If CPS knows you have an aggressive lawyer already they may decide to drop the case if it is marginal. Reply Bethannysays April 12, 2011 at 2:33 pm For parents Suffering from CPS injustice in the state of Arizona.
Experienced Child Dependency attorneys can make ALL the difference in you stopping DCFS CPS from taking your kids (if you are under investigation), or can help get your children back if taken already. To depend upon an overworked, court-appointed lawyer is tantamount to admitting defeat.
The worker will also make sure that you have running water, electricity, a phone and refrigerator. You may need to provide proof of income to show that you can support the child as well as proof that your rent or house payment is up to date. Ask the CPS worker for a face-to-face visit with your grandchild as soon as possible.
It is usually not possible to support the accused abusers and take in children removed from the home at the same time in the eyes of the CPS and courts. By choosing to believe the parents over the children in these situations, there is little faith the grandparents will ensure the best interests of the youths and support their care and well-being.
You can, but you have an uphill battle against the state department of social services (DSS) in court. If you believe that they have discriminated against you or removed your child for no reason, you may be able to sue in federal court.
In many circumstances, the best way to beat the case is to go for a dismissal. In Texas, a Child Protective Service case may be dismissed should the judge deem there to be a lack of evidence to warrant such an investigation or indictment, or if CPS is satisfied that certain circumstances are met.
Both the United States Constitution and the South Carolina Constitution guarantee against unreasonable searches and seizures and unreasonable invasions of privacy. You have a right to legal representation at all stages of a DSS action, including the investigative stage.
When a child is removed from their parents because of abuse or neglect, Child Protective Services (CPS) must find a suitable living arrangement for the child - this is often with grandparents. After this, a grandparent can either fight for custody or work to help the parent regain custody.
Call the Texas Child Protective Services Hotline 1-800-252-5400 or report online. Both are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
If the Department of Child Safety received a report before September 1, 1999, and determined that the report was substantiated, the department shall maintain the report in the central registry until 18 years from the child victim's date of birth.
DSS has forty-five (45) days to complete an investigation once they receive an abuse or neglect report. If necessary, an additional 15 days can be granted to complete the investigation if there is good cause.
Can social services take my child away? Social services will usually only take a child away from their parents if they believe that the child is at risk of harm or neglect in their current circumstances. They are obliged to investigate any complaints or concerns reported to them.
Any person who is alleged to have knowingly made a false report of child abuse or neglect shall be referred to the office of the Chief State's Attorney for purposes of a criminal investigation.
Grandparent Rights in Texas Interventions You must file a lawsuit termed an “intervention”, in which you seek permanent custody of your grandchild instead of a temporary living arrangement. An intervention involves two primary issues in a CPS case.
According to the legislation of the Family Law Act 1975, there is nothing specifically that refers to grandparents rights to see or to care for their grandchildren. Nor, in fact, do the parents themselves have automatic parental rights. Parents have responsibilities towards their children.
Because you will not have any legal rights over your grandchild and will have to continue to have to gain the parents' consent to make decisions. Alternatively, if the local authority issue court proceedings in respect of your grandchild/ grandchildren they may be placed with you under a court order.
No matter how absurd or unbelievable the CPS/DCFS social worker’s claim(s) may seem, please understand that the social worker is dead serious, and...
Most typically, the CPS/DCFS social worker wants to keep you from knowing exactly what you have been accused of — sort of keeping themselves on a “...
In criminal law it is ALWAYS strongly suggested that you talk to NO ONE but your attorney. Think about it. Virtually ALL CHARGES that CPS or DCFS l...
An attorney EXPERIENCED in CPS and DCFS cases and courts is mandatory! Juvenile Dependency courts are worlds unto themselves. Your most seasoned an...
Let’s face it, when a “government investigator” –without any advanced notice– knocks insistently on your door, well-dressed, looking all official w...
If a County CPS/DCFS social worker requests that you invite them into your home politely refuse. If he or she insists or suggests that not allowing...
Subjective reports of what a child said or did not say is hardly ever adequate. Ask that any interrogation be recorded. You could produce your own...
Ask your doctor to write a letter stating that there are no bruises or injuries observed, nor any other health-related issues that would raise any...
If your children are removed from your home, or the court is demanding that your children must soon leave your home for some period of time it is a...
If you are innocent of neglect or abuse why would you buckle to the pressure of a CPS agent’s demands to have you admit to false accusations? If yo...
If your grandchildren have been taken away from their parents by DCS or CPS, the first thing you must do is seek legal counsel.
Option 1: If a grandparent wants to support their own child in regaining custody of their grandchildren eventually, the grandparent can seek placement of the children without actually filing any kind of suit.
