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Show News about people and their lives Wednesday February 1, 1989 Community briefs Editors note: This is the first in Adolescents view adult porthree-paseries dealing with nography, become sexually the issue of child sexual abuse aroused and abuse small children. and prevention in todays society. Kids get aroused and act out a Next weeks story will deal with what they see, he said. what happens after the abuse is Clark estimates DFS gets one reported: how the child is protector two cases per month where ed, the investigation, therapy, and abuse is directly related to somepreparing for criminal prosecu- thing like that. tion. In the last story, punishment The numbers may be much of sex offenders, aftermath, educa- higher. They may have seen portion and prevention, will be ad- nography three months ago and dressed. are acting on it now, he said, adding that it is natural for children JAN PUGH and adolescents to experiment. Lakeside Review correspondent According to Detective Sgt. For every case of child sexual Kent Hedenstrom, one of two exabuse that is reported, there are perts who investigates complaints three or four that we dont know of sex abuse for the Davis County about. Sheriffs Department, 90 percent That frightening statement was of child sexual abuse in the Unitmade by D. Steven Clark, super- ed States involves close family visor of the Child Welfare Unit members. for the Division of Family SerThe following is a compilation vices (DFS) assigned to Davis of information from local authorities and specialists in profile or County. Clarks department handles all outline form. Of course, the conthe child abuse or neglect cases ditions and descriptions given cannot cover all situations, but reported in the county. Of an average of 90 referrals they have been found to be indicDFS gets per month, roughly 20 ative of most cases. to 25 are about child sexual abuse. And Clark said people are Profile of incest Noel Gill is a psychologist who only aware of about 25 percent of the sexual abuse that goes on. has dealt extensively with childThirteen years ago, when he hood sexual abuse. Most recently, started at DFS, Clark said there Gill was coordinator for Davis may have been three cases a year County Mental Healths Children of child sexual abuse reported in and Youth Program. He has since Davis. Now theres a routine transferred to Bear River Mental Health in Logan. high number of referrals." He attributes part of the reason In describing the atmosphere for the increase in the number of that predominates in an incestureferrals in recent years to a largous situation, Gill said there is er population and more aware- usually a very warped view of ness. family and the interaction of faHe also said, I used to think thers and children. that as there was more informaVery often the parents are diction and exposure, the numbers tatorial and controlling. Its a would go down. But, the sex closed system. They dont allow drive is so pervasive and the children expression. They dont amount of sex in the media is so let the child grow and develop, Gill said. pervasive, I dont see the numbers going down. Often individual boundaries Clark said one in 15 sex abuse are blurred, he said, explaining victims initiates his or her own that the children in the family referral. The rest are from a numdont have a sense of their own ber of sources including other indentity. The wife and children are seen as one. They dont recogfamily members, friends, neighnize or honor individual boundbors, physicians, schools and police departments. aries. DFS and the local police must In that atmosphere, Gill said the individual is likely to be takinvestigate every report The majority of referrals are legitimate, en advantage of or abuses, if he but Clark said some claims of or she doesnt understand how to child sexual abuse are unsubstanprotect his or her integrity. tiated. He gave an example of Gill said they are allowed no one parent trying to get back at privacy, no individuality, no digin nity. Its hard for the children to ; the other parent, or a divorce situation by claiming protect themselves. Incest is often sexual abuse. generational. It becomes the famThere are also cases of teenag- ilys hidden secret, he said. ers claiming sexual abuse against Gill said in these cases, the wife for else thats usually has her own set of something parents gone wrong. problems. She covers up for the Anyone suspecting sexual husband and wont protect the abuse CLEARFIELD The Layton no. (Taking Off Pounds Sensibly) group has changed its meeting place from the First Southern Baptist Church to Care West Convalescent Cen- rt or neglect must by law, re- port it according to Clark. Its a misdemeanor, if