Removing the Vail, destroying the corruption and helping true victims

of Child abuse

Here are some suggestions that could make DCFS a model for saving and helping
children and families.

When we remove children from the time tested family system and put them into any
other system, we had better admit it is not the ideal. It is a substitute. We had better not
do it unless the original family setting cannot easily be fixed.

The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal,

well-meaning but without understanding.
--- Louis D. Brandeis
All seems infected that the infected spy, as all looks yellow to the jaundiced eye.
--- Alexander Pope

Here is a small portion of a a sworn affidavit by Mr. Howard Fishman M.E.D. M.S.W.
Excerpts taken from Child Maltreatment 2002: Key Findings
National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect InformationOn the Web at:
nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/pubs/factsheets/canstats.cfm

The Numbers Tell the Tale . . .or Do They?

by Howard Fishman

Readers of the FMSF Newsletter will not be surprised to learn that the data regarding
child maltreatment need to be parsed carefully. They are revealing both in terms of what
is included and what is omitted. Just a few of the most obvious questions raised by these
statistics [1] will be discussed.

It is reported that there were 2.6 million "referrals" to child welfare officials in 2002. Not
mentioned is the fact that this number reflects a decrease of 500,000 reports compared
with the 1997 data. We are not told whether this decrease indicates profound
improvements in the parenting skills of America’s parents and, if so, who should be
credited..

What has not changed is the evidence of rampant child abuse hysteria. In 2002 – as in
1997 --about 70% of all reports were not deemed worthy of investigation or were
determined to be "unfounded" or "unsubstantiated." In pragmatic terms, what this means
is that two million innocent individuals or families were falsely accused in 2002. The
emotional and financial costs of these "erroneous" reports are ignored. Also unmentioned
is the fact that despite laws sanctioning false reporting, such prosecutions almost never
occur.
The report notes that "an estimated 896,000 children were determined to be victims of
child abuse or neglect in 2002." Seventy percent of these children were "victims" of
neglect. There is no acknowledgment that "neglect" often means nothing more than
"poverty" and that a significant majority of these children suffer no inflicted harm. Rather
than providing needy families with appropriate social services, the current system seems
to prefer removing children in order to justify an extensive foster care program.

Several critically important facts may help us better understand the data and the current
state of child protection:

1. Federal authorities continue to fail to segregate cases involving children who are
abused or neglected while under state supervision or in state care. Several hundred
children in these categories die every year, but it is difficult to obtain hard facts because
state officials hide
behind confidentiality laws. There is no question, however, but that children in state care
are at significant risk of severe physical injury, molestation, and death.

2. Between forty and sixty percent (depending upon jurisdiction) of children killed by
their parents or other caregivers were already known to child protection authorities as
being "at risk."

3. The data reported by federal officials fail to include the ultimate outcomes of so-called
"founded" cases. Whether pursued through administrative channels, civil proceedings, or
criminal trials, approximately one-third to one-half of these cases result in a finding of no
culpability by the alleged offender. Thus, we have an "error rate" (or, more pointedly, a
false accusation rate) of between 80 and 85 percent.

4. The data regarding child sex abuse are particularly revealing. Contrary to the
impression created by the media and the sponsors of many professional conferences,
sexual abuse is reported in only 10% of all cases. Further, among all parents who were
reported to be abusers, less than 3 percent were associated with sexual abuse. .

5. In many child protection agencies, the turnover rate among caseworkers is in excess of
30% annually. All too often, those who remain are largely ignorant of the professional
literature and the hazards associated with leading, suggestive, manipulative, and coercive
questioning. The techniques for implanting memories in children are similar, if not
identical, to those employed by "recovered memory therapists." Another parallel is the
belief that certain behaviors and "symptoms" are definitive indicators of sexual abuse,
despite the fact that such beliefs have been consistently debunked in the reliable research
literature. Consequently, the testimony of caseworkers is typically replete with myths and
"junk science."

Tragically, there is little political will to initiate comprehensive and fundamental reform
of this dysfunctional and destructive system. Just as the national associations representing
the mental health professions have generally failed to challenge the unscientific practices
of "recovered memory" practitioners, those who might effect change in the child
protection enterprise have avoided doing so despite blatant evidence of rampant injustice,
ineffectiveness, and incompetence.

SO WHAT CAN WE DO

When I left the Senate hearings May 5th 2006, I and a couple of Representatives met with
Child protective services. They admitted that it looked like an injustice had taken place.
They said that they would like to get it resolved. I pointed out the overwhelming number
of times that DHS used their clout with the court to hide evidence or keep the court from
accepting exculpatory information. I demonstrated that it was all done purposely. They
said that it was the Judge’s fault and that they cannot JUST let her go. The Judge has to
do it. This is a trick that I hear done all over the country.

The things we need to do are:

1. Sever the partnership between the Juvenile court and all those that get paid by
TITLE-IV-E money. They all work together as they have in my case and
thousands each year, holding children in unsubstantiated cases as long as they
can. Most of the children taken are taken in cases never substantiated.
2. Make the Title IV-E money roll able to title IV-B, where DHS will be paid to keep
children at home. Right now 85% of the money is in taking away children from
their parents. Why did no one understand what would happen in a system such as
this?
3. Make Child abuse a felony punishable by Jail time.
4. Do not allow DHS to do the investigation. They do not investigate, they seek
ONLY to validate. Do not allow them to train Law enforcement and stop allowing
untrained case workers to become State police officers without formal training.
That just permeates society’s law enforcement with their falsifying methods. The
police and State troopers know and understand rules of evidence.
5. Mandate DHS to abide by the results of the real investigations performed by our
law enforcement officers.
6. Child protective Services and Judges are for all practical proposes unaccountable
to anyone. Even the rich find it difficult. The poor have little chance. Between
these two many never get a chance to submit exculpatory information. Judges in
Arkansas and all across the nation give overwhelming deference to CPS. Often
parents are not allowed to speak.
7. The State should be mandated to pay all costs for the poor or others running out of
money, to make sure the proceedings are fair. People are loosing everything
across this nation in righteous loosing causes because they mortgage everything
before the long pockets of the State thinks twice about it. If they loose they can be
made to pay everything back later.
8. There should be a Citizen rotating commission of new people empowered to look
anew from scratch at grievous cases. They should have the power to sanction,
recommend sanctions and or empanel a grand Jury. Their aim should be toward
CPS and other Government officials that normally cannot be touched because of
immunities.
In fact, if we just did one thing, put the bulk of the money into keeping families
together, the whole industry that has developed around Child protective services
would change gears to conform. If on the other hand they see politicians working
against their lively hood, they will fight like caged animals to keep the status quo.

It cost so much less to keep the more than 50% of children at home that never should
have been taken, that the State would see a windfall from it.
.
I suggested working through the TITLE IV-E to TITLE IV-B route because Federal
Changes in the Law allows this. Otherwise we will be waiting on more Federal law
changes.

If you doubt the facts in this document, then authorize a group of real investigators
who would look at random into any case out of the whole group of cases in Arkansas.
Investigate them from Scratch. You will not believe your eyes. Then rethink my
recommendations.

Thank you all,

Bill Sullivan
501-612-5890