By Connie Reguli

May 2022

I watched the very first video posted by city commissioner David Oh from Philadelphia. He was shocked and distressed over what he heard. That was 2017. I, however, I was already well trenched in the whole dark world of child protective services.

The stories are the same. The state social workers lie in reports, they get secret ex parte orders, they refuse to follow their own policies, they refuse relative placement, they flip case work deed multiple times cause if more delay, they refuse to turn over records, and they constantly tell state legislators that they don’t have brought money.

The final report for Philadelphia is here.

But let’s review.

The Philadelphia special commission found that in 2017, the City of Philly removed more children per capita than any major city in the US. Three times more that New York and four times more than Chicago. The commission was set with the task to determine why. The committee divided itself into subcommittees on the following topics: policy and procedure and DHS and family court. Through case studies, public forums, surveys, and a diverse committee membership, they made several recommendations.

Now is the time for me to say that I agree wholeheartedly with their recommendations and I have set forth the very same recommendations for years. That’s okay though. I am one person, one voice, one attorney, one advocate, and one lobbyist. I am excited and encouraged that the rumble for reform has risen to the next tier. Here are how their ideas shook out:

On Policy and Procedure: The commission found faulty reporting and wrongful removals. This was due to several issues. Poverty is interpreted as neglect. Neglect has no standard definition. Children who could remain in their home with support were removed. Record keeping and reports were faulty. Children who were witnesses to domestic violence in the home were removed which caused more trauma for the child and hindered the reporting of domestic violence. Mandating reporting removes the reasonable discretion of professionals. Families were not provided adequate notice of their constitutional rights including Miranda rights against self-incrimination. Siblings were confiscated at birth when a parent had a history with the system without an assessment of the ability of the parent. Minorities were being disproportionately impacted. And centralized registries were being used without due process.

On DHA and Family Court: Parents were not adequately represented once they entered the system. Children’s true interest and constitutional rights were not being represented. Family court systems were closed and secretive. Cases would linger in the system without resolution.

Some of the recommendations ring a familiar tone and must be applied broadly across the United States:

The list boils down to something like this:

• The Courts should be open for public viewing. This helps to provide citizen and press oversight. The purveyors and can be given restrictions on the names and identify of the children and parents could move the court to close the proceeding.
• All social workers must wear body cams and record all interviews and meetings.
• All cases must be completed on a timely basis.
• Child representation needs to follow the model of the ABA (American Bar Association) and not the historic “best interest” model.
• Parents need quality representation and a multidisciplinary approach to resolving their involvement with CPS.
• Families need to have effective counsel earlier in the process. The commission found that waiting until the parents were already facing litigation was too late. They needed earlier representation and an early Miranda warning.
• That the refusal to cooperate with CPS alone should never be a reason for removal of a child.
• That neglect needed a clearer definition and should not be a reason for removal unless there was sufficient evidence to show harm to the child. Most of the neglect cases in Philly were poverty related. The commission declared that poverty in and of itself was never a cause for removal.
• The determinations of capacity and fitness to parent needed to consist of independent assessments.
• Mandatory reporting needed to end.

So here were are again. Two thousand twenty-years B.C. in the United States of America and we are at the same precipice that we have been at for the last ten years at least. Those who have worked in the area of child welfare consistently since 2002 have seen the effects of a incompetent and grossly powerful agency

I look forward to seeing how Philly does this and will be reaching out to these lawmakers and leaders to more support. Thank you David Oh and Richard Wexler for being brave warriors in this battle.

My short form consult is found here

Connie Reguli.