The Times Record > Opinion > Editorials > Improving child welfare services
Published:
Wednesday, February 23, 2011 2:07 PM EST
As lawmakers and Gov. Paul LePage undertake a top-to-bottom review of state government, with an eye toward improving services and also reducing costs, they might want to take a look at the latest Child Welfare Services Ombudsman’s report for inspiration.
The 2010 report, issued last Thursday by the Maine Children’s Alliance, offers a detailed analysis of the state’s child welfare services by Dean Crocker, president of Maine Children’s Alliance. In his additional role as ombudsman, Crocker investigates complaints regarding child welfare services overseen by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services.
His annual report, then, can be seen as a kind of report card on how well we’re doing — or not — in meeting the needs of children suffering from abuse, neglect or exploitation, or who might be awaiting adoption or placement in a foster home.
These, obviously, are children we would want to make sure our state government is doing everything it can to ensure their needs are fully met. We don’t want to “nickel and dime” the services that might be required, nor do we want to spend money needlessly paying for services that don’t work and might even put children at greater risk.
The good news, says Crocker, is that “fewer children enter state custody, more remain secure in their communities, and costs to the state are greatly reduced.”
He attributes those positive findings to a new emphasis on placing children referred to the state with “kinship families” whenever it is possible to do so safely.
“When children are placed with relatives, friends or neighbors, they have the continuity of staying in familiar surroundings with people they know and trust,” Crocker said in a release accompanying the 22-page report. “This sort of stability is crucial to helping children thrive during vulnerable periods.”
Caseworkers now emphasize this as a goal as they work closely with families to keep the child safe and the family intact. A key factor in ensuring that new approach succeeds is making sure child welfare services and support are provided in timely fashion as needed.
From 2004 to 2010, the number of Maine children in “kinship care” has jumped from 17.6 percent to 38.9 percent. With more children being placed in “kinship care,” rather than being placed in DHHS state care or custody, the state’s residential costs have dropped 86 percent from 2004 to 2010.
More effective care at less cost is exactly what we hope will take place elsewhere in state government. But let’s not attribute this one example to some kind of magic.
As Crocker notes throughout his 2010 report, the positive trends in child welfare services occurred because, first and foremost, advocates for children worked closely with DHHS and families to make sure the needs of children referred to the state were the top priority. And the very fact that Maine has an ombudsman — someone who independently investigates complaints and works with stakeholders to achieve what’s best for the child — obviously creates accountability for the state’s child welfare programs. But families must be held accountable, too.
The ombudsman’s yearly report provides, then, a benchmark for measuring ongoing improvements in Maine’s child welfare services. It also flags areas that still need improvement. In that regard, we urge lawmakers and the governor to heed Crocker’s call for further attention being paid to unresolved issues.
“Too often, youth in state custody still face uncertain futures when they leave the system,” he says. “Maine still fails to identify a large percent of children at risk. And we need to provide more support and education for the children’s caregivers and and community.”
In other words, we can — and must — do better.
letters@timesrecord.com
Isabella Brooke Knightly and Austin Gamez-Knightly
In Memory of my Loving Husband, William F. Knightly Jr. Murdered by ILLEGAL Palliative Care at a Nashua, NH Hospital
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
A Families-First Approach to Foster Care - NYTimes.com
A Families-First Approach to Foster Care - NYTimes.com
It’s difficult to change systems even when they are widely acknowledged to be broken. That’s the situation facing the nation’s foster care system. According to the government’s most recent estimate, there were roughly 424,000 young people in foster care as of Sept. 30, 2009. Each year, about 30,000 of them turn 18 (or 21 in some states) and “age out” of foster care. What happens to them?
The results are not encouraging, according to a major study published in 2010. Although there are many wonderful foster parents and many foster care alumni who overcome tough odds, most struggle to live successfully as adults. By age 23 or 24, fewer than half of the former foster care youths in the study were working. Close to a quarter had no high school diploma or equivalency degree and only 6 percent had completed a two- or four-year post-secondary degree. Nearly 60 percent of males had been convicted of a crime and 77 percent of females had been pregnant.
When you are dealing with complicated social, emotional and mental health problems, there are no easy answers. But today there is a promising alternative to foster care that is gaining traction — although it faces an uphill battle because it represents a departure from long-held assumptions in our child welfare system. The idea is to help youths return to their original families wherever it is possible to do so safely by providing their parents, or in some cases other relatives, with an extensive array of in-home support services.
It’s difficult to change systems even when they are widely acknowledged to be broken. That’s the situation facing the nation’s foster care system. According to the government’s most recent estimate, there were roughly 424,000 young people in foster care as of Sept. 30, 2009. Each year, about 30,000 of them turn 18 (or 21 in some states) and “age out” of foster care. What happens to them?
The results are not encouraging, according to a major study published in 2010. Although there are many wonderful foster parents and many foster care alumni who overcome tough odds, most struggle to live successfully as adults. By age 23 or 24, fewer than half of the former foster care youths in the study were working. Close to a quarter had no high school diploma or equivalency degree and only 6 percent had completed a two- or four-year post-secondary degree. Nearly 60 percent of males had been convicted of a crime and 77 percent of females had been pregnant.
