Seth Ireland Death Sees an Important Jury Decision

Seth Ireland, seen in the photo below, died at the hands of his mother's boyfriend LeBaron Vaughn. Child protective services in Fresno California had received numerous calls about this child. They investigated but they could not find anything wrong according to news reports.

However, the father of Seth, Joseph Hudson, brought a civil liability action against CPS. Yesterday, the  jury awarded him $5 million dollars and Seth's step brother $3.5 million (US dollars). The jury appears to have found that CPS did not follow more than a dozen protocols and had also failed to investigate in a timely fashion.

There are many implications for child protection arising from a decision like this. Front line workers need to be aware that the quality of their work can be subject to intense external scrutiny with liability implications. Many have thought that CPS was immune to lawsuits for their work, but this may be changing.

That workers could be subject to intense public scrutiny is not news - consider the Phoenix Sinclair inquiry presently underway in Manitoba; the recent review of St. Andrew's Hostel Katanning in Australia as well as the Baby Peter case in England.

But front line social workers are the ones who may bear the brunt of public scrutiny, it is the funders of child protection services who should have the heaviest magnification on their decisions. They want increased effectiveness for decreasing dollars. You cannot expect that front line workers can be consistently meeting paperwork, face to face time with clients, investigation time lines and good case management if resources and funding are limited. As budgets continue to tighten in jurisdictions around the world, it will be harder and harder for front line to meet expectations.

This discussion cannot be complete without thinking about the highly complex reality of child protection investigations. People are able to successfully hide what they are doing for many reasons, such as:

• they can effectively lie;
• children can be too afraid to tell the truth;
• parents move making it hard to follow them;
• these families can be isolated making it hard for eyes in the community to see what is happening;
• families counter suspicion with plausible explanations;

Workers, often faced with huh caseloads will make miss cases for these and other reasons. No child protection system can eliminate child deaths. However, what the Seth Ireland case does do, is say that accountability will still exist and doing it right may matter when public scrutiny is brought to bear. Each time a child dies when CPS is involved, public scrutiny can be increasingly expected.

Psychological testing in child welfare assessments

I have become rather fascinated with the degree to which psychological testing has become the norm with assessments done for child welfare - child protection authorities in North America. In my research, it has become quite apparent that they have also become very common in England. I rather like the way on justice summed up the concern.

In my judgment, the principal issue for the judge was the mother’s parenting skills. If the judge was (exceptionally) minded to rely on the results of the personality tests, he had first to assess their validity, both generally and for the purpose of this case. The qualifications to the test results properly made by Mr Hunt in his evidence, to my mind, demonstrate that personality testing of this kind cannot be used to resolve issues such as parenting skills unless they are validated by other evidence. Lord Justice Arden, para 67

England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) Decisions [2004] EWCA Civ 1029

While I also use them in my assessment work, I am often astounded to see how often they add little to the assessment data. Indeed, there are many times when I see results on assessment measures that, when put into a clinical context, have less meaning.

Yet, there are also cases where the data has opened up an important new area of inquiry.

Many people who come for assessment in child welfare cases are so afraid of the implications of assessments that they yield "fake good" profiles. This occurs so often that it might be considered part of the child protection profile. And why not? There is a lot at stake for a parent in these assessments.

My greater concern is that many of these tools have not been validated on the very people that we seek to assess. The child protection population in Canada, is heavily skewed towards Aboriginal populations. Their presence within the norming population of the assessment measures is either absent or minimal. The same is true of many other population groups.

Soem might argue that there is some Aboriginal presence in some of the tests. Perhaps so - but consider that saying a Navaho has been included in the norming and therefore Aboriginals are included is like saying because a a Latino group in the the USA was included that all people from South America are now normed. The Aboriginal peoples of North America are as diverse as any other peoples around the world.

Canada, like many other parts of the world, are becoming even more culturally diverse. Migration around the world has increased. We see many in the child protection who come from elsewhere. English is not their native language. Many assessment measures do not reflect either their language or the context in which they understand such things as parenting dynamics.

Translations of assessment measures may not take into account the nuances of both language and context. A very simple example is the word blueberry. In Quebec it is bluete and in France it is myrtille.  But more importantly, measures present question in a socio-cultural context that immigrants and refugees may not appreciate.

There is very little effort that I am aware of in which norming of assessment measures have been done specifically on child protection populations.

Thus, any assessment of a parent in child protection that relies heavily on psychological testing should be suspect. Efforts must be taken to place results in context and have some degree of consistency between what has been found on these measures and other data sources. If that cannot be achieved then the psychological testing should be approached with a very high degree of caution. Psychological testing is but one piece of the puzzle and it does not always act as the way to fit the pieces together.



Questions that needs answering in each case: why were these tests used? In what way did they pertain to this case? were these assessment measures appropriate to the questions before the assessors? why are these measures valid with this client? what was done to determine if the results are valid? were the results reviewed with the client? how did the assessor deal with things that the client did not see as valid? There are no doubt other questions but these act as a good way to determine how much weight should be given to an assessment report that includes assessment measures.

