Diverse engelskspråklige artikler om sexovergrepssaker
(Miscellaneous articles in English about sex-abuse cases)
Gay couple abused their foster kids
The pair used the boys from troubled homes for their own sexual gratification, the court was told. (ITV 22.05.06)Innocent but presumed guilty
How many homes are broken by the closed and secretive family courts? Frighteningly, we don't know. - But the almost complete censorship of what goes on in the world of "child protection" makes it impossible to know even how many cases go through the family courts. And 15 years on, the BBC's court battle to identify the Rochdale social workers shows that the professionals still close ranks just as they always did. - The media has been kept out of the family justice system to stop prying eyes making delicate situations even messier. But the secrecy is too complete. In 2004 Mr Justice Munby said: "We cannot afford to proceed on the blinkered assumption that there have been no miscarriages of justice in the family justice system. By Camilla Cavendish. (The Times 12.01.06)Ruined lives of islanders in child sex fiasco
Falsely accused call for inquiry and apology after police close 'black magic rituals' case in the Western Isles. By Lorna Martin, Scotland editor. (The Guardian 11.12.05)Social workers blamed for continued abuse of three daughters in remote island community
Parents moved to Scottish island to escape scrutiny. Girls spoke of abuse but were ignored by adults. Three young girls who were subjected to prolonged sexual, physical and emotional abuse in an island community were repeatedly failed by social work staff who did not listen to them and did not put their interests first. By Gerard Seenan. (The Guardian 08.10.05)Focus: Island strife
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Those whose lives were wrecked by false claims of satanic abuse on Lewis will find little solace in the official report into the scandal, says Mark Macaskill. - The headlights of the police car cut through the early morning mist on the Hebridean island. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, police officers took up their positions outside properties in Leicestershire, West Yorkshire and Dorset. (Times Online 07.08.05)Families denied justice
- If Charles Dickens were around today, he'd be writing The Family Division. You might think that as a British citizen you are innocent until proved guilty beyond reasonable doubt. And so you are when you are charged with a criminal offence. But if you are ever unlucky enough to be faced with the prospect of having your child taken into care - a far worse punishment than a jail term for most parents - you will find that the state need only prove that you are guilty on the balance of probabilities. - The most notorious incident was during the Rochdale witch craze when children were dragged from their homes by social workers convinced they had uncovered a coven of Lancashire devil worshippers. Parents went to their councillors, who could do nothing because they had been warned that it was illegal to ask what was going on. By Nick Cohen. (The Guardian 16.01.05)Face the cruel truth of children in care
A civilised society cannot ignore the plight of the youngsters it locks away. - Children, from the age of 12, can be controlled with sharp pain, routinely stripped naked, have their genitals forcibly examined and be shut in bare cells without natural light, furniture or lavatory. Such force happens a dozen times every week, across the country. - Nearly a third of inmates who leave these "training" centres reoffend within a month. By Libby Purves. (Times Online 14.09.04)'It was like a witch hunt'
In October last year the remote Scottish island of Lewis was torn apart by allegations of ritual child abuse. But two weeks ago, the case against the accused suddenly collapsed, just as similar actions in the Orkneys and Nottingham did before them. It was another case of 'Satanic panic'. (The Guardian 16.07.04).Care staff pledged legal protection over false abuse allegations
Health and social care staff cannot be sued by parents who have been wrongly accused of abusing their children, the court of appeal ruled today. But children can take action if they are victims of negligence as a result of care proceedings or investigations of abuse. (The Guardian 31.07.03)