My nephew may of molested, should I call the authorities?

Question

I Live in NY and called my Stepmother in Cali. Only to find out that our family is in turmoil. She stated that one of my nephews (age16 or 17) was accused by another nephew (5 years old) of being innaproprite. This only came after a doctors vist confirmed the 5 year old might be telling the truth. When confronted the older boy denied it and his mother and father refused to press the issue.
This is all the info I was given. It was not enough to know if the police have been called. Should I call just to be on the safe side? Or should I leave it up to them. ( I don't have contact with either step sister ( the mothers of the nephews)). Should I also cancel my plans to visit if i do call? I would like to add that there is EXTENSIVE sexual abuse with in my family ( hince why I live in NY) and my step sisters will never contact the authorities.

Answer 1

yes call the authorities.. you may be his only hope... and call cps too.

Answer 2

I know for a fact that if a medical doctor believes or even hears of sexual misconduct against a child,non the less has medical evidence,by law he/she MUST report it.Plain and simple. So if the law and or CPS has not been called then either there was not a reason to believe that the child was being molested,or the child was never taken to the Dr. I would visit California, see if you can get more information about the situation and go with your gut instinct.You may be the only voice that child will ever have being the history of your family with molestation.

Answer 3

I'm fairly certain the doctor will inform the authorities- it's required by law.

You need to do what you need to do. If there has been extensive sexual abuse, statistically, it is repeated by the victims, who may include the older nephew. Getting help for the younger one would probably get help for the older one - before it's too late.

If no one in your family would appreciate the care behind your action, you'd have to be willing to deal with it. But, first, maybe you can find out if the doctor did his duty.

Good luck!

Answer 4

First of all, I don't think that someone who is molesting a child would admit to doing so. I think that if you have a feeling that something like this is happening, I think that you should go along with it. Please contact the authorities. It is better to be safe than to be sorry. You know what I mean. You don't want that child to suffer. I don't either. I hate when kids or mistreated, it just does something to me. I hope that no has not been messing with your nephew and if someone did then they need to pay for that abuse. I hope that everything works out well for you.

Answer 5

I think the best thing you should do since you're not all that sure, but have a clue, if that you should go to Cali and visit them asap, then from your observation, decide on what to do.

If you cannot visit Cali., I suggest you call Social Workers in Cali so they can take care of it appropriately. Calling the cops would cause more turmoil and will cause unnecessary attention for the family.

Answer 6

Better safe than sorry. The five year old cannot do anymore than he already has, making the accusation. It is up to the adults to protect the child. I would do whatever I possibly could to make sure that this child is protected. So many children never tell. This child needs to be listened to and every aspect of the accusation checked out by authorities.

Answer 7

I was molested as a child, and I never got help. No amount of advice from strangers is gonna make your mind upfor you but.... Tell them if they dont get the authorities involved they atleast need to get that little boy help, that kind of thing really messes with your head. And that older boy will most likley keep doing it, even if he doesnt want to, he almost certanley will. Someone really needs to get involved if they wont, their hurting both boys by being so hard headed and afraid what ther neighbors will think
the older one will see it as hey I got away wit it the first time so why not? And the younger one will quite telling peopl when he gets hurt cause obviously it didnt work the fisrt time he tried to get help

Answer 8

All children need someone to protect them. The doctor that saw the child should of called the authorities by law. Get more details from your stepmother and then take the appropriate action. Their are hot-line numbers you could get from your local police department to report the situation. They will start an investigation...Good Luck

Answer 9

My first instinct is to say yes, you need to make the call. You have to be ready for the repercussions though from this decision. Are you willing to cause a lot of pain? Your nephew may be charged and serve time for this if he is found guilty. If you decide to make a call, it would probably be best to not visit out there as they may not be willing to speak to you yet... If I was you, I'd contact the person you're closest with who is directly involved with this incident and try to tell them that this is important to do... Good luck.

Answer 10

If there is definite abuse going on then the authorities need to be brought into the picture, whether or not it is you who should call i'm not to sure. are these boys brothers or cousins? the police may not be able to do anything if noone presses any charges or allows the young boy to talk to them, his parents should be the ones reporting this, and shame on them 4 sweeping it under the rug. i myself was abused and when i finaly did tell, my dad was mad that i "started something" and wished i had just kept it in the family. WRONG

Answer 11

this a hard, for your stake i would call the authorities and tell them about what is going on in your family but .. with that goes alot of bad.. the cops are going to be questioning everyone and watching everything... you and your family might not be close anymore because they will think you have betrayed them .... so think about how much that matter... in the other hand you don't want anyone else getting hurt do you??