Did CPS fail another child?
March 14th, 2008 by Republican By DefaultI understand that signs of abuse can easily be missed, especially if no one is looking for them.
However, CPS caseworkers don’t show up at someone’s house without a reason. They show up because children may be in danger.
If the child killed by his mother last week was in danger (as indicated by the presence of a CPS caseworker) then why were two injuries to a child’s face overlooked?
From a KIRO news story:
Domenique Astrid Conway, 25, is accused of killing her 5-month-old son after allegedly punching him twice in the head on March 5.
The boy, Nathaniel Noel, was seen by a Child Protective Services caseworker and two different doctors in the four days before he died.
None of them realized the infant had a massive head injury, allegedly inflicted by his mother.
On March 6, a CPS caseworker visited Conway’s home on a routine check and saw an abrasion on Nathaniel’s face.
“The worker noticed a little red blotch around the eye area and then an abrasion under the chin,” said CPS spokesman Karen Lee.
At that time, Conway told the caseworker she was taking the child to a doctor for vaccinations that day. When she did take the child to the doctor, no signs of abuse were reported by medical staff and he returned home with his mother.
On March 7, Conway took the infant to St. Claire hospital in Lakewood. Doctors found no evidence of abuse and the boy returned home with his mother.
On March 9, Nathaniel died from blunt force trauma inflicted to his head four days earlier, an autopsy revealed.
If this were an isolated incident I wouldn’t be wondering why the injuries were overlooked. But CPS has a history of failure in protecting the state’s at-risk children.
March 16th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
What transpired in this story is not only plausible but understandable. Let me reiterate, it may be plausible and understandable, but is is nowhere near acceptable.
In truth, caseworkers rely more upon their impressions of the parent than they do the child; in this case the infant. Most real abusers/neglectors, are clever, when it comes to caseworkers. they know the system and just how to manipulate it. As a result, the worker is most often fooled into believing the child is in no danger.
The current operating procedures and motice operandae of just about every Child Protection Agency we have come across functions in this way and this, in itself, is a great tragedy.
For those parents who are good people, care lovingly for their children, and have never had a brush with the system, they are appauled, they become argumentative, belligerent and down right insulted at the workers accusations. This only adds fuel to a fire that will ultimately lead the worker to judge the parent violent, abusive, neglectful and a risk to their child.
If caseworkers conducted professional investigations, collected specific evidence, and gathered relevant and pertinent information, (much like police detectives do), their caseload would be far easier to manage and children would not fall through so many cracks.
But, instead they go on a witch hunt, collecting their thoughts, impressions and a whole lot of other psycho-babble bunk. This takes much more time and tends to judge the parent rather than come to the aid of the child.
As a result, much time is consumed to collect; rumor, gossip, innuendo, speculation, opinion and hearsay. This presents caseworkers with a crushing caseload and countless children who, “Fall through the Cracks”, in the system.
Add to this, the time caseworkers spend covering their collective bureaucratic butts, when they’ve been caught failing a child, a case, a parent, and/or a family, and you have a system that tends to work againts itself, and serves no one’s best interest except those spin doctors, who’s job it is to seek government funding at appropriations time.
March 16th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
For those parents who are good people, care lovingly for their children, and have never had a brush with the system, they are appauled, they become argumentative, belligerent and down right insulted at the workers accusations.
That actually sounds like a normal response to a false accusation.
I agree with you about the subjective nature of the ‘investigation’ process of caseworkers. Most are young, inexperienced, overworked and insecure, which makes for the worst situation to trust one’s own feelings.
We had a horrible situation in Wenatchee, WA (other side of the mountains) where a teenager lied about some members of the church she was attending (including the pastor) about a ficticious ’sex ring’ in the church. By the time the truth came out several people were already in prison on plea deals that were accepted to avoid legal costs and further distruption of their families. Oddly enough the adult who initially pushed the faulty investigation was a police investigator.
I still remember hearing excerpts of a CPS spokeswoman trying to explain how CPS was not at fault in the investigation.
Several political candidates over the last decades have called for a top-down overhaul of the entire DSHS department in WA. Having worked with them and watched the results of their efforts, I would agree. Unfortunately, those candidates haven’t been elected. Instead the department was expanded beyond what it had already failed to handle.
April 4th, 2008 at 11:16 am
I think that the real problem here is that while nobody wants to admit it, and nobody wants to say it’s true people do snap under pressure. Just reading the basics on this case (25 year old mother of four, one of which has been in protective services since being born prematurely *twin of the slain infant* living with boyfriend and father in a small house) the woman is a very strong candidate for Post Partem Depression. In many countries this qualifies as a legal defense for insanity.
If you watch the interviews with neighbors apparently this young woman was holding together rather well. Always got her oldest to school on time, never seemed to be loosing it or anything. It seems that when all is said and done the bottom line tragically is that these things happen.
September 2nd, 2008 at 3:46 pm
How about instead of allowing callers to be unamed they must name themselves and if callers countinue to heave accusations that are unfounded then they themselves should be charged with child abuse, rather than physical but emotional child abuse.When vindictive individuals levy accusations against good parents they do harm to the children.