When you are dealing with complicated social, emotional and mental health problems, there are no easy answers. But today there is a promising alternative to foster care that is gaining traction — although it faces an uphill battle because it represents a departure from long-held assumptions in our child welfare system. The idea is to help youths return to their original families wherever it is possible to do so safely by providing their parents, or in some cases other relatives, with an extensive array of in-home support services.
5 Million Dollar Law Suit Against US Child Protective Services
5 Million Dollar Law Suit Against US Child Protective Services | Newstabulous - Headlines
The Nastic family has been returned to normal at last!
After eight agonizing months, Damjan and Nastasja are playing with their old toys again and sleeping in their own beds.
Their parents, Vuk and Verica Nastic, are thrilled, but unable to fully enjoy this reunion from emotional shock the whole family endured in past months.
Although they have been encouraged by many to sue US Cild Protective Services for illegally taking their children away from them, they are still not thinking in that direction. Lawyers estimate that this law suit could reach anywhere from three to five million dollars in compensation.
To everyone’s surprise, the chief prosecutor of the Agency for Protection of Children said at the beginning of the trial that only three days ago, they had seen all of our photographs and that the Agency wanted the children to be returned to their parents. They were dropping all of the charges.
This just added fuel to the already burning frustration following this case!
The judge said it was so shameful and outrageous what he had just learned in regards to the case only presented to him just today. He stated that he would have never ordered the children to be taken away from the parents in the first place based on this evidence.
The prosecutor also addressed parents before exiting and said, “Too bad we saw things in a real light only three days ago. I can only apologize that we didn’t see the whole picture earlier during past eight months.”
So, while reunited and finally happy after months of mental torture and suffering, they can’t help but ask themselves if it could happen again to them, or to someone else!
The Nastic family has been returned to normal at last!
After eight agonizing months, Damjan and Nastasja are playing with their old toys again and sleeping in their own beds.
Their parents, Vuk and Verica Nastic, are thrilled, but unable to fully enjoy this reunion from emotional shock the whole family endured in past months.
Although they have been encouraged by many to sue US Cild Protective Services for illegally taking their children away from them, they are still not thinking in that direction. Lawyers estimate that this law suit could reach anywhere from three to five million dollars in compensation.
To everyone’s surprise, the chief prosecutor of the Agency for Protection of Children said at the beginning of the trial that only three days ago, they had seen all of our photographs and that the Agency wanted the children to be returned to their parents. They were dropping all of the charges.
This just added fuel to the already burning frustration following this case!
The judge said it was so shameful and outrageous what he had just learned in regards to the case only presented to him just today. He stated that he would have never ordered the children to be taken away from the parents in the first place based on this evidence.
The prosecutor also addressed parents before exiting and said, “Too bad we saw things in a real light only three days ago. I can only apologize that we didn’t see the whole picture earlier during past eight months.”
So, while reunited and finally happy after months of mental torture and suffering, they can’t help but ask themselves if it could happen again to them, or to someone else!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
TODAYMoms - 6-year-old committed to psych ward against mom's wishes
TODAYMoms - 6-year-old committed to psych ward against mom's wishes
Have you seen this story about a 6-year-old boy who was committed to a psych ward for 48 hours because of a violent picture he drew at school -- against his mother's wishes?
A six-year-old California boy was institutionalized for 48 hours after drawing a violent picture at school. NBC's Kim Baldonado reports.
Experts say this could happen to any parent: Mental health professionals have the power to put any child in a 72-hour psych hold, without the parents' permission, if they think it's necessary.
In 6-year-old Jack Dorman's case, he drew a violent picture and wrote that he wanted to die. Syndi Dorman says her son suffers from separation anxiety and was having a rough time because her husband was in the midst of being deployed to Iraq. She says she told school officials she would get him to a therapist that day, but they said it was out of her hands and an ambulance was already on its way.
Have you seen this story about a 6-year-old boy who was committed to a psych ward for 48 hours because of a violent picture he drew at school -- against his mother's wishes?
A six-year-old California boy was institutionalized for 48 hours after drawing a violent picture at school. NBC's Kim Baldonado reports.
Experts say this could happen to any parent: Mental health professionals have the power to put any child in a 72-hour psych hold, without the parents' permission, if they think it's necessary.
In 6-year-old Jack Dorman's case, he drew a violent picture and wrote that he wanted to die. Syndi Dorman says her son suffers from separation anxiety and was having a rough time because her husband was in the midst of being deployed to Iraq. She says she told school officials she would get him to a therapist that day, but they said it was out of her hands and an ambulance was already on its way.
Penn. judge convicted in detention center scheme also faces lawsuit - CNN.com
Penn. judge convicted in detention center scheme also faces lawsuit - CNN.com
- A Pennsylvania judge recently convicted for putting juveniles into "for-profit" detention centers is being sued, a civil rights attorney said Monday.
The class-action civil lawsuit was originally filed in 2009. It names several defendants, including Mark Ciavarella, whose alleged illegal actions date back to 2003, on and off the bench.
