Child Protective Services (“CPS”) (or Child Welfare Services (“CWS”) as it is known in San Diego) is a county agency charged with ensuring the safety of children – a job at which they sometimes succeed and oftentimes fail.
When CPS InvestigatesCPS investigates parents or other caregivers when there has been an allegation that child abuse has occurred. Such abuse can consist of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or neglect, and investigations can even target the other parent (the non-offending one) for failing to protect against some sort of abuse. Not every allegation leads to an investigation – It is within the discretion of CPS as to when an investigation is to be conducted.
CPS InvestigationsWhen CPS (or CWS) investigates you or a family you know, a social worker will attempt to determine whether abuse has occurred. The CPS social worker will do so in a number of ways. First, the social worker usually goes to the child’s school to speak with the child away from the person being investigated. The social worker must ask the child if s/he would be more comfortable with someone else in the room, and, if so, grant that request. Next, the social worker will begin speaking with people who can support the allegations of abuse (such as the person who made the allegation, witnesses, police officers, school personnel, doctors, etc.). Only then will the social worker speak with the parents, and will usually do so by showing up unannounced at the parents’ home. It is important to note that people are under no obligation to speak with social workers (meaning you don’t have to speak with them, and it might not be in your interest to do so), and individuals can demand that an attorney be present during these conversations. During the investigation, a social worker may try to get the parents to agree to a “safety plan” which puts in place rules regarding child custody and visitation to remain in effect until the investigation’s end. At the end of thirty days (or thereabouts), the social worker will find that the allegation of abuse is “substantiated” (meaning the social worker believes the abuse occurred), “inconclusive” (meaning the social worker doesn’t know whether the abuse occurred), or “unfounded” (meaning the social worker does not believe that any abuse occurred).
Safety PlansYou should be very careful when agreeing to a safety plan proposed by a social worker as your agreement can lead to very significant and long-lasting changes to the structure of your family. A Tot Law, APC San Diego CPS attorney can review the proposed safety plan with you so that you make the best possible decision for you and your family.
CPS Investigation OutcomesTot Law, APC’s CPS attorneys believe that Juvenile Court cases in which CPS has taken the child are the single most-important court case anyone can ever go through (even compared to life in prison or death). The reason we believe this is because we feel that the worst thing that can happen to anyone is to have their child taken away, adopted by a complete stranger, have their birth certificate and other documentation changed so that the child’s parents are no longer legally recognized as the parents, and never see that child again. Do Not Be Mistaken – This is what can (and does) occur in Juvenile Court. For this reason, people going through this process need the services of a CPS attorney who is experienced, respected, passionate, determined, and who has dedicated his life to making sure that a child’s best interest is being served. You can place your trust in the court-appointed attorney to take an interest in your case over the many others in his or her file cabinet and to perform in court like a more experienced and better attorney rather than just to go along with whatever CPS says, or you can realize that you are in the fight of your life – for the person you love most – and place a call to our office to speak to an attorney experienced in successfully fighting against CPS right away.
Relatives and Non-Relative Extended Family Members (NREFMS)Relatives play a tremendously important role in cases involving CPS/CWS. In fact, one of the first things we do in our Juvenile Court cases is to fight to get any child out of foster care and placed with a relative or family friend. This is for three reasons: 1. To keep a child with familiar faces; 2. To eliminate the chance that the child’s foster home will become attached to the child and push to adopt him or her; and 3. To ensure that the child will remain with family or friends if the worst case scenario becomes reality and the child is put up for adoption. All relatives and family friends can and should play a role in cases against CPS, and oftentimes the only way CPS will listen to you is if you have an attorney and force the issue. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately when considering the quality), you are not entitled to court-appointed attorneys so you will need to secure your own. Do not wait until it is too late and the child is bonded with someone else – Call our offices now and a San Diego CPS attorney will take you through all of your options as a relative to a child in foster care.
Foster ParentsFoster parents too can and should play a role in these proceedings. If the child is in your foster home and you have an interest in the child’s well-being and best interest, you should act accordingly and involve yourself in the case to make sure the judge has all the information necessary to make the best decision possible about that child. Similarly to relatives, foster parents are not entitled to court-appointed lawyers but again maybe this is a good thing. As soon as you as a foster parent believe that your voice should be heard regarding the child’s best interest, get an experienced attorney if you think there’s any chance that you will later regret not doing so. Tot Law, APC CPS attorneys have helped many foster parents to realize their goals in Juvenile Court (when on the same side as CPS and when not), and we work closely with county foster homes as well as Foster Family Agencies to achieve our success.