Child and Infant Deaths Physical Abuse and Neglect

Certain types of traumas and injuries are associated with child and infant abuse. Fatal abuse episodes are often reported as accidental deaths. Falls, accidental immersion burnings while playing with bathtub faucets, entrapments in toys and furniture, or sleeping mothers who roll over and suffocate infants are commonly reported. All such incidents require thorough scene documentation, processing, and analysis following the procedures in Chapter 6 (Homicidal Deaths) supplemented by the guidance in this chapter.