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Child Welfare
Should more be done to protect children?
C
hild abuse and a foster care system rocked by
nearly 1,600 died. Some experts say caseworkers often are too
that while many foster parents do a good job, too many children
states pay for family counseling and other services to help children
with the use of “big data” algorithms to help identify which children
N
I THIS REPORT
are most at risk of abuse.
THE ISSUES ....................675
S
BACKGROUND ................681
I
CHRONOLOGY ................683
D
E
CURRENT SITUATION ........688
CQ Researcher • Aug. 26, 2016 • www.cqresearcher.com AT ISSUE........................689
Volume 26, Number 29 • Pages 673-696
OUTLOOK ......................691
RECIPIENT OF SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS AWARD FOR
EXCELLENCE ◆ AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION SILVER GAVEL AWARD
BIBLIOGRAPHY ................694
THE NEXT STEP ..............695
CHILD WELFARE
Aug. 26, 2016
Volume 26, Number 29
THE ISSUES SIDEBARS AND GRAPHICS
EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Thomas J. Billitteri
Maltreatment Highest tjb@sagepub.com
675 • Do caseworkers put too
much emphasis on family
676 Among Youngest Children ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITORS: Kenneth
preservation? Those under age 1 are most Fireman, kenneth.fireman@sagepub.com,
• Can child abuse or neglect vulnerable. Kathy Koch, kathy.koch@sagepub.com,
Chuck McCutcheon,
be prevented? chuck.mccutcheon@sagepub.com,
Reliance on Group Homes
• Should all group homes 677 Decreased Scott Rohrer, scott.rohrer@sagepub.com
for abused or neglected The percentage of foster SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR:
children be closed? children in group homes Thomas J. Colin
fell over a decade. tom.colin@sagepub.com
BACKGROUND Minorities Dominate
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Brian Beary,
678 Foster Care Population
Marcia Clemmitt, Sarah Glazer, Kenneth Jost,
Reed Karaim, Peter Katel, Barbara Mantel,
Plight of Poor
681 “Orphan trains” and other
Most children in foster care
are black or Hispanic.
Tom Price
forms of adoption emerged SENIOR PROJECT EDITOR: Olu B. Davis
in the 19th century. Chronology EDITORIAL ASSISTANT: Anika Reed
683 Key events since 1853.
Government Action FACT CHECKERS: Eva P. Dasher,
682 Activists spurred officials to ‘Big Data’ the Latest Tool
Michelle Harris, Nancie Majkowski,
step in on children’s behalf. 684 to Protect Kids
Robin Palmer
Officials are using data
Family Focus
682 In the mid-1970s, Congress
analytics to better understand
child abuse.
weighed the pros and cons
of family reunification. Treatment of Native
686 American Children An Imprint of SAGE Publications, Inc.
Lawsuits and Reforms
686 State agencies began to face
Under Fire
Critics say all children don’t
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT,
a slew of lawsuits. GLOBAL LEARNING RESOURCES:
get equal protection. Karen Phillips
At Issue: EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ONLINE LIBRARY AND
CURRENT SITUATION 689 Can “big data” help save
REFERENCE PUBLISHING:
Todd Baldwin
children from abuse?
Family First Act
688 Supporters of a bipartisan bill
Copyright © 2016 CQ Press, an Imprint of SAGE Pub-
lications, Inc. SAGE reserves all copyright and other
in Congress aim to keep chil-
dren out of the foster system.
FOR FURTHER RESEARCH rights herein, unless pre vi ous yl spec iifed in writing.
No part of this publication may be reproduced
For More Information
690 State-Level Developments 693 Organizations to contact.
electronically or otherwise, without prior written
permission. Un au ht o irzed re pro duc iton or trans mis -
Reformers are trying to im-
sion of SAGE copy irght ed material is a violation of
prove child welfare agencies. Bibliography
694 Selected sources used.
federal law car ry ni g civil fines of up to $100,000.
Research Efforts
690 Scholars are studying the The Next Step
CQ Press is a registered trademark of Congressional
Quarterly Inc.
causes of child abuse. 695 Additional articles. CQ Researcher (ISSN 1056-2036) is printed on acid-free
paper. Pub ished
l weekly, except: (March wk. 4) (May
Citing CQ Researcher
OUTLOOK 695 Sample bibliography formats.
wk. 4) (July wks. 1, 2) (Aug. wks. 2, 3) (Nov. wk. 4)
and (Dec. wks. 3, 4). Published by SAGE Publications,
Elusive Improvement Inc., 2455 Teller Rd., Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Annual
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Cover: Getty Images/Kansas City Star/TNS/Jill Toyoshiba
Virginia Ave., N.W., Suite 600, Wash ng i ot n, DC 20037.
674 CQ Researcher
Child Welfare
BY CHRISTINA L. LYONS
676 CQ Researcher
When investigating possible abuse,
child protection agencies have three Reliance on Group Homes Decreased
options. They can place a child with The percentage of foster children living in group homes nation-
a foster family, with a relative (known
wide fell from 18 percent in 2004 to 14 percent in 2013, the most
as “kinship care”) or with a group home
that provides intensive therapeutic or
recent year for which data are available. The drop was due in part
medical attention (“congregate care”). to a federal policy calling for states to place more abused or
By establishing rules on the use of neglected children with relatives or foster families. However, the
child welfare funds, the federal govern- use of group homes varies widely. Colorado, Rhode Island and
ment attempts to guide agencies on Wyoming placed more than 25 percent of foster children in group
how to respond to child abuse. Policy homes in 2013, while the rate in Kansas, Washington state and
has swung back and forth between Oregon was 5 percent or less.
trying to keep families together and re-
42%
moving at-risk children from their homes.
