Maricla Marrone, Serena Corradi, Michele Telegrafo, Alessandra Stellacci, Benedetta Pia De Luca, Pierluigi Caricato, Davide Ferorelli, Stefania Lonero, Francesco Vinci & Sabrina Leonardi
The phenomenon of abuse and neglect affects not only minors but also the elderly. The authors present four cases that demonstrate how negligent maltreatment is a more frequent phenomenon than abuse classically understood as the result of violent physical maltreatment. The identification of the causal/noncausal role of negligent behavior in fatal cases must, due to the particular difficulty in defining it, make use of a complete and accurate forensic investigation. However, the universal character of this type of maltreatment should not be overlooked since it could affect not only the age groups that classically, even according to the most recent international forensic considerations, are involved in the phenomenon but any individual, of any age, who for pathological conditions or pathophysiological is in the position of having to depend on another person for his state of health and well-being.