Incest in America

There has been a lot of well deserved attention on the plught of women in India as a result of the high profile rape case that is presently before the coutrs. Research in India identifies that the rate of sexual abuse is bery high - over 50% of children according to the officicial statistics. But a new article in The Atlantic tells us that we in the west should save our smugness, if indeed there is any left after the likes of Cardinal Mahoney in Los Angeles, Gerry Sandusky at Penn State, Graham James in canada and Jimmy Saville in the UK.

However what the article describes is a large, secret problem in the USA (and probbaly in other western countries). It is the dirty secret we do not want to talk about. The article notes:

Here are some statistics that should be familiar to us all, but aren't, either because they're too mind-boggling to be absorbed easily, or because they're not publicized enough. One in three-to-four girls, and one in five-to-seven boys are sexually abused before they turn 18, an overwhelming incidence of which happens within the family. These statistics are well known among industry professionals, who are often quick to add, "and this is a notoriously underreported crime."

The repotr helps to show how significantly under reported sexual abuse is thus causing one to wonder about under repotring. It also notes that the prime place where sexual abuse takes place is within the family systems.

This is a conversation that we need to have but for which child protection and criminal justice systems are woefully unprepared to have at this scale. One can only imagine the impact if more and more victims begin telling what has and is happening. Yet, that is precisely what we need to encourage. The more the secrets leak out and victims can see society respond supportively, the safer it becomes for victims to disclsoe.

The notion of the family as the primary unit of our society makes sense but only when that has a foundation of safety, nurturance and oportunity for growth. Sexual abuse provides just the opposite.



The Atlantic article is worth a read.

Providing services to parents - which services matter

While the court decision is Canadian, there are some principles in it that will apply to virtually any jurisdiction that gives family preservation or reunification a priority. The Honourable Madam Justice C.S. Phillips of the Court of Queen's Bench (Alberta) has indicated that services provided to a family must focus on what is needed to increase the probability of parenting successfully. Thus, it is not the provision of services that matter but the actual purpose of those services. She states in para. 86:

It is important to remember, therefore, that it is not the number of services that are provided but the quality of the services and their "fit" in relation to the needs of the family that are critical.

This decision is a reminder that "cookie cutter" case plans can be challenged. It is clear that this decision helps us to see how case plans need to be catered to the demands of the particular case. A core question becomes, "What will possibly make a difference to the needs of this family to better parent these children?"

In her decision, Justice Phillips also looked at expert evidence. One thing that struck me was her concern with assessments that had been prepared long before trial. The implication seems obvious that the more dated they are the more they should be viewed cautiously. Yet, in many jurisdictions, the legal process can move slowly with trails being booked some months away. Must then CPS be constantly seeking to update assessments, including Parenting Capacity Assessments, as trails loom closer? Must CPS then amend case plans to reflect changing circumstances as seen in revised assessments? Decisions need to made in the lives of children expeditiously but that often is not the case as the courts plod along with their process. The rights of parents to be heard can be at odds with the right of the child to permanency in their lives. Brown and Ward (2012) have made a cogent case for case planning to be done with the child's needs in mind which have more urgent developmental requirements. The longer that a child experiences instability, the harder it will be for the child to do well over time.

Courts need to make their decisions faster. To help the courts, case managers also need to get their case plans right reducing the room for appeals of permanent guardianship orders. Good case plans have, in most cases, tried to provide the interventions that will make a difference in the ability of the parent to parent to meet the specific needs of their children.

References:

Brown, R. & Ward, H. (2012). Decision-making within a child's timeframe: An overview of current research evidence for family justice professionals concerning child development and the impact of maltreatment: Working paper 16. London: Childhood Wellbeing Research Centre.

RS v Alberta (Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act, Director), 2012 ABQB 715

Child Maltreatment Fatalities - Questioning Assumptions

New research just published by Emily Douglas in the United States questions some long held beliefs about the workers involved in child maltreatment fatality cases within child protection systems. As she points out at the beginning of her article:

Some argue that the child welfare profession is out of control: workers who

experience fatalities are young, inexperienced, and lack professional training, and they miss warning signs leading up to the deaths

Indeed, there has been much criticism of the failings of the child protection systems when a child dies. One needs only recall the ,media frenzy in the UK around the cases of Victoria Climbie and Peter Connelly.

About 30 - 40 % of children who die from maltreatment will be known to child protection, she advises. Douglas' research however, tells us that workers did know their families and that, unlike previous suggestions, workers tended to not be new and inexperienced. The workers in her sample were not overly burdened with high case loads, although she may not have fully explored whether these more experienced workers were handling much more complex cases. The workers felt that they had the skills needed to manage the cases and also that they were appropriately supported. She notes that 27% saw that the fatality was likely unavoidable.

