2024 child abuse statistics report released by the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network
CHARLESTON, WV (WVNS) — A report on child abuse statistics for the Mountain State through 2024 was released by the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network.
According to a press release, the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network (WVCAN) released the Statewide Data Report for child abuse statistics in West Virginia for the 2024 fiscal year, July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.
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The press release stated that the information was from the 21 Child Advocacy Centers (CACs) in the Mountain State that offer service to 47 of the 55 counties in West Virginia. CACs are child-friendly areas where child protection, criminal justice, and child treatment professionals work together to investigate abuse, hold offenders accountable, and help children heal.
4,909 children were served by CACs in West Virginia during the 2024 fiscal year. This was an eight percent increase in new kids who were served over the previous five years.
According to the press release, report details include:
4,702 forensic interviews were conducted
16 percent of the children served were there because of allegations of drug endangerment, four times higher than the national average
48 percent of the children served were there because of allegations of sexual abuse
44 percent of the children served by CACs were between seven and 12 years old
95 percent of alleged offenders were someone the child knew
30 percent of children are reported to have one or more disabilities
846 cases had charges filed
336 individuals were convicted for crimes against children
330,147 children (93 percent of the state's population) live in a county officially served by a CAC
22,217 children (seven percent of the state's population) live in a county without official CAC coverage
In the past year, the number of children referred to West Virginia CACs due to suspected drug endangerment was four times the national average. aid Shiloh Woodard, Interim Chief Executive Officer of the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network. We must do all that we can to ensure the stability and continuity of our 21 Child Advocacy Centers in the Mountain State so that critical services to child survivors of abuse and children and youth who have been exposed to the opioid epidemic can continue to be provided.
Shiloh Woodard | Interim Chief Executive Officer of the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network
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Caregivers that visited CACs were requested to take a survey, and 97 percent of the caregivers stated that if they knew about people in similar situation's they would inform the person about the child advocacy centers.
66 percent of children who had forensic interviews at a CAC reported abuse in the 2024 fiscal year, and 34 percent of children who were interviewed did not report abuse during the interviews. Even though some children may not disclose any information, multidisciplinary teams at CACs could have good cause to investigate any reports that resulted in the child being at a CAC.
According to the press release, data on reported vs. disclosed abuse, criminal justice response, victim demographics, alleged offender demographics, services performed, and CAC income budget breakdown were included in the report released by the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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They are untrue and fabricated.' The IDF said allegations that Israeli soldiers fired on Gazans near or within the aid distribution site were 'false reports.' It added: 'Findings from an initial inquiry indicate that the IDF did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site and that reports to this effect are false.' An Israeli military source told CNN that IDF troops did fire warning shots towards suspects approaching their position approximately a kilometer (1,100 yards) away from the aid distribution site in an incident that happened several hours before the site opened. Ihab Musleh told CNN he had taken his two young sons along to the aid distribution center. When he told them to stay put at a nearby hill as he went inside the site, he heard more gunfire and rushed back out. Yazeed, 13, was shot in the stomach by gunfire from an Israeli tank and survived his injuries, according to his dad. 'He was waving his hands towards the tank and within seconds, he was hit with gunfire and fell to the ground,' Musleh said, speaking to CNN from the hospital where his son was being treated. Other witnesses told CNN they were either injured or saw intense gunfire in the area after the aid site opened. Mohammad Abu Rezeq was shot in the stomach upon arriving at Al-Alam where he said Israeli forces were deliberately targeting the crowd. 'I have seen a lot of soldiers in this war. When they want to clear an area or warn you, they shoot around you. But yesterday, they were shooting to kill us,' Abu Rezeq said. CNN asked the IDF about the claim from witnesses that its troops were firing directly at crowds, shooting to kill, but it gave no further comment beyond its published statement. The chaos in the early hours of Sunday morning was not an isolated incident. In consecutive days since, Palestinians attempting to reach the GHF's aid distribution sites have come under fire by the Israeli military. After the intense gunfire near the Al-Alam roundabout on Sunday, GHF's Facebook posts included updated maps of the safe route for the following days. The new maps included a large, red stop sign at Al-Alam. On Tuesday, nearly 30 people were killed and dozens wounded while making their way to the aid sites in Tel al-Sultan in Rafah, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health and Nasser Hospital. The Israeli military said that its forces opened fire multiple times after identifying 'several suspects moving toward them, deviating from the designated access routes.' 'The troops carried out warning fire, and after the suspects failed to retreat, additional shots were directed near a few individual suspects who advanced toward the troops,' the IDF said in a statement, adding they were looking into reports of casualties. While the Israeli military has acknowledged firing warning shots in the area three days in a row, posts from GHF's Facebook page show the organization works in close coordination with the IDF to establish safe, defined routes. GHF was set up amid Israeli accusations that Hamas is stealing aid in Gaza and profiting from sales, though Israel hasn't presented any evidence publicly to back up the claim. UN aid groups, such as UNRWA, typically check identification and rely on a database of registered families when distributing aid. But GHF is not screening Palestinians at aid distribution sites, despite Israeli officials saying that additional security measures were a core reason for the creation of the new program. UN aid agencies have criticized GHF's aid mechanism, saying it violates humanitarian principles and raises the risks for Palestinians. Criticism has been mounting against both Israel and GHF after chaos broke out last week when tens of thousands of starving Palestinians arrived at two new food distribution sites. The UN's humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, was scathing in his assessment to the UN Security Council late last month. 'It restricts aid to only one part of Gaza, while leaving other dire needs unmet,' he said. 'It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip. It is cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement.' Video edited by Oscar Featherstone in London. Tareq Al Hilou in Gaza contributed to this report.
