Research Pinpoints Highest Risk Areas For Child Abuse In Dallas
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - New research obtained exclusively by CBS11 News pinpoints the Dallas zip codes where children are most often abused in the city.
"We know that child abuse is becoming drastically worse in Texas and the system is broken right now," said Ashley Brundage with United Way Of Metropolitan Dallas.
An alarming three children a week in Texas are dying from abuse, according to experts.
CBS11 spoke to a 20-year-old mother who lives in the West Dallas 75211 zip code where statistics show more children are victims of abuse than anywhere else in the city.
"If they are in human enough to hurt you, what's to say they won't hurt your children," said Brandi Williams, who just left an abusive relationship.
High risk zip codes like Williams' are the focus of the new prevention program called Dallas HOPES. With abuse cases increasing at a frightening rate, according to child welfare groups, the program is long overdue. The program is funded by a $3 ½ million grant and will hopefully help parents like Williams and her children with voluntary home visits and support programs.
♦♦♦ Click Here To Check Out The Interactive Map ♦♦♦
(scroll over the map and click on individual counties to get specific information)
The HOPES grant, the largest ever received by United Way, will develop and implement systems-level, county-wide efforts aimed at increasing community awareness and outreach, coordinating and aligning child abuse and abuse service providers, and ensuring health care providers are trained to identify early signs of maltreatment.
"It's the biggest grant we've ever gotten," said Brundage. "I think it will make some kind of difference."
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