Nevertheless, the “goal of preserving 34% 35% Percentage of Children in Foster Care
families has always been in the back- 30% Living in Group Homes
27% 27%
ground of child welfare services,” said
Portland State University emeritus grad- 18%
uate professor Joan Foster Shireman. 9 14%
Reformers also are focusing on im-
7.8% 7.7% 2004
proving abuse prevention programs. In 5% 5.6% 4.8% 4.4%
February, the Commission to Eliminate 2013
Child Abuse and Fatalities, appointed Colorado Rhode Wyoming Kansas Washington Oregon U.S.
by Congress in 2013, called for “fun- Island
damental reform” of child protection Source: “A National Look at the Use of Congregate Child Welfare,” Children’s
services to reduce child abuse and ne- Bureau, May 13, 2016, p. 14, http://tinyurl.com/jgnm6j2
glect by identifying families at risk earlier
and providing intervention services be- 2013, 5.4 percent of abuse and neglect emphasized keeping troubled families
fore a child is seriously injured. Efforts cases involved “re-reports” that occurred together at the expense of children’s
to achieve that goal, it said, should ad- within six months of one another, ac- safety, and the study blamed the two-
dress conditions leading to child abuse, cording to the Children’s Bureau. 11 track system, which Republican Gov.
including domestic violence, drug ad- When agencies screen child abuse Charlie Baker scrapped after the Baby
diction and mental illness. 10 reports, they decide whether a follow- Bella case. 14
As debate over the child welfare up response is necessary and whether Similarly, Florida embraced family
system continues, here are some key that response should be an investigation preservation beginning in 2002 and dras-
questions being considered: or an “alternative response” — meaning tically reduced the number of children
the family should receive support ser- in foster care in an effort to control
Do child protection services vices if the child is considered at “low spending and ease an overburdened
overemphasize preservation of or moderate risk of maltreatment,” a child welfare system. But it also cut
the family? broad term that encompasses the abuse family monitoring and support services
Harvard’s Bartholet says that in the or neglect of a child under 18. 12 — a decision critics say was shortsighted
past 20 years, social agencies have fo- Bartholet attributes errors made in and cost numerous lives, according to
cused too heavily “on keeping children cases such as Massachusetts’ “Baby a Miami Herald investigation. 15
at home at almost all costs, [with] too Bella” incident to a 2009 state Depart- The University of Pennsylvania’s
much emphasis on parents’ rights at ment of Children and Families policy Gelles says the policy pendulum has
the expense of children’s rights, and that triages child abuse reports by di- favored family preservation since the
not enough protection for children.” viding them into higher-risk and lower- federal Adoption Assistance and Child
Hughes, of Social Change Partners, risk categories, with the latter group Welfare Act of 1980 encouraged agen-
says the number of repeat incidents diverted to voluntary programs, a form cies to make “reasonable efforts” to
of maltreatment indicates that agencies of alternative response. 13 According keep children at home. “That’s become
have been too timid about pulling at- to a study by the Boston-based research ‘every possible’ effort — let’s try every-
risk children from abusive homes. In group Pioneer Institute, the state agency thing and then a bag of chips,” he
678 CQ Researcher
failed to comply and the children re-
mained with their grandmother. Case-
workers gave Moore another chance
to seek counseling and halt the drug
use, and she succeeded.
“I always believe that families can
change, and we just need to find the
right intervention to help them get
there,” Moore said. 19
Icenhower of SHIELDS for Families
agrees. “I think substance abuse is a
key factor in a majority of child welfare
cases,” she says. “When people . . .
hear about child abuse and neglect,
680 CQ Researcher
when some young people need to be But closing all group homes is no treatment center in Rochester, N.Y., for
in a group facility, but in those cases solution, many experts say, because most helping 8-year-old James before Reynell
they need to be in a facility where states don’t have enough foster homes adopted him. James had suffered severe
they are getting treatment related to to care for all the children in need. In mental, physical and educational neglect,
their issues, not just placed in a house recent years, hundreds of California chil- and was reported to be uncontrollable.
with 12 other troubled teenagers.” dren have been sent to foster care in “The care and attention he received
Many studies document develop- Utah after the state closed several group from these amazing people [at Crest-
mental delays among children who are homes. 29 And in Texas earlier this year, wood] were crucial to his success in
in group care. “Specific deficits have court-mandated reforms led to the clo- moving forward through his heartbreak-
been documented in areas including sure of two homes, leaving many foster ing and tragic home life that had caused
physical growth, cognitive function, neu- children with no place to stay. 30 him to mistrust and fear his surround-
rodevelopment and social-psychological When the Illinois Department of ings as well as the individuals who
health,” said a January 2015 study by Children and Family Services an- cared for him,” said Reynell. 32
a Harvard Medical School professor and nounced in June that it would stop Bartholet says, “I’d like to get rid
a medical student. 25 Another study of using a city shelter because of budget of the problem that justifies group
children of primary school age or early cuts, Marie Cohen, a former social homes; getting rid of them doesn’t
adolescence showed slightly more delin- worker for the D.C. child welfare sys- solve the problem.”
quent behavior among those who had tem who advocates for reform, said
been placed in group care. 26 she was disappointed. The Maryville
“We’re putting all our eggs in the
basket of group care. We just rely on
group [homes], and we don’t need
Academy, she said, cares for children
with a history of childhood trauma
and mental illness. One of its three
BACKGROUND
them,” Feild of the Casey Family Foun- homes serves pregnant teens. Cohen
dation says. “And we put kids in group said halting group care is a “trend,”
care that shouldn’t be there.” and worried that not enough compe- Plight of Poor Children
Feild points to an HHS study that tent foster families exist to care for
said 40 percent in group care have no
clinical needs, such as mental health or
behavioral health issues. Kids with psy-
all those children.
“Many existing foster families are
not providing the love, nurturing and
C harles Dickens’ 1837 novel Oliver
Twist, about an orphan who
spends nine years in an abusive home
chiatric diagnoses or psychotic, suicidal supervision that these youth need,” she for youths after his mother dies in a
or violent behavior may need short- said. 31 workhouse, spurred criticism of Eng-
term stabilization, but they should be Hughes criticizes the proposed Fam- land’s Poor Laws, which placed the
placed quickly with a family, she says. ilies First Prevention Services Act, for poor in workhouses. 33
Under a law that took effect in January, proposing restrictions on funding for In subsequent decades, the British
the California Department of Social Ser- group homes. He says it fails to ade- Medical Journal examined the high in-
vices is implementing a multiyear plan quately differentiate between homes fant mortality rate in Great Britain, con-
to replace privately run group homes for children with no significant needs cluding that working-class mothers were
with short-term residential treatment cen- and medically focused homes that serve irresponsible caretakers of their children.
