Ohio bill would require faster notification of law enforcement in child abuse cases

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Legislation inspired by the story of an Ohio baby who was the victim of sexual assault would update mandatory reporting requirements for child abuse in the state. 

House Bill 346 would require mandatory reporters to alert both local law enforcement and children’s services of suspected child abuse cases. In Ohio, mandatory reporters, such as healthcare works, teachers and therapists, are currently required to notify either children’s services or law enforcement, but not both.

The legislation, sponsored by Reps. Matthew Kishman (R-Minerva) and Josh Williams (R-Sylvania), would also require children’s services to notify law enforcement within 48 hours of receiving a child abuse report. The current time period allowed by law is seven days. 

Under Ohio law, healthcare providers may be required to share certain reports or examinations with children’s services. The bill would require those documents be made available to law enforcement as well.

Lawmakers have named the bill “V.J.’s Law,” after a Canton girl who suffered abuse at 4.5 months old that was not “adequately reported,” Kishman said. 

“We have a collective responsibility to protect our children,” Kishman said in a statement. “What happened in V.J.’s case is unacceptable, and I hope this legislation equips law enforcement and Children Services to better protect others in the future.”

In September 2022, V.J.’s mother took her to the Aultman Hospital in Canton on a Saturday. While the baby was there, medical staff discovered injuries consistent with sexual abuse, according to court records. 

Healthcare workers contacted Stark County Children Services multiple times, but no one from the agency came to the hospital that day. Instead, a case worker followed up on the report on Monday, leaving V.J. with her father, who was later convicted of her rape, over the weekend. Police were not notified until that Tuesday – four days after the rape is believed to have occurred.

V.J.’s father has since been sentenced to life in prison without parole. NBC4 is not naming him to protect V.J.’s identity. 

In Ohio, the charge for mandatory reporters who fail to properly report child abuse is generally a fourth-degree misdemeanor, which can rise to a first-degree misdemeanor in certain instances, such as if the child faces harm as a result of a lack of a timely report. While the bill expands reporting requirements, it maintains the existing penalties under the law.

V.J.’s Law was introduced on June 10 and has been assigned to the House’s Public Safety Committee, where it awaits its first hearing.