McKenna, Mary --- "Child Victims of Homicide by Christine Alder and Ken Polk" [2001] AltLawJl 112; (2001) 26(6) Alternative Law Journal 311

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• Child Victims of Homicide

Reviews

Child Victims of Homicide

by Christine Alder and Ken Polk; Cambridge University Press Cam- bridge, 2001; 187 pp; $39.95 softcover.

The title, Child Victims of Homicide might suggest that the authors either share a macabre interest in the murder of children or are attempting to sensationalise the topic. However, they resist the temptation to approach this subject through appeal to the reader's sense of moral outrage over 'innocent child victims' so common in much contemporary writing, instead presenting a thoughtful and well-researched analysis of the subject area.

Loosely divided into three parts this clearly written book deals with, first, an overview of the subject area highlighting a number of difficulties encountered when researching this topic. Several relevant theories are examined with some shortcomings in these theories being identified. The second part presents varied case studies involving the files of 90 child homicides in the state of Victoria from 1985-1995. These are divided into 'filicides' the killing of a child by a parent or carer, and 'non-filicides', the killing of a child by any other person. Following from this, the categories have been further segmented, allowing for relevant discussion drawing on individual case material. The third section deals with comparative overseas research and makes links between this and the Australian data with speculation about the implications for further research in this area. In conclusion the authors high­ light some of the significant difficulties of providing an encompassing theoretical framework for such diverse acts of aggression.

Alder and Polk have successfully located this study between, on the one hand, highly emotive and frequently irrational community outrage at the killing of a child, and on the other the 'stark statistics' (p.14) that quantify child murders. A number of issues that are relevant to academics and students involved in social inquiry in this area are discussed. While most homicide is disproportionately a 'male' act, child homicide is committed by females in a significant number of cases. Females are frequently represented as the offender in cases of homicide of young children. However, as the age of the child homicide victim increases, so does the likelihood that the offender will be male. Very young children (babies and toddlers), are categorised as being at high risk of being murdered with the perpetrator likely to be a family member. Many of these murders are committed by the mother or the defacto partner of the mother. The risk of child homicide decreases drastically as the age of the child increases until puberty, when the risk again rises. In the older age group, however, non-family members are more likely to be the perpetrators.

Women who kill children are likely to kill their own children, while the men involved in child homicides are a wide ranging group, from biological fathers to strangers. The authors acknowledge that there are diverse pat­ terns related to child homicide with a range of complex social interactions to be considered when attempting an analysis of the issues surrounding these murders. However there are indications that suggest relatively consistent patterns of behaviour in some groups of perpetrators. Alder and Polk point out that the majority of women who have killed their own children in this study lived in low socioeconomic circum­ stances, were reliant on social welfare and frequently had ongoing involvement with medical, welfare or health professionals. Additionally, men who murdered the children of their defacto partners exhibited some consistent patterns of behaviour. The authors are cautious about making universal claims from their research material. However, they imply, with some justification, that these findings suggest a need to re-assess current professional responses to indications of child mistreatment with a view to reducing the number of child homicides among very young children.

Child Victims of Homicide dispels a number of misconceptions that surround the killing of children and puts the fear of child homicide into perspective. Serial killers, while providing a morbid fascination for many people, are a relatively rare phenomenon, especially in relation to child killings. While some step-fathers in the case studies have killed their young step-children, most don't, and there are no cases, in this study, of step-mothers killing their step-children. Statistically, children from approximately 6 to 12 years of age are at less risk of being murdered than at any other time in their lives. Additionally, despite a strong sense of community fear about the 'dangerous stranger', the majority of children who are murdered are killed by a family member or a person who is known to the child.

Child Victims of Homicide concludes with a discussion of some of the current theoretical explanations of child homicide, highlighting the complex and often contradictory nature of this offence. The authors ultimately suggest that this phenomenon needs to be under­ stood in terms of the offender's perceptions of the situation, the offender's understanding of the relationship between the parties and the perceived lack of alternative options available to the offender. The combination of these factors provides, for the authors, a starting point from which to begin to develop an understanding of the multi­ faceted nature of child homicide with a view to dealing with the underlying issues in an attempt to reduce this problem.

Child Victims of Homicide is likely to appeal to a wide range of readers. It is clearly written, avoiding excessive jar­ gon and complex statistical data making it suitable as an introductory text as well as providing relevant information for more advanced studies. Students and academics from legal and social science based disciplines are likely to find the subject material relevant. Additionally, policy makers and future policy makers in the area of child and community welfare could particularly benefit from thoughtful consideration of these research findings.

MARY McKENNA

Mary McKenna is a PhD student in Legal Studies at Flinders University.

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