ters where youths will stay up to six children with acute challenges for short It also noted an early form of adoption
months. The plan depends on finding periods of time. The latter homes called “baby-farming,” a term describing
enough foster families willing and able “would lose funding. Where would women who took in unwanted babies
to care for troubled youths. 27 those kids go?” for payment. 34
Group homes, many of them pri- Matthew J. Reynell, an adoptive father In the United States, several religious
vately run, have been accused of child of two and a member of the board of and charitable organizations opened
abuse and neglect. In Utah, sheriff’s directors for Children Awaiting Parents, orphanages between 1830 and 1860
deputies in March raided the Mount a national nonprofit that recruits adoptive for orphans and often poor children
Pleasant Academy, a group home for parents, said he had long viewed group wandering urban streets. In 1853, Charles
troubled children, and uncovered ev- homes as places where “ ‘problem chil- Loring Brace, a minister from New Eng-
idence that teenage boys “were having dren’ were dumped” and forgotten. But land, suggested rescuing children from
sex with each other with the full knowl- while testifying before a congressional a life of poverty and crime by removing
edge of members of the home’s staff,” panel in 2015, he commended Crest- them from the city. The “greatest danger”
a news report said. 28 wood Children’s Center, a residential to America’s future, he wrote in 1854,
682 CQ Researcher
Chronology
tailing court-monitored reforms of
1850s-1912
Advocacy groups organize to
1970s-1997
Congress emphasizes keeping
the agency.
Continued from p. 682 to 35 percent of Native American chil- to use funds available under Title
pected of being abused — beginning dren were being taken from their homes IV-E of the Social Security Act for
with Native American children. Opening and placed primarily in non-Indian child abuse prevention and family-
a Senate hearing in April 1974, Sen. homes or institutions, according to a reunification programs. The law re-
James Abourezk, D-S.D., said: “It ap- 1976 study by the Association on Amer- quired state agencies to make “rea-
pears that for decades Indian parents ican Indian Affairs. 51 sonable efforts” to keep children
and their children have been at the Congress also considered scholars’ with their parents or return foster
mercy of arbitrary or abusive action criticisms that child welfare authorities children quickly to their parents or
of local, state, federal and private agency were unnecessarily removing children into adoption.
officials. . . . Recent statistics show, for from their homes and leaving them But during a crack cocaine epidemic
example, that a minimum of 25 percent languishing in foster care. 52 Testimony and other societal changes in the mid-
of all Indian children” are removed during hearings between 1977 and to late-1980s state agencies became
from their homes. 50 1979 suggested that federal policies overwhelmed with child welfare reports.
Congress passed the Indian Child encouraged states to move children From 1980 to 1994, single-parent house-
Welfare Act of 1978 to end the wide- into foster care because AFDC funding holds increased from 22 percent to
spread practice of taking Indian children was provided only for the care of chil- 31 percent of all families. Births to
from their biological families in an at- dren in foster care. 53 unmarried teens soared, from 27.6 per
tempt to force their assimilation into The Adoption Assistance and Child 1,000 females in 1980 to 44.6 per
U.S. culture. (See sidebar, p. 686.) Up Welfare Act of 1980 encouraged states 1,000 in 1992. Meanwhile, child abuse
684 CQ Researcher
will lead to an investigation, Dalton says. removed more often,” says Kathryn Icenhower, CEO of SHIELDS
Cherna and Dalton want to avoid missing high-risk cases, for Families, a residential treatment program that provides family-
but they also don’t want to unnecessarily investigate low-risk support services in South Los Angeles.
families. “Being investigated isn’t an insignificant” experience Cherna and Dalton say they are proceeding gradually with
for a family, Dalton says, because it can traumatize children the analytics tool, studying its effects and talking with the com-
and parents. munity to alleviate any concerns about its use. “Race and income
The lead researcher for the model, Rhema Vaithianathan, is are not in the model,” Dalton says, although she adds that she
co-director of the Centre for Social Data Analytics at the Auckland also knows other data in the model might be proxies for such
University of Technology Business School in New Zealand. information.
There, government officials last year halted plans to use a similar Icenhower supports using an analytics tool that would enable
model at a child abuse call center after concerns surfaced about child welfare agencies to direct appropriate services to families
human rights violations or disproportionate racial targeting. 4 who need them. However, she says, “the way I am hearing
The other lead researcher, Emily Putnam-Hornstein, associate people talk about it in L.A. is frightening to me. It’s almost like
professor of social work at University of Southern California, you’re going to give a family a score. And it doesn’t give you
co-directs the Children’s Data Network, a community collaborative a score on your strengths,” she says. “It can’t tell you, does
project researching the use of such a tool to analyze similar this woman go to church every Sunday, is she on the PTA,
data to inform children’s policies and programs. does she have a strong family that is supporting her?”
After further evaluation, Allegheny might employ a version
of the same system using such information as birth records — Christina L. Lyons
that, combined with other data, could help predict the likelihood
of a child ending up in the foster system by age 3, Cherna 1 “Within Our Reach: A National Strategy to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect
says — a project similar to that being studied by the Children’s Fatalities,” Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities, 2016,
pp. 39-41, http://tinyurl.com/zyqv9o6.
Data Network. Other data might help predict the likelihood 2 Laura Santhanam, “Can big data save these children?” “PBS Newshour,”
that children returned to their parents from foster care will re- March 22, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/zybxhzc.
enter the system in a year, he says. 3 “Eckerd Rapid Safety Feedback® Highlighted in National Report of
But some child advocates worry big data might lead inves- Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities,” press release,
Eckerd Kids, March 23, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/j9h6v2n.
tigators to unfairly target low-income or minority families. 4 Darian Woods, “New Zealand’s Child Abuse Analytics Study Hits Political
“I’m afraid people of color are going to have their children Snag,” The Chronicle of Social Change, Aug. 7, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/jjd8dhq.