you dont Also by law, DFS must notify the person who reported the alleged abuse, about the outcome after the investigation is complete. Clark said no details are given to the referent, for reasons of privacy. Theyre only advised that the investigation has been completed. The number of adolescent (ages 12 to 17) sex perpetrators is increasing markedly, according to Clark, and they act it out on smaller children. child. Tamara Robinette, director of the Regional Treatment Center for Sexual Abuse, said that in a family where the father (or man of the house) is sexually abusing his children, many times the mother was also abused as a 251-TOP- ter, 1450 S. 1500 E., Clearfield. The group meets Monday evenings from 4:30 to 6:30. Everyone interested in losing weight sensibly is welcome to attend. For more information, call Rita Feus-te-l, 479-050- 3. Layton Elementary PTA meets Feb. 2 LAYTON The Layton EleSchool PTA will meet mentary Feb. at 7 p.m. in the 2, Thursday, schools media room. The Reflections Contest winners will be announced at that time. PTA members will also vote at that time on the nominees for the president for next year. For more information, call Alisa Palmer, at 546-290- Popular parenting seminar offered girl who has been brother sleeping her shows abused sexually saying that a daughter tends to marry a man like her dad. She said thats because its familiar with a familiar outlook on life. She said the husband and wife have the same perspective of roles. They learned it from their parents, who taught them to view the world. They are two victims drawn to each other, Robinette said. And a lot of the time they dont even know their spouse was also a victim of child sexual abuse, until it happens in their own fam- Theyre too scared of whats going to happen to them to accept whats happening to their is suspected. Change in personality: Becoming very quiet, more angry, more depressed. Any serious change in behavior. Knowing a lot of sexual terms and information. Profile of the victim Gill said the profile of a child said. have They chil-idre- n. The offender looks just like everybody else, Hedenstrom said. Hes not the dangerous stranger. Not the troll under the bridge. Pornography can encourage the perpetrator, and. Gill said, Quite often pornography involving violence or involving children is very dangerous pornography. Pornography that shows women or children in violent, exploitive ways is a problem. If someone is involved with those things, it is usually a good indicator theres a problem involved. He said they often psychologically practice violence or rape. Hedenstrom said most perpetrators were abused as children, in the same manner at the same little and a weak or fractured family structure. There is no strong support system. Gill said these children are very vulnerable and those looking for victims can spot these types of children like radar. In fact, they are very skillful at it. Hedenstrom said they are finding more and more cases where boys, as well as girls, are abused. He said society traditionally treats boys differently than girls and tells boys they can take care of themselves. For that reason, when hes interviewing a boy whos been abused, Hedenstrom said Its a hundred times harder to get a male child to talk. age. Profile of the pedophile Pedophilia is a sexual perversion in which children are the preferred sexual object. Gill said a pedophile is attracted to numerous children and may have a horrendous number of victims. They quite often were victims themselves, he said, adding they See ABUSE, page 8A Profile of the perpetrator not the adult or adolescent down the Sex abuse any more is simply incest, but may be street who may become aroused and perpetrates (the abuse) against a young child, Clark said. Brian Namba, Davis County prosecutor handling sex offense leases against adolescents and (children, said he believes there is no profile for the perpetrator. You have those who do it forcefully; those who do it to satisfy a sexual urge; those who do it ,for a romantic purpose; and those who do it within the family. Hedenstrom said the perpetrator is generally a very likeable person. There is no discrimination of self-mutilati- ChinG Co. is now offering $3.00 OFF on our regular priced perm. Color or tint. R complete with SOOQ WEEK OWLY The Styling Salons At fSVlLLE nroN 546-222- 1 iARFIELD 825-721- 2 FrOO Bfg'WO .Compai See BRIEFS, page SA - rr 392-508- 1 Mon.