The former Luzerne County judge was found guilty Friday of 12 of 39 racketeering and fraud charges for accepting millions of dollars in bribes from friends who owned detention centers to which he sent juveniles.
"I can't say I've ever seen something as bad as kids being incarcerated for no reason at all," attorney Barry Dyller told CNN affiliate WBRE-TV in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The case against Ciavarella made national headlines when a distraught mother lashed out at the former judge Friday after his conviction.
Sandy Fonzo's 17-year-old son, Edward Kenzakowski, spent six months in a detention center after Ciavarella sentenced him for possession of drug paraphernalia.
According to Fonzo, her son, who had no prior record, was never able to recover and eventually took his own life.
"He (Ciavarella) killed his spirit," Fonzo told CNN, "He crushed him, and he didn't help him." She said her son was full of resentment and pent-up anger after being sent to the detention center.
"He was just never the same," Fonzo said.
She said she came to the courthouse believing Ciavarella would be taken straight to jail. But when she found out he was going home with his daughter, she was shocked and angered, and she shouted at Ciavarella.
"Do you remember me?" Fonzo screamed, lunging toward Ciavarella, "Do you remember my son?" she screamed again. "He's gone," she cried, "He shot himself in the heart, you scumbag!"
Fonzo was then subdued and moved away from Ciavarella.
The class-action suit alleges that Ciavarella and another judge devised a "material scheme to abuse the juvenile system and deprive allegedly delinquent children and their parents of clearly established civil rights for significant personal gain."
The suit alleges violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act; civil conspiracy; wrongful imprisonment; and violation of due process and civil rights.
It also alleges the activity goes back several years and includes Ciavarella and his wife, Cynthia; and another former judge, Michael Conahan, and his wife, Barbara.
It names the facilities used by the judges, their owners and anyone who helped build or operate them, or collect any money in connection with the "alleged scheme."
Dyller said families whose children had been wrongly imprisoned began reaching out to him after charges were brought against Ciavarella.
"Thousands of kids appeared before Mark Ciavarella between 2003 and 2008. That's the time period we're looking at," Dyller told WBRE.
The suit also alleges the defendants "prohibited or discouraged juveniles from having legal representation during court proceedings," creating the potential for an increased number of juvenile offenders to be sent to specific detention facilities.
Ciavarella is free on bond until his sentencing. He could face up to 157 years in prison.
"There is no justice," Fonzo said.
"(Ciavarella) will never receive my sentence," she said. "I have nothing."
- A Pennsylvania judge recently convicted for putting juveniles into "for-profit" detention centers is being sued, a civil rights attorney said Monday.
The class-action civil lawsuit was originally filed in 2009. It names several defendants, including Mark Ciavarella, whose alleged illegal actions date back to 2003, on and off the bench.
The former Luzerne County judge was found guilty Friday of 12 of 39 racketeering and fraud charges for accepting millions of dollars in bribes from friends who owned detention centers to which he sent juveniles.
"I can't say I've ever seen something as bad as kids being incarcerated for no reason at all," attorney Barry Dyller told CNN affiliate WBRE-TV in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The case against Ciavarella made national headlines when a distraught mother lashed out at the former judge Friday after his conviction.
Sandy Fonzo's 17-year-old son, Edward Kenzakowski, spent six months in a detention center after Ciavarella sentenced him for possession of drug paraphernalia.
According to Fonzo, her son, who had no prior record, was never able to recover and eventually took his own life.
"He (Ciavarella) killed his spirit," Fonzo told CNN, "He crushed him, and he didn't help him." She said her son was full of resentment and pent-up anger after being sent to the detention center.
"He was just never the same," Fonzo said.
She said she came to the courthouse believing Ciavarella would be taken straight to jail. But when she found out he was going home with his daughter, she was shocked and angered, and she shouted at Ciavarella.
"Do you remember me?" Fonzo screamed, lunging toward Ciavarella, "Do you remember my son?" she screamed again. "He's gone," she cried, "He shot himself in the heart, you scumbag!"
Fonzo was then subdued and moved away from Ciavarella.
The class-action suit alleges that Ciavarella and another judge devised a "material scheme to abuse the juvenile system and deprive allegedly delinquent children and their parents of clearly established civil rights for significant personal gain."
The suit alleges violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act; civil conspiracy; wrongful imprisonment; and violation of due process and civil rights.
It also alleges the activity goes back several years and includes Ciavarella and his wife, Cynthia; and another former judge, Michael Conahan, and his wife, Barbara.
It names the facilities used by the judges, their owners and anyone who helped build or operate them, or collect any money in connection with the "alleged scheme."
Dyller said families whose children had been wrongly imprisoned began reaching out to him after charges were brought against Ciavarella.
"Thousands of kids appeared before Mark Ciavarella between 2003 and 2008. That's the time period we're looking at," Dyller told WBRE.
The suit also alleges the defendants "prohibited or discouraged juveniles from having legal representation during court proceedings," creating the potential for an increased number of juvenile offenders to be sent to specific detention facilities.
Ciavarella is free on bond until his sentencing. He could face up to 157 years in prison.
"There is no justice," Fonzo said.
"(Ciavarella) will never receive my sentence," she said. "I have nothing."
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