Double jeopardy: Risk assessment in the context of child maltreatment and domestic violence

Investigations of child maltreatment often involve domestic violence, but there is little guidance about how to properly assess risk in such cases. Empirically validated risk assessment tools have been used successfully in child welfare and, to a lesser extent, in cases involving domestic violence, but these have generally not been utilized in tandem. Using the allegation of child maltreatment as the entry point for services, this paper proposes a nested risk assessment framework whereby risk of both child maltreatment and domestic violence are considered simultaneously using two different standardized instruments.