A demographic profile of the United States, including the infant mortality rate, is followed by a brief case study of the failure of a U.S. child protection system to prevent the death of a child at the hands of her father. A review of the history of child abuse and child protection services in the United States notes that during the first 100 years of the country's existence, societal response to child abuse and neglect involved either ignoring it or removing the child from the family. There were few attempts to ameliorate abuse by providing the support needed to educate families, rehabilitate parents, and keep the family intact. Since then, Federal and State laws have mandated resources to prevent child abuse and identify alternative interventions other than removal of children from their natural families. In 1993 additional changes to the Social Security Act were made to support services and education for high-risk families before abuse and neglect occurred. Regarding prevalence, reports of child maltreatment have increased dramatically over the last 15 years, with the number of investigated cases in 1997 approaching 3 million. Other sections of this chapter address the definition of child abuse and neglect, investigative procedures, the protection of victims, legal innovations, and prevention. 49 references