subject: Child Abuse Lawsuits And Burn Injuries In Michigan [print this page] Michigan child abuse lawyers often represent children in civil cases who have suffered burn injuries. These burn injuries can either be intentional or due to the negligence of the person with custody of the child. Many children suffer additional burn injuries after the initial incident is not properly reported to the legal authorities.
Child abuse burn victims are almost always under the age of 10 with the majority under the age of 2. Immediate identification of intentional burn victims by those individuals first responding to the call for assistance is crucial because most of the victims are unable to speak for themselves. I
Although general awareness of the magnitude of child abuse is increasing, deliberate injury by burning is often unrecognized. Burn injuries make up about ten percent of all child abuse cases, and about ten percent of hospital admissions of children to burn units are the result of child abuse. In comparison with accidentally burned children, abused children are significantly younger and have longer hospital stays and higher mortality rates. The child burn victim is almost always under the age of 10, with the majority under the age of 2.
Children are burned for different reasons. Immersion burns may occur during toilet training, with the perpetrator immersing the child in scalding water for cleaning or punishment. Hands may be immersed in pots of water for playing near the stove. A person may place child in an oven for punishment or with homicidal intentions.
Inflicted burns often leave characteristic patterns of injury that, fortunately, cannot be concealed. Along with the history of the burn incident, these patterns are primary indicators of inflicted burns versus accidental ones.
Children who suffer burn injuries that are intentional or accidental do have legal rights to be compensated for their injuries. A civil lawsuit can be filed against the individual who caused the injury or whose neglect resulte in the child being burned. Claims can also be made against daycare providers, pre-schools, and babysitters for failing to supervise the child.
These burn injuries are often severe, cause significant disfigurement, and lifetime medical care. As a result, the claims made for the child are often substantial and necessary to fairly compensate the child for a lifetime of injury.
It is essential that the child be represented by an experienced child injury lawyer in this type of abuse case. The laws for these cases are very specialized and a thorough understanding of them is necessary to achieve the best result for the abused child.