reports increased from 1.7 million in Act in 1993, authorizing nearly $1 billion The foster care system by 1998 had
1984 to 2.9 million in 1993. Foster over five years for states to improve nearly doubled since the mid-1980s, with
caseloads had dropped from 500,000 child welfare services. It also gave HHS an estimated 520,000 children in foster
to fewer than 300,000 between 1977 authority to allow states to spend some care. And more children were staying in
and 1986, but reached nearly 500,000 child welfare funds on innovative pro- foster care for five years or longer. 57
again by 1995. 54 grams to help troubled families, and The Adoption and Safe Families Act
In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled to help courts better handle foster care of 1997 refocused child welfare systems
in DeShaney v. Winnebago County De- and adoption cases. on the safety and well-being of children
partment of Social Services that a state In 1996 President Bill Clinton declared rather than family preservation. The law
cannot be held responsible for failing that adoption was a national priority. required a permanency hearing be held
to remove children from abusive par- He embraced Republican legislation that within one year of a child entering foster
ents. Chief Justice William Rehnquist provided a $5,000 tax credit for families care, in which authorities decide whether
said the Constitution’s Due Process who adopt children and signed the a child should be returned to the parent,
Clause was intended “to protect the Interethnic Adoption Provisions of 1996 stay in foster care or be placed for
people from the State, not to ensure aiming to make it easier for parents to adoption. 58 All 50 states subsequently
that the State protected them from adopt children of a different race. And passed legislation that mirrored or was
each other.” 55 he set the goal of doubling the number tougher than the federal law. By 1999,
Congress passed the Family Preser- of foster children adopted annually, to reported adoptions were up 26 percent
vation and Support Services Program 54,000 by 2002. 56 from the previous year. 59
The 1990s also saw a clash between New Jersey governor and child welfare
liberal child advocates and conservative Lawsuits and Reforms agencies on behalf of 9,000 children,
religious groups over the latter’s efforts to charging that the underfinanced and
codify state laws on parental rights. The
Christian Coalition, the Traditional Values
Coalition, the Home School Legal Defense
A t the same time, state child pro-
tective services began to face law-
suits accusing them of failing to protect
poorly managed child welfare system
further harmed abused and neglected
children. A 2003 settlement required
Association and the Heritage Foundation children under their care from abuse the state to create a Cabinet-level de-
wanted to establish parents’ “inalienable” or neglect. In 1996, according to The partment, hire and train more workers
right to direct and control the education, New York Times, at least 21 states were and recruit more foster parents. 62
values and discipline of their children, under court supervision for failing to Other states were similarly forced into
but liberals feared such measures had the properly care for children. 61 making changes. In March 2004, a lawsuit
potential to shield child abusers. 60 Children’s Rights in 1999 sued the alleged that Mississippi’s foster care system
686 CQ Researcher
determine their placement in the same manner they would any
other child. Instead, “the Indian Child Welfare Act creates a
separate and unequal system for Indian children,” he says.
For many years, judges ruling on child welfare cases relied
on “existing Indian family doctrine” that applied the 1978 law
if the child had, for example, social connections to a tribe, but
AP Photo/Alicia Chang
not if the connection was solely genetic — that is, based on
ancestral lineage or “blood quantum.”
In June, the Obama administration sought to ensure compliance
with the 1978 law and end the use of the “Indian family
doctrine” by requiring judges during foster-care or adoption
proceedings to ask whether a child is Native American. 10
Sandefur says the policy will require judges to apply the
Indian Child Welfare Act on even the merest suspicion “that a Californians Summer and Rusty Page are fighting a court
child has any Indian ancestry.” And that, he says, could lead order that would take their 6-year-old foster child Lexi
to placing children with families and in communities with which from them and send her to live with distant
they have had no association. Native American relatives in Utah.
“Lexi’s great-great-great-great grandparent was a full-blooded
Choctaw Indian, which means she has eligibility to be a member 3 “Foster parents lose appeals fight for Native American girl,” The Associated
of the tribe, even though she has no cultural affiliation with Press, CBS News, July 8, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jxhneph; Choctaw Nation,
the tribe whatsoever,” Sandefur says. “Choctaw National Responds to Foster Couple in ICWA Case,” Indian Country
Today Media Network, March 24, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jls7pzl.
“We say [the Indian Child Welfare Act] needs to be reformed,” 4 Alter, op. cit.; Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family
he says, “not abolished.” Services vs. J.E., Court of Appeal of the State of California, Aug. 15, 2014,
But the Choctaw Nation defended its interest in Lexi’s custody. http://tinyurl.com/htnlhoq.
5 “List of Federal and State Recognized Tribes,” National Conference of State
“It appears the foster family and their counsel are attempting to
Legislatures, updated March 2016, http://tinyurl.com/j5kdqf9.
turn Lexi’s case into a political call to arms to dismantle ICWA. 6 “Goldwater Institute Files Class-Action Lawsuit Against Parts of Indian Child
For the Choctaw Nation this case is not about politics. This case Welfare Act,” press release, Goldwater Institute, July 7, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/
is about one of our children, one of our tribal members.” 11 zqgwv3l.
7 Ibid.
8 Alter, op. cit.
— Christina L. Lyons
9 Suzette Brewer, “ICWA: Victory for Tribes as Judge Reaffirms South Dakota
Decision,” Indian Country Today Media Network, Feb. 22, 2016, http://tinyurl.
1 “California foster parents continue to fight for Indian girl,” The Associated com/zc8htje.
Press, Fox News, June 10, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jtwwdjj; Charlotte Alter, 10 Mary Hudetz, “Judges must ask about youths’ tribal status under new
“Inside the Agonizing Custody Fight Over Six-Year-Old Lexi,” Time, March 27, rule,” Minneapolis Star Tribune, June 8, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hoyv3bs;
2016, http://tinyurl.com/z3gpcmd. “Department of the Interior Issues Indian Child Welfare Act Regulations,”
2 “Indian Child Welfare Act,” National Conference of State Legislatures,
National Law Review, July 13, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jujjgnd.
undated, http://tinyurl.com/zymoovj. 11 Choctaw Nation, op. cit.
