Child Physical Abuse
Weapons of Abuse
Besides their own hands, abusers will often use different items as weapons when striking a child. These are usually weapons of opportunity, i.e. the first things abusers can lay their hands on. Sometimes, however, an abuser will have a favored item used solely for disciplinary purposes.
Examples of these would include a father’s specific belt, a wooden spoon or paddle, or a hair brush. Weapons are often associated with cases of excessive discipline.
Weapons can be classified based upon the types of injuries they cause. Fixed rigid weapons such as paddles or sticks will leave contact impressions on only one surface of the body. Coat hangers, handles, and paddles are fixed rigid weapons.
On the other hand, a flexible weapon such as a whip, belt, or cord will wrap around the edges of the body or muscle and make contact with more than one surface of the body. An open ended cord will appear as a single mark. A closed end cord, such as a belt or cord being held at both ends to form a loop, will appear as two parallel lines with a loop at the end.
Important Tip: An abuser will hit a child more often with an inanimate object than he will with his hands since the weapon is protecting the hands from feeling the full force of the blows being administered. When questioning an abuser, recording the steps taken to retrieve a weapon confirms that he had opportunity to make a decision other than to strike the child.
