What Do I Do?

Before your brain entertains a parade of nightmares, let’s slow down and get grounded in helpful realities:

1. Remember, you have rights. Any governmental agency that is investigating your competency as a parent still has to go to court – with credible evidence – to make a case against you.
2. Remember, there are procedural safeguards in place before a child can be taken away from you. Most government agencies charged with protecting children possess near unbridled authority to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect, but nothing can happen to your parental rights without notice and without an opportunity to be heard before a judge.
3. Know that many calls to such governmental agencies result in no actions against the parent(s).
4. Know that many other calls result in advisories and recommendations for classes and programs for the parents.
5. Remember that the investigators live in the real world: they know that people call in false abuse or neglect reports to gain an advantage in family court, to be spiteful, to harass, etc.
6. Child welfare agencies know that families belong together, and personnel wants to keep families together as much as possible.
7. Know that the call to a child welfare authority might be the result of a teacher or daycare worker simply following protocols designed ultimately to protect your child. In other words, it may not about you, your parenting skills, your parenting values, and so on. A childcare worker may simply be looking out for your child as much as their own job.
8. A heads-up: you might never know who has called in the report. All calls are anonymous, except for calls made by law enforcement or judges. It’s not worth playing the guessing or blame game.
9. Know that you’re not alone. You can hire an attorney to assist you.

Practical Survival Tips

Someone called the child welfare agency in your state regarding your children, and now you face an investigation.

Here are some practical survival tips:

1. You are best advised to hire a family law attorney to represent you.
2. Whether or not you are represented, mind your manners, no matter how much you want to be aggressive or angry. Please and thank you matter. Don’t interrupt, as you will appear defensive – as if you have something you need to defend.
3. Force yourself to be silent when the investigator speaks – and listen.
4. Really listen instead of constructing your next remark in your head while the investigator speaks. Listen actively so that you understand what is the most concerning to this particular investigator who is assigned to you.
5. Even if the investigator is combative or rude to you, treat the investigator with courtesy and respect. If you fly off the handle at them, they might get the impression that you can easily fly off the handle at your child.
6. Remember:If you lose your cool, you are proving their case against you.
7. Be sure to ask for the investigator’s name and contact information. Usually, they will present you with a card; if not, politely ask.
8. Keep a list of your questions for the investigator. You can easily text or email yourself if you’re on the go when a question or concern strikes you.
9. Let the investigator know that you will reach out by email for follow up and ask when is a suitable time for you to contact the investigator. Email assures you a paper trail.
10. If you have pending a family court or domestic violence case, and there have been favorable or neutral orders or reports rendered by a judge, guardian ad l item, court-appointed psychologist/social worker, hearing officer, or magistrate, obtain these records. Depending on your jurisdiction, you can create pdf versions to be shared online, or you can mail copies (with tracking) to the investigator to keep.
11. Don’t forget to follow up to confirm the investigator’s receipt of your documents. Now is not the time to drop the ball.
12. Gather the names, contact numbers, and email addresses for those witnesses who can offer favorable observations as to your parenting for the investigator. Your family is one option, and so are your babysitter(s) and your neighbors. However, child welfare agencies give more weight to neutral professionals such as teachers, daycare workers, dentists, and doctors.
13. Ask the investigator when the call was placed to the agency.
14. In Florida, you should mark your calendar for 60 days after the call was placed. In 60 days, you have the right to request a copy of the written report rendered by the investigator for the Florida Department of Children and Families(DCF).
15. If classes are offered to help you improve your parenting, take them immediately, whether or not you think you need them. Child welfare authorities will be concerned by parents who think that they are above help or are infallible. Treat the class as an opportunity to learn and to reflect. The authority will regard your willingness favorably.
16. Whether or not you cooperate, the authority still has to complete its investigation, which is your chance to tell your side.
17. Be your own best advocate: keep a written diary of each event or transaction on your case. Write the names of relevant people you talk to, the dates of the conversations, and information they provide.
18. If you are going to be interviewed by the police in particular, you may wish to have an attorney present as you don’t want to incriminate yourself.

What Happens in a Case?

This post’s procedural content focuses on family law in Florida where the child welfare authority is known as the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF). Other jurisdictions may vary.

If DCF has opened a case against you after conducting an investigation, consider the following:

• If a case is opened, you are best advised to hire a lawyer skilled in family law.
• After 60 days have passed since the call was placed, visit the DCF office in person to request a copy of the report. Keep it in a safe place.
• If you are represented by a family law lawyer in a pending family case, be sure to provide a copy to counsel.
• If you are not represented, and there is no action recommended by DCF, you might want to ask your family court judge if he or she is interested in seeing the report. In some circumstances, the judge may already have a copy; in other types of cases, the judge might not be able to read the report unless a DCF worker testifies as to its authenticity, which may require you to subpoena the DCF worker to testify. However, there is an exception here…
• If you are in active family court or domestic violence litigation during the pendency of the DCF investigation, do not attempt to subpoena DCF until those 60 days have passed, as they are unable to comment or to testify with regard to an active investigation. Your time and your subpoena fee will be wasted.
• Try to avoid taking it personally. The people at DCF and at court are simply doing their jobs in response to a report. Perhaps a mandatory reporter, such as a teacher or a doctor, had to make the call. Perhaps someone is trying to harass you or spite you through a false claim. Perhaps someone genuinely cares about the safety of your child – and that’s a good thing.

You aren’t alone in this, and you can ask for help. If you are in Florida, please contact the DADvocacy™ Law Firm for a free consultation. Our experienced family law attorneys can help you to navigate this challenge.

Warning: All posts on this website and partner website, JustPrenups.com, contain general information about legal matters for broad educational purposes only. The information is not legal advice and should not be treated as such. This blog post does not create any attorney-client relationship between the reader and the DADvocacy™ Law Firm.