was failing to protect children. When a sought to break families apart, particularly preservation programs.” 64
court ordered the state to clean up its minority families. In the 2000s, Congress passed several
system, the Legislature approved $34 mil- Following the act’s passage, 42 states bills designed to further protect children
lion to create a Department of Child “earned $20 million in federal adoption and foster youth and to reform child
Protective Services, which the governor bonuses,” according to Roberts. “The welfare services. In 2011, the Child and
elevated to Cabinet level. 63 federal incentives to move children out Family Services Improvement and Inno-
Dorothy Roberts, then a Northwestern of foster care steer states in one di- vation Act called on states to develop
University law professor, argued in her rection. They encourage states to get new oversight plans for children with
2002 book Shattered Bonds: The Color more children adopted,” she said. “But developmental, mental or health needs,
of Child Welfare, that the 1997 Adoption the new law doesn’t provide compa- and for monitoring the use of psychotrop-
and Safe Families Act had gone beyond rable financial incentives or technical ic medications — drugs that affect mental
ensuring children’s safety and, in fact, help to states to improve their family- processes and behavior. 65
688 CQ Researcher
At Issue:
Can “big data” help save children from abuse?
yes
WRITTEN FOR CQ RESEARCHER, AUGUST 2016 WRITTEN FOR CQ RESEARCHER, AUGUST 2016
yes no
potential of “big data” — also called predictive analytics — to big data magnified it.
identify risk factors, such as emergency room visits. This should surprise no one. Big-data algorithms use risk
Opponents of predictive analytics argue that identifying factors such as unemployment, finances and neighborhood —
families based on such factors risks stigmatization. Furthermore, which disproportionately sweep people of color into the net.
because of maltreatment’s strong correlation with poverty, and Even a reliance on criminal records confuses actual risk with
the concentration of poverty in certain racial and ethnic groups, over-policing of poor communities.
some worry that predictive analytics will lead agencies to un- The risk of bias is even greater in child welfare. Far more
fairly target minority families and communities. common than headline-grabbing child abuse horrors are cases
These are legitimate concerns, and systems using predictive in which poverty is confused with neglect, thanks to laws that
analytics must be mindful of the role they assign these data often define neglect as lack of adequate food, clothing, shelter
systems in decision-making. Transparency is critical. Today’s or supervision. Multiple studies have found that 30 percent of
child welfare systems are designed to partner with families, America’s foster children could be home right now if their
not prejudge or penalize them. parents had decent housing.
Still, child protection services should use every tool at their And the normal due process protections in criminal justice
disposal to prevent and address maltreatment. are nearly nonexistent in child welfare.
Considering the challenges they face, child welfare systems It’s no wonder that an extensive analysis of New Zealand’s
are dangerously under-resourced and understaffed. Prevention use of predictive analytics in child welfare found what ProPublica
programs are woefully underfunded, and services often do not found for criminal justice: a system that reinforces bias rather
reach those needing them. Too many children who die from than countering it. And a child-welfare official in Los Angeles
maltreatment each year had been referred to agencies that said that a big-data system being tested there had a false-positive
responded inadequately. Social workers manage unacceptably rate of 95 percent.
high caseloads and too often face life-and-death decisions Needless removal of youngsters from families devastates chil-
without having all the facts. Providing them with data and dren’s psyches and can leave lifelong scars. Two massive studies
information can help them better protect children. found that children left in their own homes typically fared better
Child protection systems should proceed firmly but cau- than comparably maltreated children placed in foster care. Multiple
tiously with their use of risk-related data to make decisions. studies have found alarming rates of abuse in foster homes and
Predictive analytics have the potential to flag high-risk cases even more abuse in group homes and institutions.
earlier so children do not fall through the cracks. Better identi- But no caseworker is going to defy an algorithm, leave a child
fying families at risk also allows systems to target supportive home and wind up on the front page if something goes wrong
services more efficiently, with the goal of preventing maltreat- — even if the algorithm is rife with racial and class bias. Instead,
ment altogether. they’ll needlessly take even more children from their families, fur-
The status quo is unacceptable. If predictive analytics can ther overloading the system and leaving less time to find children
help us intervene before families reach crisis, then we need to in real danger who really do need to be in foster care.
commit to navigating the tensions and learning to use it to What proponents call predictive analytics really should be
improve child outcomes.
no called data-nuking poor families.
690 CQ Researcher
University of Southern California. The pay “attention to underlying issues —
paper suggests that European govern- housing, substance abuse, domestic vi- Notes
ments provide more support for new olence,” Meltzer says.
mothers than the United States. 82 Hughes of Social Change Partners 1 Jill Lepore, “Baby Doe: A political history
Other studies continue to look at con- says governments need to invest more of tragedy,” The New Yorker, Feb. 1, 2015,
nections between child abuse or neglect resources in child welfare agencies to http://tinyurl.com/jrzfhmv.
and poverty. One study by British re- reduce social workers’ caseloads; other- 2 A.A. vs. State of Oregon, Circuit Court of the
searchers concluded that while evidence wise not only is it difficult for caseworkers State of Oregon for the County of Multnomah,
is limited, “it is clear” that the connection to manage cases, but it also becomes May 27, 2016, p. 10, http://tinyurl.com/jaoovlz.
3 “Child Maltreatment 2014,” U.S. Children’s
exists. “Adverse events in childhood, in- more difficult for state agencies to retain
cluding abuse and neglect, are associated those workers. “A lot go into social work, Bureau, Jan. 25, 2016, pp. xii, 21, http://tinyurl.
with negative effects on adult economic then get burned out and leave,” he says. com/nl3gdkm.
4 “Child Maltreatment 2014,” op. cit., pp. x,
circumstances,” they said. 83 But to see improved results within the
22 and 46.
However, Leroy H. Pelton, then a child welfare system, Gelles says, univer- 5 “What is Child Abuse and Neglect? Recog-
professor of social work at Salem College sities also must do a better job of training nizing the Signs and Symptoms,” U.S. Children’s
in Massachusetts, argued “that the child social workers — with an improved focus Bureau, July 2013, http://tinyurl.com/z5qwov3.
placement rate is not related to the on the child rather than the parents. “We’re 6 “Memorandum Opinion and Verdict of the
poverty rate, but rather, to how our so- a big part of the problem.” he says. Court,” M.D., Stukenberg et al., vs. Greg Abbott,
ciety has treated or dealt with the children Many experts agree that states con- U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas,
of families living in poverty.” 84 fronting a lack of foster families must Dec. 17, 2015, pp. 11-13, 254-255, http://tinyurl.
find ways to recruit more. “We need to com/jygk9oz; Edgar Walters, “For Foster Kids,
treat [foster families] as though they are a Push to Make Medical Care Treat Psycho-
OUTLOOK an important part of the treatment logical Pain,” The Texas Tribune, May 10, 2016,
http://tinyurl.com/j7d9yr7.
process,” says the Casey Foundation’s 7 Susan K. Livio, “Judge approves N.J. child
Feild. “Unless we learn that lesson and welfare reform plan that could end federal
move in that direction, I don’t know oversight,” NJ.com, Nov. 4, 2015, http://tinyurl.
that we’ll be successful at developing com/h4t2d46.
