UK Apologizes to 'Brit Fritzl' Daughters

British authorities publicly apologized yesterday for failing to protect two women from the violent, domineering father who raped them repeatedly over 25 years and forced them to bear 9 children. An official review of the case found the family had been in contact with 28 different social services agencies and 100 members of staff over 35 years, none of whom did anything to stop the abuse, the Telegraph reports.

Social workers failed to act despite repeated allegations of incest because they feared they could be sued for breaching confidentiality, the review notes. The report "shows what we said all along—that we had told social services he was abusing his daughters but they did nothing," the man's sister-in-law told the Daily Mail. The father labeled "the British Fritzl" is now serving a life sentence for his crimes.
(More British Fritzl stories.)