When children face abuse, neglect or injury at the hands of the parents, the Child Protective Services generally becomes involved in the matter when a complaint occurs with someone. This complaint draws an agent to the property to investigate the matter.
There are generally two options that occur in cases where the child is no longer in the house with the parents. The grandparents will either choose to side with the parents and help to acquire custody once again and increase the strength of the case to reclaim the youth. The other option the grandparents will choose is ...
This hearing occurs within fourteen days of the removal. It is during the hearing that the child’s situations will undergo an assessment to determine where he or she will reside during the pending case. This could take up to eighteen months, and the youth will need a residence for the duration.
These parties would also need to explain to the courts that if the parents are to reacquire the children for any reason, it would negatively affect their health and well-being. When filing for the lawsuit or when needing to temporarily place the children with the grandparents, a lawyer is usually necessary.
The Hearing and Investigation. Once the parents are put under investigation, they will have an opportunity to explain the matter during a hearing. Then, the CPS and courts will consider if the removal was necessary and warranted under the circumstances.
In many of these situations, the grandparent (s) may become the parental figure (s) and take custody of the youth depending on the circumstances of the home life.
When choosing to take in the abused victim, the grandparents will often decide at the time of the hearing. If the grand parents choose to defend the parent in cases of abuse ...
An angry demeanor toward the CPS social worker or DCFS investigator is considered evidence of your guilt. Your perfectly natural, upset and angry reaction to being accused of harming your child will very OFTEN BE USED as evidence of your violent and abusive personality.
If you are innocent of neglect or abuse why would you buckle to the pressure of a CPS agent’s demands to have you admit to false accusations? If you are accused or charged with neglect because someone has informed the county CPS system that you are addicted to drugs or alcohol, the social worker who is investigating those accusations may have good-reason to be concerned for your kids’ safety.
Just like a police detective intent on hauling you to the police station for questioning would love for you to willingly invite them into your home, a CPS social worker who is openly or secretly intent on taking your children from you WILL FIND SOMETHING IN YOUR HOME TO JUSTIFY THE REMOVAL OF YOUR KIDS.
It makes their task of finding needed evidence against you so much easier! If the CPS/DCFS government agent cannot produce a warrant, firmly but politely tell them that they will have to remain outside until a warrant is presented. They will be annoyed. But you will be far better off – legally.
As government is getting bigger and bigger every year they are getting more and more powerful and intrusive in the lives of ordinary citizen s. We are all a bit nervous and threatened by the power of the state as we witness weekly examples of government power wielded unfairly on Investigative TV News programs and in the lives of our own families and friends.
Subjective reports of what a child said or did not say is hardly ever adequate. Ask that any interrogation be recorded. You could produce your own recorder (as a back-up) just in case the CPS or DCFS investigator “loses” their tape between the interrogation and a subsequent court hearing where you might have “wished” that you had such a tape.
Sure, it is totally natural that innocent parents who have nothing to hide will want to explain everything to a CPS social worker because such parents would assume that ANY reasonable person would see that there is nothing wrong going on. But CPS and DCFS social workers are commonly ANYTHING BUT reasonable.
Experienced Child Dependency attorneys can make ALL the difference in you stopping DCFS CPS from taking your kids (if you are under investigation), or can help get your children back if taken already. To depend upon an overworked, court-appointed lawyer is tantamount to admitting defeat.
There is no one more passionate and involved in DCFS, CPS, Juvenile Dependency cases in California than Vincent W. Davis and his crew of dedicated and focused, like-thinking associate attorneys.
Mr. Davis obtained is Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Loyola Marymount University and his Juris Doctorate from Loyola Law School of Southern California.
Carol A. Baidas graduated from University of Scranton with a Bachelor of Arts in History in 1986. Ms. Baidas received her Juris Doctorate from Ohio Northern University , Claude W. Petit School of Law in 1989. Ms.
State Bar of California, 1987 U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 1987 U.S. District Court for the Central District of California 1987 U.S. Supreme Court, 1997
Slaveia Iankoulova graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies, with a minor in Human Rights in 2005. In 2009, Ms. Iankoulova received her Juris Doctorate from Western State University, College of Law in Fullerton, California. Ms.
When you talk to me, Vincent W. Davis, you can be sure of one thing, that I am listening. Child Protective Services (CPS or DCFS) and your accusers have their story, and it is our job to make sure that your story is heard and we keep your family together.
If CPS is not in your life, get away is my advice. If they are, get busy, you have a battle ahead of you. Document everything, record everything, get every bit of evidence/discovery possible, be proactive and do everything possible, paper, paper, paper, file, file, file, study research and learn CONTINUOUSLY. P.S.