Elusive Improvement more foster families. And we have to 8 “Foster Care Statistics 2014,” U.S. Children’s
change the way we interact with foster Bureau, March 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hxzvjff.
abuse and fatalities. “These are the Youth Law agrees, saying current foster Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities,”
same calls that have echoed for decades parents are the best source of recruit- Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and
. . . and yet significant improvements Neglect Fatalities, 2016, pp. 12-13, http://tiny
ment, so those parents need to feel
to the child protective service system url.com/zyqv9o6.
better supported. 11 “Child Welfare Outcomes 2010-2013: Report
still elude us,” the University of Penn- The North American Council’s Stevens to Congress,” U.S. Children’s Bureau, Feb. 1,
sylvania’s Gelles says in his forthcoming says foster parents will particularly need 2016, p. 9, http://tinyurl.com/z2s2qgn.
book, Out of Harm’s Way: Creating an better support services if the Families 12 “Child Maltreatment 2014,” op. cit., p. 8.
Effective Child Welfare System. First Prevention Services Act is enacted 13 Elizabeth Bartholet, “Differential Response:
Experts point to various concerns because “kids who will come into foster A Dangerous Experiment in Child Welfare,”
they say still need to be addressed. care will have greater needs and history Florida State University Law Review, Aug. 1,
Meltzer of the Center for the Study of of trauma.” 2014, pp. 573-644, http://tinyurl.com/zav7f2o.
14 Michael Levenson, “Study finds DCF’s two-
Social Policy says, “These systems need But she also says that five to 10 years
to pay much more attention to issues from now, “I think we are going to be tier system endangers children,” The Boston
of racial disproportionality. My hope is Globe, Nov. 5, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/hl4ve8k.
in a much better place, because lots
[that] in doing so, we will see a reduction Matt Stout, “Charlie Baker vows ‘end-to-end’
and lots of young people with personal DCF reform,” The Boston Herald, Nov. 18, 2015,
of children of color who are unnecessarily experience in the system are stepping http://tinyurl.com/hfb3zlm.
in foster care.” To accomplish that goal, forward, getting master’s in social work, 15 Carol Marbin Miller and Audra D.S. Burch,
she says, the foster care system needs becoming probation officers, taking a “Innocents Lost: Preserving Families But Losing
to better engage minority families and leadership role. And they are going to Children,” The Miami Herald, March 16, 2014,
listen to their needs. It also needs to drive the kind of reform we need.” http://tinyurl.com/jbgpckc.
necessary for children’s well-being, but there 28 Joaquin Sapien, “Yet Another Scandal Rocks Protection in America,” Family Law Quarterly,
are wide state-to-state disparities in the rate Utah Home for Vulnerable Children,” ProPublica, Fall 2008, p. 452, http://tinyurl.com/grznv6c;
of terminations and in services to avoid foster March 21, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hjhed3w. Tina Lee, Catching a Case: Inequality and
care placements,” U.S. News & World Report, 29 Ibid. Fear in New York City’s Child Welfare System
April 30, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/zqonnu3. 30 Robert T. Garrett, “Texas foster-care crisis: (2016), p. 22; and Myers, op. cit., p. 452.
18 “Foster Care Statistics 2014,” Child Welfare Children sleeping in CPS offices against as 40 Myers, ibid., p. 452; Lee, ibid., p. 22; Price,
Information Gateway, U.S. Children’s Bureau, more removed from homes but state out of op. cit.; and Christina L. Lyons, “Reforming
March 2016, p. 9, http://tinyurl.com/zjjpoao; places to care for them,” Dallas Morning News, Juvenile Justice,” CQ Researcher, Sept. 11, 2015,
“Child Maltreatment 2014,” op. cit., Chap. 3, March 17, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jvywfyg. pp. 745-768.
p. 23. 31 William Lee, “Maryville to stop accepting 41 Angelique Brown, “Brief History of the
19 Crary, op. cit., 2016. foster kids for residential placement,” Chicago Federal Children’s Bureau: (1912-1935),” The
20 “Study of Coordination of Tribal TANF and Tribune, June 1, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/ Social Welfare Project, Virginia Commonwealth
Child Welfare Services: Final Report,” Office hrdyrm8; Marie K. Cohen, “Group Home Clo- University Libraries, undated, http://tinyurl.com/
of Planning, Research and Evaluation, May sure Eliminates Key Option for Most Challenging zhnd6w6.
2016, pp. I, 13, 18, http://tinyurl.com/z2us46r. Foster Youth,” Chronicle for Social Change, 42 For background, see David Hosansky, “Social
21 Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and June 6, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jsfd39s. Security,” CQ Researcher, June 3, 2016, pp.
Neglect Fatalities, op. cit., p. 10. 32 Matthew J. Reynell, “Written Statement for 481-504.
22 Ronald J. Prinz, “Parenting and family the Record by Statement for Senate Finance 43 Social Security Act of 1935, 521, 49 Stat.
support within a broad child abuse prevention Committee Hearing,” U.S. Senate Committee on 620, 633; Myers, op. cit., p. 453.
strategy,” Child Abuse Neglect, Nov. 6, 2015, Finance, May 19, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/zfr8bv5. 44 Lepore, op. cit.; Sealander, op. cit., p. 61.
nerable children?” The Lancet, July 25, 2015, 368. Syndrome,” Child Abuse & Neglect, pp. 143-
http://tinyurl.com/otujzqv. 36 “History of Firsts,” Children’s Aid Society, 154, http://tinyurl.com/jaf3eca.
