Child Abuse in Minnesota

The State of Minnesota identifies four types of maltreatment:
• Neglect
• Physical abuse
• Mental injury
• Sexual abuse

Minnesota’s child welfare data dashboard is dedicated to tracking the outcomes of children involved in the child welfare system after cases of abuse. Learn more about how the data is tracked, and find links to reports on state and federal progress in meeting measures that ensure children:

Are safe
Remain with their families when safe to do so
Receive services so children can return safely home and receive support to remain at home safely
Live in safe, stable homes with relatives whenever possible
Achieve permanency through adoption, if needed

To learn more about how to recognize and define different types of abuse, visit the Department of Human Service’s page, “What is considered abuse and neglect in Minnesota?”

Child Abuse Statistics in Minnesota

In 2020:

31,258 child maltreatment reports were investigated, which was a 16.7% decrease from 2019.
4.8 of every 1,000 children in Minnesota will be subject to child maltreatment.
22 deaths and 23 life-threatening injuries resulted from child maltreatment.
61% of Minnesota children who experienced maltreatment experienced neglect, and 23% of children who experienced maltreatment experienced physical abuse.
Children ages 8 and younger represented 58.4% of maltreatment assessments.
American Indian children and children who identify with two or more races were about 4.6 times more likely to be involved in completed maltreatment assessments/investigations than white children, while African American children were 2.6 times more likely to be involved.

Minnesota met the federal standard for maltreatment recurrence in 2020, with only 5.5% of all children having a recurrence of maltreatment within 12 months of the first determination.

To learn more about child maltreatment statistics in Minnesota, read the Department of Human Service’s 2020 Minnesota Child Maltreatment Report.

Reporting abuse

To report a case of abuse, this Department of Human Services page lists the phone numbers for all of Minnesota’s county and tribal child protection agencies.

Find the phone number to report abuse