Findings of unacceptable risk – A comment on Webb et al.'s analysis of child sexual abuse allegations in the Family Court of Australia

The care and protection of children takes a different turn when there are allegations of child sexual abuse in a custody battle in the Family Court. In the case referred to in this discourse analysis, two 4- and 5-year-old sisters disclosed incest to a number of people. These were the police, their mother and maternal grandmother, as well as to 12 other people, including contact supervisors and a psychologist. In cases of this kind, the court may ask relevant experts to provide reports in order to decide what action will be in the ‘best interests’ of the children. The following is an analysis of the conversation between the investigating police officer, the social worker and the mother. It shows that mindsets become evident when discourse analysis is applied, and indicates that judges may not be receiving appropriate and comprehensive information or, indeed, ‘the full story’. Discourse analysis, in this instance, suggests that courts could become more aware of other issues at play within interlocutory situations, which may, in fact, determine a child's wellbeing more than is evident before the bench.

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Father-perpetrators of child sexual abuse who commit suicide

Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s079096670001675x ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. 144-145 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Geraldine Walford ◽

Marie-Therese Kennedy ◽

Morna K. C Manwell ◽

Noel McCune

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Sexually Abused ◽

Attempted Suicide ◽

Suicide Attempts ◽

Recent Letter ◽

The Family ◽

Sex Offences ◽

The Guardian ◽

The Impact

Two cases of fathers who committed suicide following the revelation that they had sexually abused their own or other children, are described. The importance of being alert to the possibility of suicide and suicidal acts by family members following a disclosure, is emphasised. Improved liaison and co-ordination between agencies working with these families may enable vulnerable cases to be more readily identified and consequently offered appropriate support and treatment.The revelation that the father in a family has sexually abused his own or other children often precipitates a crisis within the family. The distress suffered by the children themselves and by their mothers is well documented. (Browne and Finkelhor, Hildebrand and Forbes). Goodwin reported suicide attempts in 11 of 201 families, in which sexual abuse had been confirmed. Eight of the attempts were made by daughter-victims. In three of the five cases of mothers who attempted suicide, the abuse was intrafamilial. The impact on father perpetrators, previously a less well researched field, has been receiving more attention of late. Maisch, in a sample of 63 fathers convicted of incest reported that two fathers subsequently committed suicide. Wild has reported on six cases of suicide and three of attempted suicide by perpetrators following disclosure of child sexual abuse. The Cleveland Inquiry Report mentions one father, charged with several sex offences, who committed suicide while awaiting trial. A recent letter to The Guardian newspaper (18th February 1989) by 11 local paediatricians in that area suggests that there are now two such cases of suicide committed by alleged perpetrators.

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