Social Worker Sentenced to 2 Years in Kaikai Abuse Case; Court Cites Shirking Responsibility, Lack of Compensation Intent
A social worker, Chen Shangjie, involved in the child abuse and death of Kaikai, has been sentenced to two years in prison by the Taipei District Court. The court found her guilty of negligent homicide, citing her shirking of responsibility and lack of willingness to compensate Kaikai's grandmother. Kaikai suffered prolonged abuse from his caregiver from September to December 2023, resulting in 42 injuries and his eventual death. The court emphasized that Chen Shangjie, as a social worker, had a duty to protect the child but failed to act, despite observing clear signs of abuse during her visits.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 16, 2026 at 22:45
- 🔍 Collected: April 16, 2026 at 23:02 (16 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 16, 2026 at 23:17 (15 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(CNA Taipei, April 16) The Taipei District Court today sentenced Chen Shangjie, a social worker from the Child Welfare League Foundation, to two years in prison for negligent homicide in the case of child Kaikai's abuse and death. The verdict stated that Chen Shangjie shirks responsibility and denies her involvement, and has shown no willingness to compensate Kaikai's grandmother, thus the sentence was imposed according to the law.
The Taipei District Court's ruling indicated that Chen Shangjie, as a social worker for the Child Welfare League Foundation, was responsible for matching children for adoption and for family contact, visiting, and follow-up tracking of their well-being before adoption.
According to the verdict, Kaikai, due to his grandmother's inability to care for him, was referred to the Child Welfare League for adoption. After Chen Shangjie took on the case, the foundation arranged for Kaikai to be under the full-day care of a caregiver, Liu Caixuan. During the period of care from September 1 to December 24, 2023, Kaikai was subjected to prolonged abuse by Liu Caixuan, including being tied up, blindfolded, forced to stand naked for extended periods, fed garbage, and beaten inhumanely.
The verdict pointed out that through three home visits, Chen Shangjie observed a large bruise on Kaikai's forehead, noticeable thinness of his face, a sad and lonely expression, vacant eyes, the loss of three or four teeth, sparse hair, and recurring new and old bruises on his forehead. These signs showed a significant and drastic difference from when he was first placed with Liu Caixuan. Despite this, Chen Shangjie failed to actively fulfill her duty of care as a guarantor, blindly trusting Liu Caixuan's absurd excuses.
According to the verdict, Liu Caixuan escalated the abuse without effective supervision, leaving the less than two-year-old Kaikai, who had no means to seek help, in a state of isolation and helplessness for over three months. He suffered from depression due to improper injury and mental abuse, with at least 42 injuries from human violence, intentional, repeated, and prolonged physical abuse. He died around 1 AM on December 24, 2023, due to hypovolemic shock.
Regarding the grounds for conviction, the verdict stated that Chen Shangjie, as a guarantor, had the responsibility to coordinate with special institutions for hazard control and voluntarily assume protective duties.
However, the appellate court emphasized that the guarantor, who had substantial control but failed to act, was 'Chen Shangjie,' not the 'group of social workers' who performed their duties at the grassroots level.
The verdict stated that Chen Shangjie had a negligent oversight regarding the outcome of Kaikai's death, having the ability to foresee and prevent it but failing to do so, and that her negligent actions had a considerable causal relationship with Kaikai's death.
The verdict pointed out that Chen Shangjie did not urge Liu Caixuan to seek medical attention for Kaikai's frequent fevers, allergies, and injuries, nor did she actually inquire if Kaikai's injuries were receiving proper medical treatment. For Kaikai's abnormal condition, she merely asked verbally and then stated she understood or would assess, but in reality, she took no effective action.
According to the verdict, although Chen Shangjie argued that she was not the primary social worker, the court found that the law does not clearly define 'primary social worker,' and different social welfare units have different understandings of this concept. The key was to substantively determine whether Chen Shangjie had a guarantor status and a protective duty to track Kaikai's care. The appellate court determined that Chen Shangjie had a guarantor status through voluntary assumption of duty, therefore her defense was unconvincing.
The appellate court considered that Chen Shangjie's actions constituted negligent homicide under the Criminal Code. The court considered that Chen Shangjie, a social worker specializing in adoption, should have been a protective umbrella for vulnerable children but betrayed her duty. As the key figure who could piece together the truth of the abuse and rescue Kaikai, she passively failed to act and neglected her guarantor duties.
The appellate court, taking into account Chen Shangjie's post-conviction attitude of shirking responsibility and denial of guilt, her lack of willingness to reach a settlement with Kaikai's grandmother or compensate for damages, and the prosecutor's request for a heavier sentence, while also considering the high degree of her breach of duty, the loss of Kaikai's life, and the irreparable pain and self-reproach of the family, determined the crime caused immense harm. Considering all circumstances, including her past conduct, she was sentenced to two years of fixed-term imprisonment.
Regarding the acquittal, the verdict stated that the prosecution accused Chen Shangjie of falsifying official documents in the Child Welfare League's work records to conceal the negligent homicide, including entries like "assisted caregiver in sharing recent photos of the child with the maternal grandmother" and "informed the maternal grandmother that the child's condition was suspected to be due to overfeeding." The court believed Chen Shangjie was involved in the crimes of exercising falsification of official documents.
