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Foster parents' fitness in question: 2-year-old went missing from foster care for four months & 11-year-old torture victim and a woman's body buried in the backyard..
Helluva screening process eh?
On Jun 26, 9:12 pm, fx wrote: Foster parents' fitness in question BY CAROL MARBIN MILLER Before 2-year-old Courtney Clark went missing from foster care for four months -- and before she was found in a Wisconsin home with an 11-year-old torture victim and a woman's body buried in the backyard -- state child welfare administrators left her in the care of Cynthia and Mark Martell. Documents released Tuesday by the head of the state's child welfare agency suggest the Martells had dubious qualifications to be foster parents: In 2003, the Department of Children & Families had found ''some indicators'' that a child in the Martell's home in Sorrento had been sexually abused and faced ``threatened harm.'' The department turned over the allegations to local enforcement, though no charges were ever filed. The documents made public by DCF chief Bob Butterworth include an unconfirmed 1995 abuse report to DCF that also alleged sexual molestation in the Martell home. Records from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement say Cynthia Martell had been arrested three times between 1985 and 2003 on charges ranging from larceny and shoplifting to grand theft. The records do not show any convictions. An investigator and supervisor with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, which handles child-abuse reports for DCF, approved the Martells as caregivers for Courtney, who was taken into state care in July 2006 after her mother, Candice Farris, was arrested on larceny charges. Farris also went by the name Candice Clark. A telephone number listed to the Martells was disconnected, and the family could not be reached for comment Tuesday. The approval of the Martells as caregivers for the toddler is among a handful of actions in the case that raised troubling questions in the internal DCF review Butterworth released Tuesday. At an afternoon news conference, Butterworth said he was ''incensed'' by the handling of Courtney's case by both his agency and private contractors. Farris took the toddler from the Martells' home on Sept. 23, 2006. On Oct. 4, Cynthia Martell called a caseworker to report ''she had made a big mistake and allowed Ms. Farris to leave with'' Courtney, the report says. It was not until four months later that caseworkers with the private Safe Children's Coalition, which contracts with DCF to provide foster care services in the Tampa Bay area, reported Courtney missing to local police. The delay hampered the state's ability to locate the toddler, reports say. ''It is unconscionable that human failures throughout the system allowed Courtney Clark to be missing for four months without being reported,'' Butterworth said. ``Fortunately, Courtney is alive and well. But I cannot say she was well served. She was not well served by the system nor this department.'' Reacting to the case, Butterworth announced Tuesday a series of reforms. Among them: the appointment of ''child location specialists'' in each of the five department regions to spearhead efforts to locate missing children, and a new ''director of criminal justice services'' to improve DCF's relationship with police, judges and juvenile justice. The head of a Clearwater agency that oversaw Courtney's foster care, Directions for Mental Health, said Tuesday the reforms may help prevent failures in the future. ''I think the suggestions for corrective action have the potential to improve the system,'' said Tom Riggs, who heads Directions for Mental Health. ``I welcome them. We will work hard to do our part in helping these things to happen.'' Candice Farris remains in jail in Wisconsin on murder charges. Wisconsin police found the toddler in a Portage home where they also found an 11-year-old boy who had been tortured. The boy's mother was found buried in the backyard. A spokeswoman for the Wisconsin Department of Health & Family Services, Stephanie Marquis, said child welfare workers in Columbia County have taken Courtney into custody. Typically, Marquis said, workers will search for ''fit and willing relatives'' for abused and neglected children before looking for foster parents. She declined to discuss Courtney's case specifically. CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAM.... CPS Does not protect children... It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even killed at the hands of Child Protective Services. every parent should read this .pdf from connecticut dcf watch... http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US These numbers come from The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN) Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS *Perpetrators of Maltreatment* Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59 Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13 Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241 Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12 Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5 Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per 100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a bunch of social workers. BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION... |
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Foster parents' fitness in question: 2-year-old went missing from foster care for four months & 11-year-old torture victim and a woman's body buried in the backyard..
