and interventions. Paediatrics & Child Health, 18(8), 419–422.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, R. L. (2000). A note on robust variance estimation for cluster-correlated data. Biometrics, 56(2), 645–646.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yampolskaya, S., Greenbaum, P. E., & Berson, I. R. (2009). Profiles of child maltreatment perpetrators and risk for fatal assault: A latent class analysis. Journal of Family Violence, 24(5), 337–348.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Washington University, MSC 1196-0251-46 University Dr, MO, 63130, St Louis, USA

    Melissa Jonson-Reid, Mary Katherine Shires & Brett Drake

  2. University of Illinois, Chicago, USA

    Shih-Ying Cheng

Authors
  1. Melissa Jonson-Reid
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Shih-Ying Cheng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Mary Katherine Shires
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Brett Drake
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Melissa Jonson-Reid.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Appendices

Appendix 1

Table

Table 4 Comparison of the Full Sample (n = 501) and the Reduced Sample (n = 155)
Full size table

4

Appendix 2

Table

Table 5 Results of Logistic Regression Predicting Indication of IPV History with the Reduced Sample
Full size table

5

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Jonson-Reid, M., Cheng, SY., Shires, M.K. et al. Child fatality in families with prior CPS history: Do those with and without intimate partner violence differ?. J Fam Viol 38, 687–702 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-022-00383-9

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-022-00383-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation