Behavioral Perspectives on Child Homicide (Boundreaux et al.)

who are the main perpetrator in child abuse, abduction and homicide?

people that are known the juvenile victims

three explanations for the problematic nature of handling child homicide incidents?

• offenders are parent or guardians

• patterns of homicide vary depending on the age of the victim

• addressed within the context of other social problems

when the offender is a parent or caregiver, who is primarily the victim?

• younger children

neonate

0-1 month old

infant

1-12 months

toddler

13-36 months

preschool

3-5 years

elementary school

6-11

middle school

12-14 years old

high school

15-17 years old

which age groups are at the highest risk for homicide?

• younger than 4

• ages 13-17

why is it that as children grow older, their risk of victimization changes from guardian to stranger?

• entered school

• spend more time outside of the home

why are younger child more likely to be victimized by parents or guardians?

• they cannot go outside alone

• spend more time with family

• more dependent on parents or guardians

which gender was more at risk to child homicide?

• male children age 12 and younger

what causes a jump in male victimization in their teenage years?

• they display more aggressive and violent behaviors

who are more at risk for abduction homicide?

female teenagers and then young girls

due to overwhelming sexual nature

what race was predominately high for child homicides?

caucasian

who commits majority of the neonatal deaths?

mothers

what was the type of motivation for younger children (toddlers or younger)

emotion based

what was the motivated behind preschoolers?

emotion-based and sexually motivated

what was the motivation for preschoolers and older?

sexually motivated

what are the three categories of child homicide?

• emotion-based

• sex

  • profit

what are the primary reasons for erroneous recordings?

• maltreatment may not be the immediate cause of death

• child abuse fatalities are falsely identified as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

• child’s body may not be found or identified

• legal difficulties of proof

• law enforcement and prosecutors may fail to act without conclusive proof

what are some explanations for killing their children?

• child was unwanted

• parent was delirious and or hallucination

• attempting to relieve the victim of suffering, real or imagined

• accidental homicide as a result of battered child syndrome

• spouse revenge

what were the motive patterns for females

• emotion based or maternal desire abduction offenses

what were the motive patterns for male offenders

• sexual and profit

what was the choice of weapon for older children

firearms

shot, stabbed, battered or burned

what was the weapon choice for younger children

personal weapons such as hands, fists, and feed

less violent ways such as strangulation, smothering, drowning, and poison