Social Worker Perjury– If your caseworker’s report to the court contains inaccurate statements, misrepresentations, or lies, create a legal document called Objections and Corrections to the Report of the Social Workerand as with the Declaration of Facts, send it to your lawyer to be presented to the court.
Grandparent Custody After the Death of the Custodial Parent. If the custodial parent dies, the court's first choice is often to place the child with the other parent, even if that parent has not been actively involved in the child's life. The second choice tends to be a close blood relative.
Some courts require that the grandparents care for the child for at least one year before they will grant a custody petition.
Courts generally affirm that parents have the legal right to care for and determine what is best for their children. When a third party, including grandparents, seeks custody, the court balances the parents' rights with the child's best interests. Grandparents who believe their grandchild would be best living with them need to present ...
The second choice tends to be a close blood relative. If the grandparents are not the only relatives able and willing to care for the child, the court determines who is the best individual to have custody based on the child's best interests.
Drug or alcohol abuse in the child's home. A parent's mental illness. One parent is unfit, and the other can't or won't take the child. Even in circumstances such as these, grandparents may not get custody if other family members also want the child.
Grandparent Custody When Both Parents Are Alive. Child custody laws vary by state, but in general, when both parents are alive, the court prefers to place the child with one or both of the parents. Third parties may be able to obtain custody if both parents are unable or unwilling to care for the child. Some circumstances that warrant placing ...
Drug or alcohol abuse in the child's home. A parent's mental illness. One parent is unfit, and the other can't or won't take the child.
When CPS is served with your complaint, the agency has a limited period of time to file an answer with the court. A copy of that written answer will be delivered to your attorney.
This is part of the reason documenting all of your interactions with CPS is so important. Something that seems unfair to you may not necessarily rise to the level of a constitutional violation. However, something you thought insignificant might actually be a big deal. Calculate your damages.
CPS investigations can be traumatic and stressful for both parents and children. However, emotional distress alone does not give you the right to sue CPS.
Attend the summary judgment hearing. When you sue CPS, the agency will likely raise the defense of qualified immunity. While technically a defense, if the court grants the agency (and its social workers) qualified immunity, you won't be able to sue the agency at all.
All of these records are now evidence you can use in your lawsuit. If you had written documents that you can no longer locate, make a note of them. CPS should have copies as well, and you can request them later. You also want to gather any documents that have anything to do with the care of your children.
Send written questions and requests to CPS. Provided the judge rules that CPS is not entitled to qualified immunity, you will proceed to the discovery phase. You will work with your attorney to create written questions and requests for documents, which must be answered by CPS.
An overzealous CPS worker may violate your constitutional right to due process, or your protection from unreasonable search and seizure. When that happens, you may be able to sue for monetary damages.
The worker will need your Social Security number to run a police and child abuse check.
Prepare for the Home Visit. Clean your house and prepare the bed for the child prior to the CPS home visit. Your home does not need to be immaculate, but you should vacuum, sweep, mop and disinfect the kitchen and bathrooms. If you do not have age-appropriate toys for your grandchild, buy a few.
When that is not possible, the second choice is relative placement. Placing the child with a relative, such as the grandparents, is usually less traumatic for the child than going to a stranger's foster care home for a number of reasons. The child should already know the grandparents.
The child should already know the grandparents. The child should not have to adjust to different cultures, social preferences, language including colloquialisms, or neighborhood. Family gatherings should have relatives in attendance that the child is used to seeing.
Again, if the worker does not have a warrant, they will have no choice but to leave and schedule an interview at a later date. While the CPS investigator is there, they may try to ask you questions even if you have asked for time to consult with an attorney. Again, be calm and polite and say as little as possible.
CPS is obligated to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect. Unless the worker shows up with a warrant or court order, the investigator only has the information provided by the person alleging abuse or neglect to go on along with any information you provide.
Be strong and do not be intimidated by the investigator. You have the right to have each interaction with CPS recorded as long as you tell them you are recording it.
The U.S. Constitution protects your rights to be free from a government search unless the investigator has a warrant. If the worker insists on entering your home, politely tell them no unless they can produce a warrant to search your home. Don't be surprised if the investigator returns with law enforcement.
Be prepared in case your children are removed from your home. As horrible as it may sound, CPS can still remove your children from your home even if you follow the tips listed above. In the event CPS decides to remove your children from you, make sure you have a list of individuals who may be willing to take your children.
Many times CPS investigators show up unannounced. If you have utilized an attorney before, you can tell the CPS investigator that you want time to call your attorney and have your attorney present for any questioning.
CPS has absolutely no right to enter your home unless they have a warrant signed by a judge. The only way an investigator can come into your home without a warrant is if you invite them in. Be advised that the worker may threaten you or threaten to take your children but remember this is an empty threat.