A tragic trend is getting attention in Tallahassee.
The deaths of young children at the hands of their mothers' boyfriends or husbands is a crime on the rise, and a state agency wants moms to think twice about who they trust to watch their children.
As reported by The Ledger of Lakeland, the Child Abuse Death Review Committee has released a brochure called "Who's Watching Your Child."
It warns mothers that children who live with unrelated adults are nearly 50 times as likely to die from abuse as those who live with two biological parents.
"Many children who die from physical abuse are killed by the mother's boyfriend," the brochure warns.
In Polk County alone, six young children died at the hands of their mothers' stepfathers or boyfriends in the last five years. One case went to trial and a new one was filed last week.