What CPS Can And Cannot Do (& What To Do About It) - Low Income Relief (2023)

FAQs

How do you answer CPS questions? ›

You need to ask the CPS Investigator to tell you exactly what the allegations are against you. Take your time during this portion and be thorough. Take very detailed notes and force the CPS Investigator to go slowly and point-by-point. You'll have to resist the urge to defend yourself or explain away the allegations.

The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held that parents have a fundamental right to make decisions as to the companionship, care, custody, and management of their children, which right is a protected liberty interest under the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

CPS cannot enter your home without your permission

Although CPS can show up at a home at any point in time, they may not enter a home without the explicit permission of a parent or guardian. The only exception to this rule is if they have a court order or believe a child is in immediate danger.

A child is subjected to willful cruelty or unjustifiable punishment. A child is abused or exploited sexually. A child is neglected by a parent or caretaker who fails to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care or supervision.

Yes, you can sue social services for distress and potentially other damages too. As well as the figure that's awarded for your psychological distress (which is known as non-material damages), you may also be eligible to receive material damages too.

Despite how emotionally charged these situations are, you must remain calm when interacting with social workers and police officers. Anything you say will be used in a CPS investigation as evidence. In many circumstances, it is best to say nothing at all.

They use police presences to squelch and put down any citizen who asserts their 4th Amendment rights by not allowing an unlawful investigation to take place in their private home when no imminent danger is present.

The most common complaint involves allegations of color of law violations. Another common complaint involves racial violence, such as physical assaults, homicides, verbal or written threats, or desecration of property.

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be ...

Can social services take my child away without evidence? No, there must be evidence in support of the application from social services when they are asking the court to remove your child/ren from your home.

What can CPS not do in California? ›

Although CPS workers may also show up to your house without notice, they cannot legally force their way into your home. They must have your explicit permission before entering. However, if they have a court order or believe that a child is in imminent danger, the CPS workers do not have to abide by this rule.

Information from an inconclusive or unsubstantiated report shall be deleted from the index after 10 years if no subsequent report concerning the same suspected child abuser is received within that time.

Red flags are warning signs to look out for that potential child abuse and neglect are occurring within a client's home.

To protect their confidentiality we can't provide details which may give away the identity of the person who made the report.

Challenging your needs assessment. If you are unhappy with an assessment, ask your local authority about their appeals process. You have the right to take someone with you to an appeal or assessment. This could be an advocate.

The evidence they gather includes documentary, physical, photographic and other forensic evidence and not just witness testimony. The police arrest and interview suspects. All of this produces a file which when complete the police send to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for review and a decision on prosecuting.

For that reason, it's essential to be honest with the family. Terry advises, “Remind the family that you are mandated by law to call this in. Alleviate the fears of parents (having contact with CPS). Honesty helps build relationship and trust.”

Can a parent refuse a forensic interview? ›

Most of the time, parents have the right to make choices for their child regarding police interviews and testifying or cooperating in a criminal case.

Anyone can call Social Services and tell them about children they think are being abused and Social Services have a legal duty to investigate situations where a concern has been expressed about the child's safety and well-being.

More recently, this Court declared in Washington v. Glucksberg, 521 U.S. 702 (1997), that the Constitution, and specifically the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, protects the fundamental right of parents to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children.

The Constitution, through the Fourth Amendment, protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. The Fourth Amendment, however, is not a guarantee against all searches and seizures, but only those that are deemed unreasonable under the law.

A civil rights violation is any offense that occurs as a result or threat of force against a victim by the offender on the basis of being a member of a protected category. For example, a victim who is assaulted due to their race or sexual orientation. Violations can include injuries or even death.

Examples of civil rights include the right to vote, the right to a fair trial, the right to government services, the right to a public education, and the right to use public facilities.

Constitutional rights violations can take a variety of forms, ranging from retaliating against you for expressing your First Amendment right to free speech, to arresting you without possessing probable cause to believe you have committed a crime, or even arbitrarily depriving you of your Fourteenth Amendment right to ...

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

The Ninth Amendment was part of the Bill of Rights that was added to the Constitution on December 15, 1791. It says that all the rights not listed in the Constitution belong to the people, not the government. In other words, the rights of the people are not limited to just the rights listed in the Constitution.

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.

What kind of questions does CPS ask? ›

The caseworker will ask questions about neglect. These questions will evaluate whether your child has suffered any maltreatment, hunger, environmental or medical neglect. The caseworker will assess if there is food available to the child and if that food is nutritious.

The main subject areas that are focused on during a child-interview are: what actually happened during the alleged incident (or incidents) of abuse or neglect? whether the child feels safe in their home right now. whether the child believes that future abuse or neglect will occur.

1. Social workers assess physical aspects of the home environment. 2. This scale may appear judgmental, but workers necessarily make judgements about the safety, order and cleanliness of the place in which the child lives.

The Social worker should normally ask for permission from a parent first, unless he/she has good reason to believe you may threaten the child or try to make them stay silent, or otherwise compromise their enquiries.

The CSW does not need parental consent or a court order. The interview can be as long as necessary to protect the child.

In most North Carolina counties, initial forensic interviews are conducted by CPS investigators because state law (NCGS § 7B-302) requires that, once it accepts a report that a child has been physically, emotionally, or sexually abused, CPS must have immediate face-to-face contact with the child.

Forensic interviews are used by trained professionals to gather information about incidents of alleged child maltreatment in a manner that will yield factual information from the child so that child welfare workers can make case management decisions and interview findings can stand up to scrutiny in court.

What does a child protection caseworker do? ›

Caseworkers respond to reports about children or young people who may have been harmed or where there are safety concerns. The first priority is always the safety, welfare and wellbeing of the children or young person.

If you're worried about what to do, talk to someone, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau adviser about help to complain. If you are afraid about what might happen if you complain about social services, talk to an experienced adviser, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau.

The judge is likely unless he or she considers that the evidence before the court suggests otherwise to take full account of the recommendations made by children's services and the guardian.