26 E. L. L. Strijbosch et al., “The outcome of undated, http://tinyurl.com/zlk8xjt; Stephen 47 Myers, op. cit., p. 455; Sealander, op. cit., p. 64.
institutional youth care compared to non-in- O’Connor, Orphan Trains: The Story of Charles 48 “Child Abuse Prevention Act of 1973: Hear-
stitutional youth care for children of primary Loring Brace and the Children He Saved and ings Before the Subcommittee on Children
school age and early adolescence: A multi- Failed (2014). and Youth of the Committee on Labor and
level meta-analysis,” Children and Youth Ser- 37 O’Connor, ibid. Public Welfare, United States Senate,” 1973,
vices Review, January 2015, pp. 208-218, http:// 38 Judith Sealander, The Failed Century of the pp. 273-274, http://tinyurl.com/ztt8mqf.
tinyurl.com/gtsxtkp. Child: Governing America’s Young in the Twen- 49 Myers, op. cit., p. 456.
50 “Opening Statement of Hon. James Abourezk,
author of CQ’s Politics in America 2010. Lyons began her Care — In Whose Best Interest?” Harvard
career as a newspaper reporter in Maryland and then covered Educational Review, December 1973, http://
environment and health care policy on Capitol Hill. She has a tinyurl.com/hxea3fo.
53 Martin Guggenheim, “The Foster Care Dilemma
master’s degree in political science from American University.
and What to Do About It: Is the Problem That
692 CQ Researcher
Too Many Children Are Not Being Adopted
Out of Foster Care or That Too Many Children
are Entering Foster Care?” Journal of Constitu- FOR MORE INFORMATION
tional Law, pp. 141-142, http://tinyurl.com/jlo2f3v;
Center for the Study of Social Policy, 1575 I St., N.W., Suite 500, Washington,
Dorothy Roberts, “ASFA: An Assault on Family DC 20005; 202-371-1565; www.cssp.org. Monitors child welfare agency reforms.
Preservation,” excerpted from Dorothy Roberts,
Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare Children’s Rights, 88 Pine St., Suite 800, New York, NY 10005; 212-683-2210;
(2002), “Frontline,” accessed July 22, 2016,
www.childrensrights.org. Provides legal support for child protection.
http://tinyurl.com/h387mdd. Child Welfare League of America, 727 15th St., N.W., 12th Floor, Washington, DC
54 Price, op. cit., 2005. 20005; 202-688-4200; www.cwla.org. Advocates for child welfare policies and services.
55 DeShaney v. Winnebago County Department
National Center for Youth Law, 405 14th St., 15th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612;
of Social Services, 489 U.S. 189, Feb. 22, 1989, 510-835-8098; www.youthlaw.org. Represents low-income children.
http://tinyurl.com/nhpco7t.
56 Alison Mitchell, “Clinton Backs Republicans’ National Coalition for Child Protection Reform, 53 Skyhill Rd., Suite 202,
Alexandria, VA 22314; 703-212-2006; www.nccpr.info. Advocates for policies on
Bill on Tax Credit for Adoptions,” The New York child abuse, foster care and family preservation.
Times, May 7, 1996, http://tinyurl.com/glfxaab;
Alison Mitchell, “President Tells Government National Indian Child Welfare Association, 5100 S.W. Macadam Ave., Suite 300,
to Promote More Adoptions,” The New York
Portland, OR 97239; 503-222-4044; www.nicwa.org. Lobbies for policies and re-
search on the welfare of Native American children.
Times, Dec. 15, 1996, http://tinyurl.com/hpojy4p.
57 “Foster Care: States’ Early Experiences Im- North American Council on Adoptable Children, 970 Raymond Ave., Suite 106,
plementing the Adoption and Safe Families St. Paul, MN 55114; 651-644-3036; www.nacac.org. Provides support for adoptive
Act,” U.S. General Accounting Office, Decem- parents and children awaiting adoption.
ber 1999, p. 3, http://tinyurl.com/zy39fra.
58 “From Foster Care to Adoption,” The Wash- child sex trafficking,” Human Rights Project 75 Brumfield, op. cit.; Emily Palmer and Camp-
ington Post, May 10, 1997, http://tinyurl.com/ for Girls, 2013, http://tinyurl.com/qzxtqlc; “Pre- bell Robertson, “Mississippi Fights to Keep
j3om8fo; Jeff Katz, “Finally the Law Puts These venting Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Control of Its Beleaguered Child Welfare Sys-
Kids’ Interests First,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Families Act of 2014,” April 7, 2016, National tem,” The New York Times, Jan. 17, 2016, http://
Dec. 28, 1997, referenced in Roberts, op. cit. Conference of State Legislatures, http://tinyurl. tinyurl.com/zerbvv7.
59 Karen Spar and Matthew Shuman, “Child com/hxplajn. 76 Katherine Johnson, “Look-Back Law Allows
Welfare: Implementation of the Adoption and 68 Lydia Wheeler, “Feds target discrimination Foster-Care Licenses for Criminals, Abusers,”
Safe Famlies Act (P.L. 105-89),” Congressional in child welfare system,” The Hill, Aug. 10, 2015, ABC Eyewitness News, May 11, 2016, http://
Research Service, Nov. 8, 2004, http://tinyurl. http://preview.tinyurl.com/oxksybt. tinyurl.com/zyfryt8.
com/gwynjwo. 69 Brandon Stahl, “New law would have ruled 77 Elisabeth Harrison, “Bill Would Close Loop-
60 Thomas J. Billitteri, “Parental Rights,” CQ out foster father accused in Bemidji girl’s death,” hole in Child Abuse Reporting Law,” Rhode
Researcher, Oct. 25, 1996, pp. 937-960. Star Tribune, June 16, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/ Island Public Radio, June 10, 2016, http://tiny
61 Robert Pear, “Many States Fail to Fulfill Child hpjmdlm. url.com/zpf2rgs.
Welfare,” The New York Times, March 17, 1996, 70 Sara Barr, “House Committee Approves 78 “Foster Care Bill of Rights,” National Con-
http://tinyurl.com/z3wznwl. Long-Sought Family First Act,” Youth Today, ference of State Legislatures, Oct. 21, 2015,
62 See “Class Actions NJ: Charlie & Nadine H. June 16, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/zkyuw2c; http://tinyurl.com/h6typ4y.
v. Christie,” Children’s Rights, http://tinyurl.com/ “Family First Prevention Services Act of 2016,” 79 “Foster Children: HHS Could Provide Addi-
glyc6k7. U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, undated, tional Guidance to States Regarding Psychotropic
63 See “Olivia Y. Lawsuit” Mississippi Depart- http://tinyurl.com/zncqbst. Medications,” U.S. Government Accountability
ment of Human Resources, http://tinyurl.com/ 71 “Support for Family First Act,” Dec. 8, 2015, Office, May 19, 2014, pp. 1, 8, www.gao.gov/
hjspsn7; Patsy R. Brumfield, “Child welfare First Focus, http://tinyurl.com/jcbpa6z; Sheila products/GAO-14-651T.
system improving,” Mississippi Today, May 20, Harrigan, letter to Sens. Charles E. Schumer 80 Ibid., p. 7.