-Fr- i. 10-- St. 10- - & Bath HoUSeWOVeS KrupsBraunCuisinartRowenta BelgiqueRevereChicago CutleryGerberHenckels CalphalonSanPanCuisine Cookware NnYEIC . WHILE THSY IAST! OGDEN 2318 WASH. BLVD. OneidaTowelRetroneuYamazaki FieldcrestSpringmaidCannon VeraCroscillWamsuttaMartexLaura Ashley lessons. ONE WEEK OWE 545-060- 3 Clearfield CLEARFIELD 752 National NARFE, Chapter LenoxNoritakeMikasaDansk FlotWOW Linens sgoo OFF ;?ll For Appointment will hear speaker J.G. DurandBormioli Wa have made a special "factory purchase of a limited number of HEAVY DUTY sewng machines from Bernina for those who demand the very best! GUARANTEED performance on sheers or layers of denim; even sews on WARRANTY and LEATHER. These new machines carry a full are perfect for the beginner or advanced sewer. With this NEW 1988 BERNETTE MODEL, you can choose from many stithces including button hole, hems, stretch stitch, overlock stitch and more. These machines are Reel. $499.00 THE BON MARCHE LAYTON 21 EAST GENTILE 544-591- Hours 1 Moo fn. 10 9. Sal. 10-- 6 1. Clearfield NARFE Crystal WaterfordLenoxMikasaNoritake t & 451-507- Royal DoultonPfaltzgraff local police department, said D. Steven Clark, supervisor of the Child Welfare Unit for the Division of Family Services (DFS). Brown The course stresses raising responsible children and helps parents explore new alternatives for achieving this goal. The approaches taught in this course are tried and tested and have been helpful to many parents over an extended period of time. The registration fee of $22 per couple includes the cost of a parenting manual that parents can keep and use for many years. The class will be held on a one night a week basis starting on Feb. 8 and ending on March 8. It will be held at the Family Support Center, 1360 E. 1450 S., Clearfield at 7 p.m. Free childcare will be provided. Preregistration is required and can be accomplished by visiting the Parent Education Resource Center at 100 S. 200 E. in Farmington, or by calling Namely yours. Brides and grooms have been registering at The Bon Marche for years. And for good reason. Weve always offered an extensive selection of the finest names in china, crystal, flatware and all the wonderful things that go into starting a new home together. When youre ready to select your patterns, visit The Bon Marche Wed love to help you with your registry. Your preference list is automatically entered and updated at all Bon Marche stores. Those who suspect abuse shouldnt be afraid to call the Division of Family Services or the A NEW LOOK SALE Waiting for a reason to try that new look? Heres your chance to Fran give yourself a change. District cater to the best names in town GOODBYE, FRUSTRATION! themselves. five-wee- We HELLO, BERNINA El Unusual sexual curiosity. Becoming sexually active, FARMINGTON Systematic Training for Effective Parenting, a popular training seminar for parents is being offered by the Parent Education Resource Center. class will be k The taught by Lorene Newbold, a psychologist with the Davis School com- color or occupation among those who sexually abuse There is a very small percentage of female perpetrators, he self-estee- m self-estee- m house. sex, lieved. Robinette said that for some women, the reality of a husband or boyfriend sexually abusing her child is something she chooses not to believe and accept. If a woman feels confident and feels that she can handle it, she will be supportive of her child, Robinette said. If she has low and little skills and independence, she tends to be more supportive of her husband. If it (the abuse) is true, shell be on her own. Its frightening. It could destroy her world. She said some women dont have confidence in themselves as a single person. They have never supported themselves. If this report of sexual abuse is true, they fear they will have to take care of themselves and the children and totally run the a divorce. Kids are afraid of divorce and dont want to disrupt the family, so they keep quiet, he said. at risk for sexual abuse is similar to the profile for a child at risk for suicide or drug dependency. He said they are often the inadequate kids, often not be- ily. children, Robinette said. So, many times in these situations, a mother will say to her child. child, Keep it to yourself, or She said the only thing that Stay away from him; hes been drinking, or Its not true. helps explain this phenomenon is In the case where the mother is the tendency to gravitate to not yet aware of sexual abuse something familiar. That does within her family, Hedenstrom not mean it is something (these fasaid many times the father will women) like, just something his child by saying, If threaten miliar. , She compared this to the old you tell, your mom and I will get For a small percentage, a man in the bunk bed above ing into the bedroom to molest her. her, with Drawing by an Sexual abuse has definite signs There are several signs and symptoms of sexual abuse in a child. Authorities say to look for the following signs if sexual abuse 0. LAYTON HILLS MALL Telephone 546-246- 5 |