| Releases
& Statements
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 4, 2007
Contact: John Collins
(212) 669-4193; (917) 496-4587
Release #: 029-2007
Public
Advocate Finds Spike in ACS Mistakes Before Tragic Death of Nixzmary
Brown
- Gotbaum calls for an independent Office of Child Advocate to
strengthen system and protect kids -
MANHATTAN
– The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS)
was struggling to perform basic child protective functions, such
as conducting timely and thorough investigations, during the year
leading up to the tragic death of Nixzmary Brown, according to
a new analysis by Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum. The analysis
found that while the number of child fatalities investigated by
ACS in 2005 remained similar to the previous year, the number
of ACS mistakes spiked by more than 44 percent. On average, ACS
committed more than two mistakes per child fatality case in 2005
– the sign of an overburdened system unable to effectively
fulfill its role of protecting kids.
When
ACS investigates a child fatality, the New York State Office of
Children and Family Services (OCFS) reviews the ACS investigation
and produces a report for each death. As part of this review process,
OCFS identifies mistakes made by ACS, if applicable, in both the
investigation into the child fatality and any contact ACS may
have had with the family previous to the death. OCFS then identifies
corrective actions that ACS must take, such as staff trainings,
to avoid similar problems in the future. Due to confidentiality
reasons, the OCFS child fatality reports are one of the few glimpses
into ACS’ casework and procedures.
Public
Advocate Gotbaum conducted an analysis of all the OCFS child fatality
reports for 2005 and found:
Year
|
Total
Fatalities |
#
of Cases Requiring Corrective Action(s) |
Total
# of Mistakes |
Average
# of Mistakes per Fatality |
2005
|
75
|
59
|
173
|
2.31
|
2004
|
73
|
49
|
120
|
1.64
|
2003
|
64
|
50
|
103
|
1.61
|
Public
Advocate Gotbaum is calling for the following steps to strengthen
the child welfare system:
1. Create an Office of the Child Advocate to Improve Oversight:
New York State should create an independent Office of the Child
Advocate to provide permanent oversight of the child welfare system,
including ACS and contract agencies. The State Legislature is
currently considering such legislation.
2. Improve ACS Investigations of Child Abuse and Neglect Allegations:
ACS should hire and train additional child protective caseworkers
to reduce child protective caseloads from over 16 to 12 cases
per worker, the maximum caseload recommended by the Child Welfare
League of America.
Public
Advocate Gotbaum said, “Nixzmary’s tragic death was
not an isolated incident. Her death was a brutal outcome of system-wide
failings. But we are not here to blame ACS; looking back, we need
to move forward by taking additional steps to strengthen child
protective services. By hiring more workers and creating a permanent
oversight body for the child welfare system, we can identify problems
earlier, protect vulnerable kids and prevent future deaths.”
The
analysis grouped mistakes made by ACS into eight categories: 1)
investigations, 2) supervision, 3) case documentation, 4) child
welfare assessments, 5) laws or procedures, 6) supervision/coordination
with contract agencies, 7) legal consultations, and 8) casework.
Public
Advocate Gotbaum found that ACS was having the most difficulty
in conducting timely and thorough investigations. In fact, in
58 of the 75 child fatality cases (77 percent), OCFS found mistakes
associated with the way ACS conducted its investigations, such
as delays in completing investigations in violation of state law,
or not following up with all parties associated with a child fatality.
The analysis revealed that ACS was also having problems supervising
its staff, providing proper case documentation, and conducting
accurate child welfare assessments.
Click
here to read the report.
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