2016, http://tinyurl.com/hsrztyr. and Kirsten Gillibrand, June 23, 2016, http:// 81 Ibid., front fact sheet.
64 Roberts, op. cit. tinyurl.com/z7rmtok. 82 John Tozzi, “What’s Killing American Babies
65 “Major Federal Legislation Concerned with 72 Duff Wilson, “Obama signs into law opioid Before Their First Birthday?” Bloomberg, June
Child Protection, Child Welfare, and Adoption,” addiction bill to protect newborns,” Reuters, 27, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jj4g2rs.
U.S. Children’s Bureau, March 2015, http://tiny July 22, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/gtl9qrj. 83 Paul Bywaters et al., “The relationship be-
url.com/ju73ggg. 73 “Statement by the President on the Com- tween poverty, child abuse and neglect: an
66 “GAO: U.S. child abuse data flawed,” The prehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of evidence review,” Joseph Rowntree Founda-
Associated Press, CBS News, July 12, 2011, 2016,” news release, the White House, July 22, tion, March 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hcos8ag.
http://tinyurl.com/hj7yswb. 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hnlvw5z. 84 Leroy H. Pelton, “Not for Poverty Alone:
67 “Child Welfare and Human Trafficking,” 74 “Powerful Voices: Sharing Our Stories To Reform Foster Care Population Trends in the Twentieth
U.S. Children’s Bureau, July 2015, http://tiny Child Welfare,” Foster Youth Internship Program, Century,” Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare,
url.com/hddo6zg; “Child welfare and domestic July 13, 2016, https://ccainstituteblog.org/. June 2015, http://tinyurl.com/jknyp9z.
694 CQ Researcher
The Next Step:
Additional Articles from Current Periodicals
Big Data Mississippi is seeking to retain control of its child welfare
system after a class-action lawsuit asserted the system is un-
Hickey, Kathleen, “Saving children, one algorithm at a derfunded and hampered by high social worker caseloads.
time,” GCN, July 26, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/z3pclbp.
Government agencies are using software to analyze child Symons, Michael, “Exit plan for child-welfare lawsuit in
welfare data to try to predict which children are most at risk. sight,”Asbury Park Press, Nov. 4, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/
hpmlc6c.
Prazan, Phil, “Data highlight where child abuse happens New Jersey’s child welfare agency, which was sued in 1999
and where it’s spreading,” KXAN News, July 14, 2016, by a children’s advocacy group because of problems in its
http://tinyurl.com/hmepx23. system, could be free of federal oversight as early as 2017 after
Researchers used data from Texas’ Department of Family improving training for its caseworkers and making other changes.
and Protective Services to identify areas in the Austin region
where child abuse and maltreatment are rampant. Native Americans
Williams, Jake, “Data sharing central to new Pa. child “Foster parents lose appeal in fight for Native American
welfare system,” State Scoop, Sept. 23, 2015, http://tiny girl,” CBS News, July 8, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/j347oz8.
url.com/jxcpcjs. A California appeals court ordered a 6-year-old with Native
Pennsylvania is moving to a more centralized system of American ancestry to be removed from her foster family of
tracking child welfare cases through an information database. four years and placed with her extended family in Utah.
Foster Care System Kelly, John, “38 Years After ICWA, Feds to Collect Data
on Native American Foster Youth,” The Chronicle of
“DOE sets new guidelines for foster care,” Legacy News- Social Change, April 8, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/h3ge6ed.
paper, Aug. 2, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/grdwr6q. Nearly four decades after the passage of the Indian Child
The U.S. Department of Education has issued guidelines on Welfare Act, which seeks to keep Native American children
ways to bring educational stability to students in foster care. with their tribal communities, a federal agency plans to
collect data on Indian children in child welfare systems.
Miller, Cynthia, “Foster care survivors fight to improve
the system,” Santa Fe New Mexican, July 16, 2016, http:// Tolan, Casey, “A series of new lawsuits is challenging
tinyurl.com/zhx7v55. how Native American kids are adopted,” Fusion, July 17,
Young adults who have aged out of foster care are fighting 2016, http://tinyurl.com/hts6d5h.
to reform the system and aid foster children through the Lawsuits across the country are challenging the Indian Child
nonprofit New Mexico Child Advocacy Networks. Welfare Act, alleging that tribal interests are being placed
above children’s safety because of the law.
Jones, Carolyn, “Mockingbird Society: A New Kind Of Foster
Care,”Tacoma Weekly,Aug. 4, 2016, http://tinyurl.com/jdj4tn8. CITING CQ RESEARCHER
A group in Washington state is reimagining the foster care
Sample formats for citing these reports in a bibliography
system by creating intentional foster family communities with
24/7 access to veteran foster parents. include the ones listed below. Preferred styles and formats
vary, so please check with your instructor or professor.
Legal Reform
MLA STYLE
Green, Aimee, “Oregon’s top payouts for state wrong- Jost, Kenneth. “Remembering 9/11.” CQ Researcher 2 Sept.
doing: $15 million settlement dwarfs them all,” The Ore- 2011: 701-732.
gonian, Dec. 21, 2015, http://tinyurl.com/hgmgpvk.
Oregon has paid $15 million to settle a federal lawsuit APA STYLE
against the state Department of Human Services, which was
Jost, K. (2011, September 2). Remembering 9/11. CQ Researcher,
accused of improperly supervising a foster father convicted
of abusing nine young children. 9, 701-732.
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