Infanticide and neonaticide

[from Lat.,=child murder], the putting to death of the newborn with the consent of the parent, family, or community.

Infanticide has been practiced on every continent and by people on every level of cultural complexity, from hunters and gatherers to high civilization, including our own ancestors. Rather than being an exception, then, it has been the rule.

There is ample historical evidence to document the incredible propensity of parents to murder their children under an assortment of stressful situations. In nineteenth century England, for example, infanticide was so rampant throughout the country that a debate over how to correct the problem was carried out in both the lay and medical press.

Infanticide has pervaded almost every society of mankind from the Golden Age of Greece to the splendor of the Persian Empire. While there are many diverse reasons for this wanton destruction, two of the most statistically important are poverty and population control. Since prehistoric times, the supply of food has been a constant check on human population growth. One way to control the lethal effects of starvation was to restrict the number of children allowed to survive to adulthood. Darwin believed that infanticide, "especially of female infants," was the most important restraint on the proliferation of early man.

Evidence in ArabiaSexism was particularly prominent in Arabia before the time of Mohammed (570?-632 AD). The Persian world was a very paternalistic society, and females were generally seen as an undesirable burden to a family struggling to survive. A common proverb held that it was "a generous deed to bury a female child." Nevertheless, the Koran, which collected the writings of Mohammed, introduced reforms that included the prohibition of female infanticide. Mohammed outlined the wrongfulness of infanticide in various sections of his holy scripture.

Evidence in Judaism and ChristianityWhile we also find discrimination in the treatment of women within the Western religions of Judaism and Christianity, there were safeguards in both practices to prevent social acceptance of infanticide by its adherents. The Jews were clearly against the taking of human life, and generally forbade the killing of any newborn infant. Maimonides (1135 - 1204 AD), the renowned Jewish philosopher and physician, pointed out that a single man was first created in Genesis, "to teach us that if any man destroys a single life in the world, scriptures imputes it to him as though he has destroyed the whole world." Each life, each spark of being, was a gift of God and only the Holy Father could extinguish its flame. Infanticide was therefore rare and never socially accepted by the Jews.

That some early Christian parents did indeed expose unwanted female infants to the elements was evident in the writings of the Church Fathers who were concerned over future acts of incest. Saint Justin Martyr (114-166 AD) cautioned that it was wicked to expose children for, "almost all those who are exposed are raised to prostitution." He then added a warning against consorting with prostitutes because it was thereby possible that one would be guilty of having intercourse with his own child. Clement of Alexandria (150-211 AD) similarly advised of this danger. For the most part, however, as with the Jews, this criminal act was not accepted by Christian Society, and infanticide remained a clearly impious and illegal act.

Evidence in India and ChinaDespite the clear theistic prohibitions against child-murder by the three major Western religions, female infanticide has been for centuries a prominent and socially acceptable event in two related areas of the world: India and China. Even today, the extent of the problem is measured in frightening proportions: "at least 60 million females in Asia are missing and feared dead, victims of nothing more than their sex. Worldwide, research suggests, the number of missing females may top 100 million. "The data is truly astounding, Estimates indicate that 30.5 million females are "missing" from China, 22.8 million in India, 3.1 million in Pakistan, 1.6 million in Bangladesh, 1.7 million in West Asia, 600,000 in Egypt, and 200,000 in Nepal.

Modern America"In 1966, the United States had 10,920 murders, and one out of every twenty-two was a child killed by a parent."Despite our predilection for considering modern civilization "advanced," the crime of infanticide has continued to pervade most contemporary cultures. The major difference between the nature of infanticide in the twentieth century, when compared to the rest of recorded history, however, is due to the impact of one modern medical advancement: the widespread availability of safe, and legal, means of abortion. The ability to easily terminate a pregnancy, and thereby eliminate an unwanted child before it is born, has had a profound effect on the prevalence of infanticide. The human species has killed almost 10% - 15% of all children born. The majority of these murders have been associated with reasons of necessity at least in the minds of the infanticide parent - or with untoward reactions against an unwanted birth.

Statistical Analysis - United StatesStatistically, the United States ranks high on the list of countries whose inhabitants kill their children. For infants under the age of one year, the American homicide rate is 11th in the world, while for ages one through four it is 1st and for ages five through fourteen it is fourth. From 1968 to 1975, infanticide of all ages accounted for almost 3.2% of all reported homicides in the United States.