Douglas' sample was small and retrospective - limitations that she notes. However, her research does open up new understandings of these cases and the workers managing them. This is an important addition to the conversation. Hopefully, it leads to further work.

References:

Douglas, E.M. (2013). Child welfare workers who experience the death of a child client. Administration in Social Work, 37 (1), 59-72. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03643107.2012.654903 

Jimmy Savile and Jerry Sandusky - Hiding in Plain View

Social workers and others who work with children around the world, have much to learn from these two high profile sexual abuse case. The material published in the UK today about the breadth and extent of the sexual abuse committed by Savile farnkly boggles the mind. As the CBC reports today:

Detectives said the scale of Savile's sex abuse was "unprecedented in the U.K." They have recorded 214 offences allegedly committed by Savile between 1955 and 2009, including 34 rapes, on victims aged 8 to 47. In all, 450 people have come forward with information about abuse by the late TV presenter.

Jimmy Savile

The details that are coming out show that the range of sexual behaviors and the settings in which Savile committed his alleged crimes includes children who were pre pubescent and teenagers. He did it under the cover of his fame and charity work. As one police officer has noted, he hid in plain view. The Guardian newspaper in the UK offers insight not only into the staggering size of Savile's crimes but also the utter failing of a system that refused to believe, deal with, or collate the data that was available from victims who had come forward. The system failed those who were willing to seek justice - a system that the report clearly shows bent badly in the wind that blew from the magnitude of Savile's deemed importance.

Like Savile, Sandusky had a huge public reputation which appears to have allowed him to hide as well. The power that both men possessed made coming forward with the allegations incredibly challenging. It would be a brave victim indeed who could challenge the reputation of these powerful men. Bear in mind that sexual abusers have an uncanny capacity to choose victims who are weak, vulnerable and desperate for the attention of the powerful.

These two cases are not unique but rather help us to see, yet again, the role that power plays. We have seen hundreds of victims in the cases of priests in various churches and also in such revered organizations as the Boy Scouts.

Sexual abusers take full advantage of the power of role - Savile as the music industry icon; Sandusky as the winning coach; the priest as the sacred leader; the Boy Scout leader as the person to be trusted as a guide in life. These are all very socially supported and revered positions.

Social workers need to be very mindful of the ability of the predator to use position. The sexual abuser does it time and again. When the social worker hears the stories, we need to be open to the telling. Sexual abusers in these positions count on their reputation and the notion that those speaking against them won't be believed.

The rate of false allegations is small.

I like some key points from Dr. D.L. Reed:

* A substantial proportion of sexually abused children are quite reluctant to disclose their abuse; many are ambivalent about disclosing; many delay disclosing•Disclosure of sexual abuse is typically a “dynamic process” not a “one-time event.” Consequently, confirmed victims often make inconsistent statements•When CSA victims are interviewed only once, they often minimize the extent of their abuse; and some deny it altogether•When children’s abuse allegations include fantasy elements, this does not necessarily mean that they weren’t abused 

 The point is that disclosure occurs in a variety of ways, over time and often with a great deal of shame and guilt (the victim may well think that the abuse is their fault). Victims may let slip little details by accident at the start or as a way to test how people will react. We have a need to just listen and not judge.

There are many more perpetrators out there that have yet to be discovered. Social workers are key in hearing these stories as are parents, teachers, police officers and many others with whom a child has contact. A child alleging it occurred with someone powerful should not deter us hearing them.

Rape Victim in India is an inter personal violence issue worldwide

As the world media focuses on the death of the woman in India who was gang raped, they may focus on two themes - the outrage in India which is leading to large scale public demonstrations and on the charges against the alleged assailants which may lead to the death penalty.

One hopes that the many protests will, however, cause a larger discussion about the role of sexual abuse in India. I have done some volunteer work there around the issues of child protection and sexual abuse. The official statistics in India are that 53% of children will be sexually abused. This may be the biggest story that should now become the focus of attention. It is a discussion of what has become too normal. Challenging the status quo such that sexual abuse of any person in India should be seen as wrong. This is an opportunity to bring to the national stage this very large discussion.

It is also a discussion of the remarkably few resources that exist in India to heal. I am impressed with the organizations that do exist such as the Tulir Centre for Prevention and Healing of Sexual Abuse located in Chennai. But they do not have the supports they need. Indeed, I am advised that there is a real shortage of skilled therapists to help with those who have been abused and those that abuse. Creative approaches are needed (An example is the wonderful ideas of Vikram Patel which can be hear in his TedTalk.

But there should be no nation that sits in judgment of India. For interpersonal violence is an international concern. We need only look at Sandy Hook in the United States where a shooter in a rampage killed children and adults. Then there is Amanda Todd who committed suicide after taunting bullying. Or how about Phoenix Sinclair, the Aboriginal child in Canada who died at parental hands? The point is, that this sexual assault in India should be seen as an incident of world wide inter personal violence that needs to be addressed by all of us.