The number of Butler County Children and Youth Services abuse cases more than doubled from January of 2014 to January of this year due to new state regulations.

A year ago, there were 18 cases in January. That number, which is categorized under child protective services cases, reached 42 this past January.

Charlie Johns, CYS director, said the workload intensified because of the revised regulations, which took effect this year.

“January was a scare,” Johns said.

The increase grew in February to 48 cases as compared to 19 in the same month last year.

Among the changes that have caused this increase is an expanded definition of child abuse. Despite the spike in reports of abuse that require investigations, CYS still has a limited time to respond.

“We have to make contact within 24 hours,” said Rick Mohr, CYS casework supervisor.

The state also has a new requirement to respond within 15 minutes to electronic notifications from the state.

Those notifications are generated from the state's abuse hot line, which either receives the reports from phone calls or forwards electronic reports sent to the state.

If CYS does not respond within 15 minutes, a state worker calls the CYS office or the on-call worker if it occurs after hours.

Johns said the state hired 30 new workers in anticipation of an increased workload under the revised law.

No new county staff

However, the county did not add staff to the department, which has 48 employees. Twenty-seven of those are caseworkers.

Two caseworkers are intake screeners, 10 are intake caseworkers and 15 are ongoing services caseworkers.

Johns said each caseworker previously had an average of six to eight cases monthly.

Based on this year's numbers, Johns estimated that monthly average would double, rising to 12 or more.

Johns said the new regulations are the state's response to the Jerry Sandusky case, which raised the issue of not reporting abuse promptly or not reporting it at all.

Sandusky, a former assistant football coach for Penn State University, was convicted of molesting boys.

Coverage expands

Under the revised law, definitions of terms are more explicit.

The expanded definition of child abuse now includes these specific examples of violence: kicking, biting, throwing, burning, stabbing or cutting in a manner that endangers the child.

But John said, “an injury doesn't really need to be evident.”

Abuse examples also include forcibly shaking or striking a child younger than 1, interfering with the breathing of a child and forcing a child to be at the same location as a methamphetamine laboratory.

Another addition is fabricating, feigning or intentionally exaggerating or inducing a medical symptom or disease that results in a potentially harmful medical evaluation or treatment.

The term perpetrator also has expanded to list specific examples, such as former spouses or paramours of a parent and a person 14 or older responsible for the child's welfare.

The people obligated to report abuse also has increased to include librarians and coaches.

If a person who is mandated to report abuse fails to do so, that person faces multiple penalties.

On the criminal side, failure to report child abuse carries a maximum sentence of 1 to 2 years in prison and a $5,000 fine for a misdemeanor offense.

For a felony count of failure to report, the maximum sentence is 3½ to 7 years in jail and a $15,000 fine.

The state may pull medical licenses and teaching certificates as well.

Alan McGrath, a CYS report screener, said the new regulations might cause multiple reports of the same situation, but that's better than no report.

“We just want to make sure the kid is safe,” McGrath said.

The new regulations did not drastically affect January's numbers for investigations into neglect, which is general protective services.

In 2014, the first month had 31 neglect cases. There were 34 cases in January of this year.

The increase was greater for February. The number of neglect cases was 35 in 2014, rising to 48 in February 2015.

Investigation process

Although the volume of cases has spiked, what hasn't changed for the county department is the basic investigative process.

Mohr said a report must include enough information for CYS to pursue an investigation.

Late last year, CYS was criticized for how it handled investigations of alleged abuse at two county commissioner meetings.

In the first complaint, CYS was accused of disregarding evidence that could help clear a man accused of sexually assaulting a child.

The second complaint was CYS didn't do enough when responding to reports of alleged treatment of a child.

Mohr said most people don't realize what CYS has done during the course of an investigation.

“Extended family members are not privy to what we've done,” he said.

Mohr said CYS is bound by the evidence. “The law defines abuse, not the general public,” he said.

As part of the first public complaint against CYS, the agency was accused of collusion with the district attorney's office to ensure a conviction.

Johns said it's his department's job to work with the law.

“We do collaborate with law enforcement,” he said. “We pass information back and forth.” However, there were two different investigations under way. While the district attorney's office must decide whether to prosecute people with crimes, CYS must decide whether a child should be removed from the home.

Johns said taking a child from a home is not the first option aside from emergency situations.

According to Mohr, a displacement typically occurs when no other step has worked.

Unless there is an acute injury, CYS and the district attorney's office don't seek an immediate physical examination at the hospital, preferring an examination by a specialist

To expedite the process, Butler Memorial Hospital has one doctor dedicated to examining children who are alleged assault victims.

Two other pediatricians serve as backups.

Assistant District Attorney William “B.T.” Fullerton, who works with child abuse cases, stressed there is a distinction between unethical and illegal.

“That's the line we all have to walk every day,” Fullerton said. “We all respect due process. Everyone's entitled to it.”

He said conducting joint interviews with CYS makes the situation less strenuous for the children while maintaining an untainted process.

The county last year formed the nonprofit Butler County Alliance for Children to improve and to consolidate the process for handling abuse cases.

The alliance later this year will open the Child Advocacy Center on East Jefferson Street.

Johns praised his staff for handling the heavier workload.

“I am proud of the way my staff has adjusted so far to this additional workload,” he said. “I am anticipating their good work to continue because they know how important our job is.”

New state regulations have increased the number of reported child abuse cases in Butler County by defining terms more explicitly.People working in certain jobs are required by law to report signs of abuse.The revised law includes people in these categories who are mandated to report children abuse cases:✓ A person licensed or certified by the Pennsylvania Department of State in any health related field✓ A medical examiner, coroner or funeral director✓ An employee of a health care facility or a provider licensed by the state Department of Health who is involved in the admission, examination, care or treatment of individuals✓ A school employee✓ An employee of a child-care service who has direct contact with children✓ Clergyman, priest, rabbi, minister, Christian science practitioner, religious healer or spiritual healer of any regularly established church or other religious organization✓ An individual, paid or unpaid, who accepts responsibility for a child while serving an integral role in a regularly scheduled program✓ Employee of a social services agency who has direct contact with children✓ A peace officer or law enforcement official at the state and municipal level✓ Employee of a public library who has direct contact with children.

New state regulations change the definition of what is child abuse and who is required to report it.To report child abuse, call:Butler County Children and Youth Services, 724-284-5156.The state hot line, ChildLine, 800-932-0313.For information about background clearances and mandated reporter training, visit www.reportabusepa.pitt.edu or www.keepkidssafe.pa.gov.