Introduction
Domestic and family violence occurs when an individual deliberately physically abuses or uses violent or controlling behavior towards a family member to maintain authority and control over him/her or for any other reason. Children, women, and the elderly are the most vulnerable people to family and domestic violence (Gould et al., 2012). This paper highlights some of the recent cases of the violence, the forms of abuse involved, and their overall impacts on the victims. Perpetrators of domestic violence should face legal punishment if proven guilty.
Case 1
The first case involves a step-father who is alleged to have brutally beaten his four-year-old son, leaving him with serious bruises. Twenty-eight-year-old Trevor Brown, the step-father to Jonathan Cancel, was arraigned in court to answer the charges leveled against him (Moore, 2017). It was reported that Jonathan was taken to Lincoln Hospital after being picked from their Vyse Avenue home with bruised face, abdomen, back, stomach, mouth, and ears. A report from Presbyterian Medical Center, where at some point the boy was taken for a checkup, indicated that he had serious injuries. The doctors established that the injuries were a result of child abuse and although the boy’s condition was critical, his chances of survival were very high.
Trevor, who was on probation after being charged with robbery, had been previously arrested eighteen times after being suspected or found guilty, being on the wrong side of the law. The child abuse arrest linked him to the second-degree assault of his son (Moore, 2017).
Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) spokesman said that they were investigating the circumstances that caused the alleged child abuse. Besides, it was reported that Trevor and the boy’s mother had been under the investigation by the agency in the past. The mother had been previously accused of providing insufficient guardianship and medical assistance to Jonathan in 2013 and 2014. Additionally, substantiated complaint indicated that Trevor failed to provided adequate responsibility to a daughter he had sired with another woman in 2009.
The form of child abuse involved in this case against Trevor includes physical abuse and neglect. Jonathan’s health assessment report by doctors indicated that he had blood in his mouth and nose and that the liver was damaged (Moore, 2017). Furthermore, other sources reported that the boy had serious bruises prompting him to be taken to the health facility. Trevor, the suspected attacker, is also seen to have neglected the boy since he failed to provide him with adequate safety and health needs because the claims indicated that he physically hurt the kid, but no source showed that he took the boy for medical attention after the incident.
The boy’s parents had also been involved in other child neglect charges as they had been previously accused of failing to provide adequate guardianship to their other children (Moore, 2017). Child abuse cases have significant overall effects on the victims’ psychological health. According to Gould et al. (2012), children who have been abused are vulnerable to future emotional and behavioral issues if they are left unattended. These kids may lack the ability to express how they feel, and this possibly makes them find it difficult to regulate their emotions. When such kids become adults, they may also persistently have uncontrollable feelings, possibly leading to depression or anxiety.
Case 2
The second case involves a 52-year old Moundsville man identified as Paul Wilson, whose mother, Susanna Wilson, 83 years old, died after he allegedly failed to provide her with adequate care. It was reported that the woman needed to use a wheelchair for her wellbeing, but instead, she was found with numerous wounds and bedsores, suspected to be as a result of the noticed soaking in her waste due to lack of the equipment (Olson, 2017).
Besides, Susanna is claimed to have told the police that her son, Paul, had deliberately withheld her medication. The police records also show that Paul denied her mother the comfort of staying in a nursing home. Susanna died while undergoing treatment offered by Adult Protective Services and her son was under arrest for his alleged neglect. Wilson was charged with neglect of a disabled adult, an offense which may see him imprisoned for two to ten years.
The case against Paul comprises of elderly abuse in the form of neglect. Paul, who was responsible for taking care of his disabled mother failed to provide her with necessities that would have supported her health (Olson, 2017). Although Susanna required a wheelchair, Paul did not provide her with one and even left her to soak herself in her excreta, worsening her health condition. He was also adamant to take her to a nursing home where she would have received quality care. The elderly adults who have suffered abuse in their old age are likely to lose their self-worth and develop uncontrollable emotions (Bond & Butler, 2013).
As a result, they become venerable to depression, among other health complications, which may cut their lives short. In conclusion, child and elderly abuse have adverse effects on the health of the victims. Such acts, whether physical abuse or neglect, interfere with the mental health of the abused people and could be life-threatening.
References
Bond, M. C., & Butler, K. H. (2013). Elder abuse and neglect: Definitions, epidemiology, and approaches to emergency department screening. Clinics in geriatric medicine, 29(1), 257-273.
Gould, F., Clarke, J., Heim, C., Harvey, P. D., Majer, M., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2012). The effects of child abuse and neglect on cognitive functioning in adulthood. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 46(4), 500-506.
Moore, T. (2017). Former Bloods member accused of beating 4-year-old son. New York Post. Web.
Olson, A. (2017). Additional charges are possible in Marshall County elder abuse case. The Intelligencer. Web.