Latest news with #ChildLine
CBS News
4 days ago
- CBS News
Cranberry day care worker charged with assaulting 3-year-old boy during naptime
A Cranberry day care worker is charged with assaulting a 3-year-old boy during naptime. According to court paperwork, 26-year-old Joshua Branstetter was charged with endangering the welfare of children and simple assault after police said he injured a 3-year-old boy at Allie Alligator on Commerce Park Drive. Police said the investigation into Branstetter began after they got a ChildLine report at the end of May. Investigators said they learned that shortly before 1 p.m. on May 22, Branstetter, an assistant group supervisor at the day care, was sitting with a boy during naptime. Police said Brantstetter, who had his hand on the boy's back, forcefully pushed the boy back down onto his bed, causing him to hit his face off the bedframe. "The push was so forceful that Branstetter's leg lifted off the ground and he rocked himself forward," police wrote in the criminal complaint. "Additionally, the force caused the bed to move forward a few inches" when the victim's head "forcefully struck the frame of the bed," police wrote. The boy had injuries to his left eye, including swelling, and he needed medical evaluation, the criminal complaint says. KDKA-TV reached out to Allie Alligator for a statement about Branstetter and his current employment status but hasn't heard back.
The Hindu
13-06-2025
- The Hindu
Kerala priest booked under POCSO Act for alleged sexual assault on minor boy
The Chittarikkal police in Kasaragod, Kerala, have registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against Father Paul Thattuparambil of Athirumavu Parish, following a complaint that he sexually abused a 16-year-old boy. According to the police, the assault allegedly took place between May 15 and August 13, 2024. The priest reportedly took the boy to his residence and other locations where the offences occurred. The teenager revealed the ordeal during a counselling session conducted as part of a meditation programme. The counsellors subsequently informed Child Line, which filed a report with the police. Since the registration of the case three days ago, Fr. Thattuparambil has gone into hiding, despite initial reports claiming he was receiving treatment at a private hospital. Police sources said efforts are being made to trace him, even as reports suggest the accused is preparing to apply for anticipatory bail. In a related controversial development, an audio message circulated by a parish office-bearer urged the faithful to write letters to the police declaring the priest's innocence, which the police suspect is an attempt to influence the investigation. Fr. Thattuparambil, a native of Ernakulam, took charge at Chittarikkal a year-and-a-half ago after serving in another parish in Kannur district.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bedford County celebrates Child Welfare Appreciation Week
BEDFORD, Pa. (WTAJ) — Bedford County celebrated those who work closely with children and families who are at-risk. The county commissioners recognized members of the Bedford Children and Youth Services at the monthly commissioners' meeting on Tuesday, June 10. The week of June 9 through June 15 was proclaimed 'Child Welfare Appreciation Week' to honor those workers who help remove children from dangerous situations and place them in foster care. 'They go into conditions where there's uncertainties, where if they're going to be harmed or be hurt, we go out in the middle of the night. We go out at two in the morning. We go out at all hours of the day,' Christopher Gresko, the administrator of Bedford County Children and Youth Services, said. 'It makes me feel great that we have good support of people who are helping the kids.' If you suspect a child is being abused, call the Child Line at 1-800-932-0313. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
05-06-2025
- Time of India
Alert villagers help stop minor girl's marriage in Kaushambi
Prayagraj: Marriage of a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh's Kaushambi district was stopped on Thursday. With the help of police and social welfare department officials, members of Child Welfare Committee rushed to Kaushambi's Paschim Sarira village to prevent family members and relatives from forcing the minor girl into wedlock. A senior official said a man from the village made a call to ChildLine number 1098 and reported the marriage of the minor girl, following which, officials from child welfare committee, social welfare department and police rushed to the spot. The joint team also checked the documents, including Aadhaar card of the minor girl and found her to be 16 years of age. They informed the family members about the child marriage law and the girl was handed over to the One Stop Centre where she was to remain till investigations into the case were complete. CWC officials said joint team of CWC, anti-human trafficking unit and child helpline rushed to the spot after alert. Officials added that the girl, as per the complainant, was being married to a Kanpur-based man who was twice her age. They counselled the family on the ill effects of child marriage, besides warning them of legal action. "We convinced the relatives of the girl and the man to call off the marriage as the girl was minor. Officials of the child welfare committee will be conducting a detailed probe into the incident," said an official.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Child abuse awareness education bill gets a look after four sessions
The state Capitol in Harrisburg. (Capital-Star file) Pennsylvania schools would be required to integrate child abuse awareness and prevention into their curriculum under a bill being proposed in the state House of Representatives. 'We need to educate (children) when they are young. Sometimes by second grade, it's already too late. They've already been abused. But at least if they hear the program and they get it, we can then provide them with help,' said Abbie Newman, CEO of global and external affairs at Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center in Norristown. Newman testified Tuesday at a hearing for the legislation before the House Children and Youth Committee. No votes happened. Just an informational hearing with expert testimony. That's the furthest the measure has gone, though, with versions introduced during every legislative session since 2019. More than half of states already require schools to teach child abuse awareness and prevention, according to the bill's sponsor state Rep. Mary Jo Daley (D-Montgomery). The Department of Education would jointly develop the age-appropriate curriculum for students in kindergarten through high school with another state agency (likely Human Services) under the current version of House Bill 460, according to legislative researcher Ryan Kline. 'We want to make sure we get this right,' he said, noting the legislation probably will change. Proponents emphasized the need to engage experts — such as local child advocacy centers certified to provide preventative education — to help develop and deliver the curriculum. That could mitigate unintended consequences like traumatizing students and adding to the already overwhelming workload of public school teachers and faculty, they said. They also advised modeling evidence-based programs such as the Safe and Health Communities Initiative recently highlighted in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers found rates of both substantiated and unsubstantiated child sexual abuse reports dropped after they'd implemented a three-pronged intervention in schools and surrounding communities across five counties in Pennsylvania. They reached nearly 15,000 second graders in the classroom and more than 14,000 adults through a combination of formal training and public education campaigns during 2018 through 2020. Asked how to improve the bill, one expert said a two-year launch seemed rushed. 'This is too important an issue,' said Benjamin Levi, a professor in the departments of humanities and pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine. 'As a pediatrician, I've dealt with both reporting [and] the long-term consequences. As a researcher, I've looked at these issues. As someone who's developed educational programs, I know how hard it is to implement this. So I just want to caution that as we move forward, we need to be careful, deliberate, and evidence-based.' Levi noted, for example, the potential for reporting to increase. That could overwhelm the state's ChildLine reporting conduit if it remains resourced as is. He pointed out that ChildLine has about half the staff of its counterparts in Illinois and Michigan, which have comparable populations.
