Reported child abuse cases increase

07:54 AM CDT on Tuesday, August 3, 2004

By Amanda Lawson / KVUE News

A new public safety report issued Monday for Travis County shows child abuse is up by 24 percent.

That increase comes as the number of foster homes is declining.

Those who handle child abuse cases every day say they have seen an increase in their caseload.

According to a study by the Community Action Network, child abuse increased 24 percent from 2002 to 2003.

In 2002, six children died in Travis County from child abuse or neglect. Seven died in 2003.

Numbers also show that in 2002, 382 children were removed from their parents custody; 462 were removed in 2003.

"Before we saw typically, primarily was sexual abuse. What we're seeing now is sexual abuse with physical abuse or other kinds of neglect that just seem to be worse than they used to be. The physical abuse cases seem to be worse," says Amanda Van Hoozer with the Center for Child Protection.

Hoozer adds that the number of abuse cases rises as the economy declines.

The number of foster homes also declines as families taken in fewer children, saying they simply cannot get by.