Abusive Head Trauma

Abusive Head Trauma (AHT) is a severe head and/or neck injury from physical child abuse.  It typically occurs when an infant is shaken or thrown against a hard surface, often in response to the baby’s continuous crying. AHT is the most common cause of severe injury and death from child abuse in children under the age of one.

Despite an increased scientific understanding of the causes and dynamics of AHT and improved ability to diagnose it, it is often difficult to achieve justice for child victims. Cases involving AHT are usually extremely complex and difficult to litigate for prosecutors who don’t fully understand the nature of the injury, the science behind it, and legal issues related to its prosecution. Courts have also become increasingly receptive to testimony provided by irresponsible expert witnesses who challenge the legitimacy of AHT diagnoses by providing misleading, misguided, and scientifically unsound testimony.

Preventing AHT before it ever occurs would be the optimal goal, and a number of programs have been developed to address it, but research on preventing severe child abuse like AHT is limited.

Below are links to resources to help prosecutors and other legal child welfare professionals be better prepared to litigate AHT cases.  We also offer resources describing the current state of prevention of this most severe form of child abuse.