According to the verdict, Chen Shangjie argued that "已" (yi, meaning 'already') was a typo for "以" (yi, meaning 'with'), a mistake during typing. The appellate court found that Chen Shangjie had precedents of similar phonetic errors in her transmitted messages, so her defense was plausible. Furthermore, although Chen Shangjie mistakenly identified a "doctor" as a "nurse," the court attributed this to memory errors under the urgent and chaotic conditions in the emergency room at the time of the incident. Therefore, she was acquitted on these charges. The case can be appealed. (Editor: Chang Ya-ching) 1150416
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(CNA Taipei, April 16) The Taipei District Court today sentenced Chen Shangjie, a social worker from the Child Welfare League Foundation, to two years in prison for negligent homicide in the case of child Kaikai's abuse and death. The verdict stated that Chen Shangjie shirks responsibility and denies her involvement, and has shown no willingness to compensate Kaikai's grandmother, thus the sentence was imposed according to the law.
The Taipei District Court's ruling indicated that Chen Shangjie, as a social worker for the Child Welfare League Foundation, was responsible for matching children for adoption and for family contact, visiting, and follow-up tracking of their well-being before adoption.
According to the verdict, Kaikai, due to his grandmother's inability to care for him, was referred to the Child Welfare League for adoption. After Chen Shangjie took on the case, the foundation arranged for Kaikai to be under the full-day care of a caregiver, Liu Caixuan. During the period of care from September 1 to December 24, 2023, Kaikai was subjected to prolonged abuse by Liu Caixuan, including being tied up, blindfolded, forced to stand naked for extended periods, fed garbage, and beaten inhumanely.
The verdict pointed out that through three home visits, Chen Shangjie observed a large bruise on Kaikai's forehead, noticeable thinness of his face, a sad and lonely expression, vacant eyes, the loss of three or four teeth, sparse hair, and recurring new and old bruises on his forehead. These signs showed a significant and drastic difference from when he was first placed with Liu Caixuan. Despite this, Chen Shangjie failed to actively fulfill her duty of care as a guarantor, blindly trusting Liu Caixuan's absurd excuses.
According to the verdict, Liu Caixuan escalated the abuse without effective supervision, leaving the less than two-year-old Kaikai, who had no means to seek help, in a state of isolation and helplessness for over three months. He suffered from depression due to improper injury and mental abuse, with at least 42 injuries from human violence, intentional, repeated, and prolonged physical abuse. He died around 1 AM on December 24, 2023, due to hypovolemic shock.
Regarding the grounds for conviction, the verdict stated that Chen Shangjie, as a guarantor, had the responsibility to coordinate with special institutions for hazard control and voluntarily assume protective duties.
However, the appellate court emphasized that the guarantor, who had substantial control but failed to act, was 'Chen Shangjie,' not the 'group of social workers' who performed their duties at the grassroots level.
The verdict stated that Chen Shangjie had a negligent oversight regarding the outcome of Kaikai's death, having the ability to foresee and prevent it but failing to do so, and that her negligent actions had a considerable causal relationship with Kaikai's death.
The verdict pointed out that Chen Shangjie did not urge Liu Caixuan to seek medical attention for Kaikai's frequent fevers, allergies, and injuries, nor did she actually inquire if Kaikai's injuries were receiving proper medical treatment. For Kaikai's abnormal condition, she merely asked verbally and then stated she understood or would assess, but in reality, she took no effective action.
According to the verdict, although Chen Shangjie argued that she was not the primary social worker, the court found that the law does not clearly define 'primary social worker,' and different social welfare units have different understandings of this concept. The key was to substantively determine whether Chen Shangjie had a guarantor status and a protective duty to track Kaikai's care. The appellate court determined that Chen Shangjie had a guarantor status through voluntary assumption of duty, therefore her defense was unconvincing.
The appellate court considered that Chen Shangjie's actions constituted negligent homicide under the Criminal Code. The court considered that Chen Shangjie, a social worker specializing in adoption, should have been a protective umbrella for vulnerable children but betrayed her duty. As the key figure who could piece together the truth of the abuse and rescue Kaikai, she passively failed to act and neglected her guarantor duties.
The appellate court, taking into account Chen Shangjie's post-conviction attitude of shirking responsibility and denial of guilt, her lack of willingness to reach a settlement with Kaikai's grandmother or compensate for damages, and the prosecutor's request for a heavier sentence, while also considering the high degree of her breach of duty, the loss of Kaikai's life, and the irreparable pain and self-reproach of the family, determined the crime caused immense harm. Considering all circumstances, including her past conduct, she was sentenced to two years of fixed-term imprisonment.
Regarding the acquittal, the verdict stated that the prosecution accused Chen Shangjie of falsifying official documents in the Child Welfare League's work records to conceal the negligent homicide, including entries like "assisted caregiver in sharing recent photos of the child with the maternal grandmother" and "informed the maternal grandmother that the child's condition was suspected to be due to overfeeding." The court believed Chen Shangjie was involved in the crimes of exercising falsification of official documents.
According to the verdict, Chen Shangjie argued that "已" (yi, meaning 'already') was a typo for "以" (yi, meaning 'with'), a mistake during typing. The appellate court found that Chen Shangjie had precedents of similar phonetic errors in her transmitted messages, so her defense was plausible. Furthermore, although Chen Shangjie mistakenly identified a "doctor" as a "nurse," the court attributed this to memory errors under the urgent and chaotic conditions in the emergency room at the time of the incident. Therefore, she was acquitted on these charges. The case can be appealed. (Editor: Chang Ya-ching) 1150416
Stand with the truth. Your every sponsorship is a force to protect the freedom of the press.
Download the CNA "First News" APP to get the latest news in real-time.
Text, images, and audio on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.