FL- Child-On-Child Molestation 'A Complicated Issue'

1-11-2009 Florida:

SPRING HILL - Sexual abuse between adults and children is a tragic, but quantifiable, offense; the law lays out a clear definition and penalty.

Less clear, however, is the proper response when children hurt other children.

A Spring Hill mother recently found herself in that situation when she said she saw her son's classmate place his hands down her son's shorts. Both boys are six.

For the mother, who will be named Betty for this article to protect her son's identity, it was a shocking explanation for her son's recent behavior. For instance, the boy no longer wanted to wear shorts to school; he had mood swings.

Betty reported the incident to the school, Suncoast Elementary, but she's not happy with the response. She said school administrators did not provide enough answers about the progress of their investigation or keep her informed of the process.

On Tuesday, Principal Jean Ferris said the allegations were immediately forwarded to the sheriff's office for investigation, per protocol. She declined to give any more specifics, saying it was a confidential matter.

"We follow our procedures to make (sure) kids are safe," she said.

Child-on-child molestation is a very real, but complicated issue, experts say.

Very few states are willing to tackle the issue of child-on-child molestation, much less prosecute, said Sharon Araji, chair of the Sociology Department at the University of Colorado Denver and author of Sexually Aggressive Children.

"Most states are resistant to wanting to admit that kids could be engaging in sexually aggressive or abusive behavior," she said.

Touching private areas is a part of normal sexual development for children, but a problem arises when that's the only way a child plays, Araji said.

Other red flags are when an aggressive child threatens or tricks another child to go along with the molestation. Araji's research has shown that it's a power and control issue.

Part of the reluctance by legislators to face the issue is the cost involved. It's tough enough these days to keep existing programs from budget cuts much less introduce new ones, Araji said.

But there will come a price later on when the kids become abusive adolescents or adults and are locked up in jail for sex crimes, Araji said. By then it's too late because jail seldom offers the type of rehabilitative programs needed to correct deviant behavior, she said.

There are many underlying causes for sexual abuse between children, but it's important to evaluate how fully the child understands what he's doing, said Phil Rich, clinical director for Stetson School, a residential clinic that treats sexually abused children in Massachusetts.

With extreme forms of abuse that mimic adult actions, it's more likely the child is fully aware of the pain and abuse she is causing another child, he said.

But often the child is cognizant that the actions are "bad," without realizing the full extent of why it's wrong. Shoplifting is an example of this behavior, Rich said.

The reasons behind the abuse could be that the child is acting out physical abuse at home, but he could also be mimicking pornography found on the computer, he said.

"Even though they could be crossing the line ... they don't understand the depth of why it's wrong," he said. ..News Source.. by Kyle Martin -- Hernando Today