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. . . Giving Children A Place Of Hope & Safety

• 1 in 6 boys & 1 in 4 girls will be sexually abused before the age of 18.


• 60% of Child Abuse Cases are never reported.


• In the United States, 4 children die every day as a result of child abuse and child abuse ranks as the second leading cause of death for children ages one to five.

Six-year-old, Katie liked her mom's new boyfriend, Scott. Her parents divorce had been really hard on Katie and her mom. She was glad that Scott was around to do some of the things she used to do with her dad. Scott would take her to play in the park and pick her up after school. The best part was that because her mom worked second shift, she didn't have to go to the babysitter's anymore because Scott would stay at the house until her mom returned from work. After a few months, Scott started taking her picture and sometimes he would ask Katie to undress for the picture. Katie knew that it was wrong, but she thought bad people were always mean and Scott wasn’t mean to her. Katie's mom accidentally found one of the pictures that were taken of Katie and called the police right away and that phone call was the beginning of Katie's journey towards healing. Tyler's Justice Center for Children has been a partner with Katie and her mom on every step of that journey.

Definition of Abuse ... According to the Illinois Abused and Neglected Children's Reporting Act "Abused child" means a child whose parent or immediate family member, or any person responsible for the child's welfare, or any individual residing in the same home as the child, or a paramour of the child's parent:

• inflicts, causes to be inflicted, or allows to be inflicted upon such child physical injury, by other than accidental means, which causes death, disfigurement, impairment of physical or emotional health, or loss or impairment of any bodily function;
• creates a substantial risk of physical injury to such child by other than accidental means which would be likely to cause death, disfigurement, impairment of physical or emotional health, or loss or impairment of any bodily function;
• commits or allows to be committed any sex offense against such child, as such sex offenses are defined in the Criminal Code of 1961, as amended, and extending those definitions of sex offenses to include children under 18 years of age;
• commits or allows to be committed an act or acts of torture upon such child; or
• inflicts excessive corporal punishment.

The Child:

• Shows sudden changes in behavior or school performance.
• Has not received help for physical or medical problems brought to the parents' attention.
• Has learning problems (or difficulty concentrating) that cannot be attributed to specific physical or psychological causes.
• Is always watchful, as though preparing for something bad to happen.
• Lacks adult supervision.
• Is overly compliant, passive, or withdrawn.
• Comes to school or other activities early, stays late, and does not want to go home.

The Parent:

• Shows little concern for the child.
• Denies the existence of—or blames the child for—the child's problems in school or at home.
• Asks teachers or other caretakers to use harsh physical discipline if the child misbehaves.
• Sees the child as entirely bad, worthless, or burdensome.
• Demands a level of physical or academic performance the child cannot achieve.
• Looks primarily to the child for care, attention, and satisfaction of emotional needs.

The Parent and Child:

• Rarely touch or look at each other.
• Consider their relationship entirely negative.
• State that they do not like each other.