Politics > Politics-USA > Arizona State Rep. Jonathan Paton, R-Tucson: Paton will probe ChildProtective Services role in '04 oversight of abuse...
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Politics > Politics-USA |
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"fx" |
| Date: |
23 May 2007 11:36:02 PM |
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Arizona State Rep. Jonathan Paton, R-Tucson: Paton will probe ChildProtective Services role in '04 oversight of abuse... |
Paton will probe CPS role in '04 oversight of abuse
SHERYL KORNMAN
Tucson Citizen
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/52571.php
State Rep. Jonathan Paton, R-Tucson, said last week he is troubled by
what he read in a May 15 Citizen story about a Child Protective
Services' case manager who had a romantic relationship with a man whose
children's welfare she once had been responsible for.
Paton is holding closed hearings in Phoenix next month on CPS in
response to the deaths of several children in Tucson in which CPS had
been involved with their welfare.
The Citizen story was about a December 2004 CPS report that
describedCPS's 10-year involvement with the man's family and illustrated
the extraordinary steps CPS will take to keep families together.
Paton said he wonders why the court gave custody of three child-abuse
victims back to their father just six weeks after he was found by CPS to
have physically abused his young daughter in 2002. The father was not
charged with abuse despite numerous substantiated reports by CPS of
previous abuse and neglect of the children.
Paton cited comments by the man's girlfriend in the report, who told
police the children were liars and said she never saw the father strike
his children. One of the children told investigators the woman hit the
child with a hairbrush.
The girlfriend was the family's CPS case manager in a 2000 child abuse
report.
"This child is credible about the abuse but not credible enough?" Paton
asked, referring to CPS accepting the girl's comments about her father's
abuse but not the allegation about being struck by the CPS caseworker
girlfriend.
The Citizen is not naming the father or the girlfriend to protect the
identity of the children. The claims of the father's abuse in the report
were substantiated by police and CPS.
Liz Barker Alvarez, spokeswoman for CPS, said she does not know if the
woman is still romantically involved with the man.
Paton said the handling of this family's case by the child welfare
agency is cause for review.
"My first concern is that this guy, from all the indications complied
(in 2002 with the CPS case plan). He checked off all the boxes,
parenting classes, drug abuse classes. He did all of those things, but
he beat his kids and he got his kids back (in 2002)."
Alvarez said last week that decisions to return a child to a parent's
custody are not made by CPS.
She said a juvenile court judge makes that decision "with input" from
CPS, the child's court-appointed attorney, the parent's attorney and the
Attorney General's Office, which represents CPS. Input also comes from
treatment providers who have worked with the child and parent and who
give the court their own reports in the case.
Alvarez said each CPS case is different and each family is different and
cases are handled accordingly.
The man and his children have been successfully reunited by CPS,
according to a volunteer who worked with the family at Pima County
Juvenile Court.
Joyce Brainard said in a letter to a Citizen reporter that she was the
Court Appointed Special Advocate for the children andworked on the CPS
case plan for "reunification" of the children with their father.
Details of CASA volunteers' work are not public record.
In her e-mailed letter, Brainard said, "It was a struggle for them and,
unfortunately, the first CPS case manager exhibited the most
inappropriate behavior that hurt this case more than you reported.
"This family was reunified and are still doing better than we could have
imagined.
"The kids are healthy and doing fine and Dad is being (supportive) and
interactive with his children.
"I only wish you could have expended as much energy in your research to
find out what successfully happened to this family as you did to report
all the negative events in the early part of this case."
The Citizen attempted to speak with the father but he hung up on a
reporter when contacted by phone. CPS case workers are prevented by law
from commenting on their cases and the case records are closed to public
inspection. The 2004 CPS report about the family was mailed to the
Citizen anonymously.
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL
SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....
CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.
every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com
Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS
*Perpetrators of Maltreatment*
Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5
Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that
are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per
100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse
and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the
citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold
parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY
government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and
death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more
human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which
they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that
they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when
children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a
bunch of social workers.
BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...
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