THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 25, 1995 TAG: 9507250297
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Some critics of the state's child welfare system say the rights of people accused of abuse are trampled by investigators. Others say it's the children who get short shrift.
Now everyone with an opinion about the system can help reform it.
A subcommittee of state lawmakers will meet the public at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Norfolk City Council chambers. The legislators will listen to comments about whether Child Protective Services, the agency that investigates abuse and neglect of children, is doing its job.
Some of the hot-button issues the Joint Subcommittee Studying the Child Protective Services System in Virginia wants to address:
Do Child Protective Services workers have enough training?
What kind of proof should a worker need before deciding whether a child abuse complaint is legitimate, or ``founded''?
Who should have access to the agency's central registry, a listing of people who have been accused in child-abuse cases?
And what can be done about parents who falsely accuse their ex-spouses of abuse to gain custody of children?
Del. Alan E. Mayer, D-Fairfax, admits that the committee he chairs might not have answers to all the issues raised. But he says Virginia's child-welfare system can be improved, and the hearings are the first step in proposing change.
Mayer said he has heard from many people who say they have been unfairly penalized because of child-abuse allegations. ``In some cases, it's been like American justice has been turned upside down - you're guilty until proven innocent,'' Mayer said.
The delegate sponsored a 1994 bill reforming the appeal process for people accused of child abuse. The assembly carried the bill over to this year and passed a resolution to study the appeal process and other child-abuse issues.
Wednesday's session is the second of four hearings the subcommittee will conduct this year. The first, in Fairfax County, drew about 30 speakers. The third hearing will be in Richmond on Aug. 21, and a fourth hearing in the Roanoke area has yet to be scheduled.
Mayer said the subcommittee, which began meeting in May, will have recommendations for reform by the end of the year and will pass them on to state lawmakers in time for the 1996 General Assembly session.
``In the vast majority of cases, CPS does a good job,'' Mayer said. But, he said, people accused of child abuse have few options to fight a CPS ruling they believe is wrong. ILLUSTRATION: TO SPEAK
People who want to speak at the hearing can register by calling
Dawn B. Smith, committee coordinator for the House of Delegates, at
(804) 786-7681. Speakers are asked to limit their remarks to five
minutes and bring a copy of their remarks to the meeting. People
needing interpreters or other assistance should contact Smith.
Norfolk City Council chambers are on the 11th floor of the City Hall
Building, 810 Union St.
by CNB