A Case of Child Neglect

It takes a village to raise a child; when the village is no longer functional, child neglect is all too often the consequence.

Five year old Jeffrey Baldwin was found dead in the basement of his grandmother's home on November 30, 2002.He was all skin and bones, weighing no more than 19 pounds.

Dr. Stanley Zlotkin, Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto who studied the autopsy photos of the boy claimed there was no doubt that Jeffrey succumbed to the complications of infection and pneumonia caused by long-term malnutrition, possibly malnutrition that had taken place for several years before his actual death.

In fact, records indicate that Jeffrey's last visit to a physician took place four years ago, when he was one year of age and weighed 22 pounds.

What happened to Jeffrey Baldwin? How did he become a case of child neglect especially when there were at least six adults and five children living in the same house?

How did he become one of the many invisible children who die from inexcusable neglect under the hands of guardians responsible for their welfare and well-being?

Jeffrey was the Unfortunate Victim of Child Neglect

CBC News claims that Jeffrey Baldwin was the unfortunate victim of troubled parents; he was also the victim of the Catholic Children's Aid Society that took him away from his troubled parents and placed him in the care of his grandmother Elva Bottineau and partner Norman Kidman, both with a history of child abuse offenses.

Bottineau's adult son also revealed the horrific abuse he and his sister suffered when they were children, under the care of their mother and partner.

The nagging question remains, however: How could the many adults and children living in the same house not recognize that Jeffrey was suffering from child neglect?

More about child neglect here.