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How does the United States fare in its treatment of children?

• Global ranking of the U.S. based on gross domestic product: #1 ⁱ
• Ranking of the U.S. among developed nations based on overall child well-being: 20th out of 21 ⁱⁱ
• Ranking of the U.S. among developed nations based on rate of child deaths from abuse and neglect: 25th out of 27 ⁱⁱⁱ

How many children are abused and neglected in the U.S.?

• 6,000,000 children were referred to Child Protective Services (CPS) ^iv
• 3,600,000 children were investigated for maltreatment by CPS ^v
• 905,000 children were determined to be victims of abuse or neglect ^vi

What type of maltreatment did these children suffer?

• 64% were victims of neglect ^vii
• 16% were victims of physical abuse ^viii
• 9% were victims of sexual abuse ^ix

Which children are at greatest risk for abuse or neglect?

• Children under the age of one were 50% more likely to be victims of abuse and neglect ^x
• Children with a reported disability were 52% more likely to experience repeated incidents of abuse or neglect ^xi

How many children in the U.S. died from abuse and neglect?

• In 2006, there were an estimated 1,530 child fatality victims due to maltreatment in the U.S., or an average of 29 children a week ^xii
• 78% of children killed were 0-3 years old. ^xiii
• Of these, 44% were less than 1 year old ^xiv

How much does child abuse and neglect cost the U.S.?

• Annual estimated direct cost of medical care for child abuse and neglect in the U.S.: $33,101,302,133 ^xv
• Annual estimated direct AND indirect cost of child abuse and neglect in the U.S.: $103,754,017,492 ^xvi

What kind of legal assistance is provided for these children?

• 16 states do not mandate legal representation for children in abuse and neglect proceedings ^xvii
• Abused and neglected children in 34 states do not receive the same traditional legal representation received by adults ^xviii

What happens to former foster children?

• Number of children in the foster care system: 799,000 ^xix
• Number of children that aged out of foster care in a year: 26,517 ^xx
• Percentage of the general population that have a bachelor’s degree: 23% ^xxi
• Percentage of former foster children that have a bachelor’s degree: < 2% ^xxii
• Percentage of the general population in jail or prison in 2008: 1% ^xxiii
• Percentage of former foster children incarcerated after aging out: Males: 44.6%, Females: 16.4% ^xxiv
• Percentage of the general population who experience homelessness over the course of a year: <1% ^xxv
• Percentage of former foster children who experience homelessness after aging out of the system: 25% ^xxvi
• Prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among the general population: 4% ^xxvii
• Prevalence of PTSD among Vietnam veterans: 15% ^xxviii
• Prevalence of PTSD among former foster children: 25% ^xxix
• Percentage of former foster children who reported being unemployed 1 year after aging out: 53% ^xxx
• Percentage of former foster children who reported living on food stamps after aging out: 45% ^xxxi

ⁱ WORLD BANK, WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS DATABASE, TOTAL GDP 2007, at 1 (2008), http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DATASTATISTICS/Resources/GDP.pdf (last visited September 11, 2008).

ⁱⁱ INNOCENTI RESEARCH CENTRE, UNICEF, CHILD POVERTY IN PERSPECTIVE: AN OVERVIEW OF CHILD WELL-BEING IN RICH COUNTRIES 2 (2007) (using six categories of child well-being: material well-being, health and safety, educational well being, family and peer relationships, behaviours and risks, subjective well-being).

ⁱⁱⁱ INNOCENTI RESEARCH CENTRE, UNICEF, A LEAGUE TABLE OF CHILD MALTREATMENT DEATHS IN RICH NATIONS 4 (2003).

^iv ADMIN. ON CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES (ACYF), U.S. DEP’T OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES., CHILD MALTREATMENT 2006, at xiv (2008).

^v Id.

^vi Id.

^vii Id. at xv.

^viii Id.

^ix Id.

^x Id. at 26-28.

^xi Id. at 30.

^xii Id. at 65.

^xiii Id.

^xiv Id. at 66.

^xv CHING-TUNG WANG, PH.D. & JOHN HOLTON, PH.D., PREVENT CHILD ABUSE AMERICA, TOTAL ESTIMATED COST OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT IN THE UNITED STATES 4 (2007).

^xvi Id. at 5.

^xvii FIRST STAR, REPORT ON A CHILD’S RIGHT TO COUNSEL 12-13 (2007).

^xviii Id. (including D.C.)

^xix ADMIN. ON CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES (ACYF), U.S. DEP’T OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, TRENDS IN FOSTER CARE AND ADOPTION—FY 2002-FY 2006, at 1 (2008).

^xx ADMIN. ON CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES (ACYF), U.S. DEP’T OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ADOPTION AND FOSTER CARE ANALYSIS AND REPORTING SYSTEM REPORT #14, at 4 (2008).

^xxi CASEY FAMILY PROGRAMS, THE NORTHWEST FOSTER CARE ALUMNI STUDY, IMPROVING FAMILY FOSTER CARE: FINDINGS FROM THE NORTHWEST FOSTER CARE ALUMNI STUDY 2 (2005).

^xxii Id.

^xxiii THE PEW CENTER ON THE STATES, ONE IN 100: BEHIND BARS IN AMERICA 2008 3 (2008).

^xxiv MARK E. COURTNEY ET AL., CHAPIN HALL, MIDWEST EVALUATION OF THE ADULT FUNCTIONING OF FORMER FOSTER YOUTH: OUTCOMES AT AGE 21, at 66 (2007) (asking former foster children at age 21 whether they have spent time in jail since their last interview 2 to 3 years ago).

^xxv Calculated by dividing the estimated homeless population of the U.S. over the course of a year (1.3 – 2.3 million) by the estimated total population in the U.S. (304,364,314). See NAN P. ROMAN & PHYLLIS WOLFE, NATIONAL ALLIANCE TO END HOMELESSNESS, WEB OF FAILURE: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FOSTER CARE AND HOMELESSNESS 4 (1995); THE URBAN INSTITUTE, MILLIONS STILL FACE HOMELESSNESS IN A BOOMING ECONOMY, http://www.urban.org/publications/900050.html (2000) (last visited July 2, 2008); U.S. POPClock Projection, http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html (last visited June 17, 2008).

^xxvi RONNA COOK ET AL., WESTAT INC., A NATIONAL EVALUATION OF TITLE IV E FOSTER CARE INDEPENDENT LIVING PROGRAMS FOR YOUTH, at 4-11 (1991).

^xxvii CASEY FAMILY PROGRAMS, supra note xxi, at 32.

^xxviii Id. (citing R. A. KULKA ET AL., TRAUMA AND THE VIETNAM WAR GENERATION (Brunner/Mazel) (1990), on current prevalence.)

^xxix Id. (incidence in the 12 months prior to the interviews.)

^xxx MARK E. COURTNEY ET AL., CHAPIN HALL, MIDWEST EVALUATION OF THE ADULT FUNCTIONING OF FORMER FOSTER YOUTH: OUTCOMES AT AGE 19, at 23 (2005).

^xxxi MARK E. COURTNEY ET AL., supra note xxiv, at 39 (asking former foster children at age 21 whether they have received food stamps since their last interview 2 to 3 years ago).