The number of homicides of children under age 5 increased over the past two decades but declined recently

While the incidence of infanticide has increased, the rates have remained fairly stableInfanticide rates for -•black children have fluctuated, but are currently lower than in earlier years •white children have remained stable •children of other racial groups have declined

Neonaticide Statistics:The United States ranks first in child homicide under the age of four years. Forty-five percent (45%) of all child murders occur in the first 24 hours of life and thus can be classified as neonaticide (19,20). For the period 1982-1987, approximately 1.1% of all homicides have been of children under one year of age. Eight to nine percent (8%-9%) of all murders are of persons under eighteen years of age. Of these, almost twice as many sons as compared to daughters are victims (20).In half of the cases death occurs literally "at the hands of" the parent. Weapons are almost never used in neonaticide. Drowning, strangulation, head trauma, suffocation, and exposure are all common methods (20).

Examination of the body

Fundamental questions

•Is it the newborn cadaver?

•Was baby born as a live?

•How long did baby live after born?

•Was baby matured?

•What was death reason?

Maternal Neonaticide:Neonaticidal mothers are generally between sixteen and 38 years of age with almost 90% being 25 years of age or younger. Less than twenty percent are married. Less than 30% are seen as psychotic or depressed (1,13,21,22). The majority of neonaticidal mothers are unwed, poor, and have denied and/or concealed the pregnancy since conception. They frequently give birth alone and dispose of the baby as an abortion that occurs "too late."

Paternal Neonaticide:Unlike maternal neonaticide, there are very few cases of paternal neonaticide in the literature. Thus, any statement of the demographics of paternal neonaticide would be both meaningless and misleading, based on too small a caseload to reach statistically significant conclusions. In preparing for his 1970 paper on neonaticide, Resnick (23) reviewed the world literature from 1751 to 1968 and reported only two cases. The authors updated the literature review, contacted twenty metropolitan medical examiner's offices and found the two additional cases (3 and 4) reported below. As the original two cases (1 and 2) are rather brief they will be reproduced for the sake of a thorough review.

In many cases decomposition body is found in different places

This baby diet of malnutrition. There were no other physical abnormalities to otherwise account for death.

There were numerous cut and stabbed injures.

Decomposition body (ten days after death). Autopsy investigations are trouble some because cause of death may be impossible to diagnose.

                         

                   

This child is completely covered in a white susbstance of unknown properties. Obvious deformation of face and eyes

Child with unknown white substance covering almost the whole body. Severe deformities of mouth and eyes. The welts appear to indicate open wounds, or unformed skin tissue.

Trunk injures generally take form lacerations and hemorrhages to visceral organs Injures may occur without signs of external trauma

Asphyxia Compression of the neck, blockage of the airway

HemorrhagesIn the neck

Positive results of the stomach water test

Haemorrhages of the pleura

Positive results of the lung water test (part of right lung)

part of left lung

Acute emphysema of the lung (positive test for asphyxia and live)

Kidney haemorrhages

Normal placenta neonatal site

Normal placenta uterus site

The mature chorionic villi

Sign of the woman pregnancy

Gynaecological investigations

Injures of the external sexual organs

Degree of the uterus involution

Examining of the breast

Envariomental anamnesis

SIDS is the sudden and unexpected death of an apparently healthy infant, whose death remains unexplained after the performance of an adequate postmortem investigation including (1) an autopsy,(2) investigation of the scene and circumstances of the death and (3) exploration of the medical history of the infant and family.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS or Crib Death)

In a typical situation parents check on their supposedly sleeping infant to find him or her dead. This is the worse tragedy parents can face, a tragedy which leaves them with a sadness and a feeling of vulnerability that lasts throughout their lives. Since medicine can not tell them why their baby died, they blame themselves and often other innocent people. Their lives and those around them are changed forever.

Crib Death autopsy and scene investigations must be negative to make diagnosis

1. Infants who have been observed to stop breathing.

2. Infants who are siblings of babies who have died of SIDS.

3. Premature infants who have breathing problems or who are very tiny.

4. Infants who stop breathing after spitting up. 5. Infants whose mothers used drugs during

pregnancy. 6. Infants born to teen mothers who have already

had one or more babies.