Sorry I missed this one Greg. Don't know how it could have slipped by me, but it's a corker for all that, and I'm happy to do catch up with it. Once again, Greg rings the bell. 0:] Greegor wrote: Helluva screening process eh? I think it was brilliant of you to notice that, Greg. DCF found many reasons to disqualify this family. Of course they DID NOT PLACE THE CHILD THERE. In other words, you have two wonderful errors in one post...one direct, by failing to read and comprehend, and the other just a bit outdated. Now who made the decision to place, Greg? Read...think snicker, and take note: ....An investigator and supervisor with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, which handles child-abuse reports for DCF, approved the Martells as caregivers for Courtney, who was taken into state care in July 2006 after her mother, Candice Farris, was arrested on larceny charges. Farris also went by the name Candice Clark. ... In other words, they went right AROUND DCF's findings, and of course the subcontractor that actually PLACES went by the LE report. WHAT IN THE LIVING HELL WERE THEY DOING MAKING AN END RUN AROUND DCF THAT WOULD NOT HAVE CERTIFIED THAT FAMILY? Which of course, brings up that second little item... You recall this old geezer debated Doug on this extensively...him claiming that LEs are better trained to investigate (which is a puckering crock by the way -- still), and I claiming that no, CPS workers trained as investigators are both TRAINED ALONG SIDE LE, and get MORE training in the specific area of child protection than cops do. Greg, where were you THEN protesting that LEs provide anything BUT a "Helluva screening process eh?" Of course as usual you will behave like the little sleazy piece of snake **** you are, and not admit to your error NOW, or the one in the past were you sat silently by and allowed your patron to RUN when it was uncovered that LE's had to hire CPS workers to backfill them they were so unprepared to do CPS investigation work. Had I known they were going to move on to FOSTER parent evaluations I'd have been screaming my head off over that. They are NOT qualified to do those kinds of investigations. In fact this story reads like they over reached their mandate, their job description...went OUTSIDE the protocols required. No state uses allegation investigators to do the foster care certification work...it's WAY WAY too much for them....and entirely different kettle of fish. In most every state the caseworkers assigned to doing the homestudies and BG and interview work to certify foster homes ARE THE OLDEST BEST EDUCATED MOST EXPERIENCED workers in the agency. They'd catch your lies and sickness in about 10 seconds. It's one tough job, my boy. And COPS ARE NOT QUALIFIED TO DO IT. As you can see from the story. But the local sheriffs were chasin' the buck and competing with CPS for it. It created havoc, and probably cost some lives as well. THE LAST PERSON I'D ASK ABOUT CERTIFYING SOMEONE TO BE A FOSTER PARENT WOULD BE A COP, unless HE had been a longtime caseworker or a foster parent him or herself. Old, experienced, long time caseworkers who have been burned enough times to have a thick skin and will bear down hard on applicants are the ones you want for that job. Mean sonsabitches. And they ARE. They are more like old army master sargents. Seen it all, and lived to tell about. So they can SMELL creep....like you....from blocks away. You'd be in a arm lock and frog marched out of CPS and thrown into the street if you ran into one of those, Greg. They take NO ****, and got so much seniority and union protection they wouldn't back down from God, with Satan as his handmaiden. You wouldn't stand a chance with your ****in' shower boy bull****. You are still dumb as a stump, aren't you Greg? On Jun 26, 9:12 pm, fx wrote: Foster parents' fitness in question BY CAROL MARBIN MILLER Before 2-year-old Courtney Clark went missing from foster care for four months -- and before she was found in a Wisconsin home with an 11-year-old torture victim and a woman's body buried in the backyard -- state child welfare administrators left her in the care of Cynthia and Mark Martell. Documents released Tuesday by the head of the state's child welfare agency suggest the Martells had dubious qualifications to be foster parents: In 2003, the Department of Children & Families had found ''some indicators'' that a child in the Martell's home in Sorrento had been sexually abused and faced ``threatened harm.'' The department turned over the allegations to local enforcement, though no charges were ever filed. The documents made public by DCF chief Bob Butterworth include an unconfirmed 1995 abuse report to DCF that also alleged sexual molestation in the Martell home. Records from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement say Cynthia Martell had been arrested three times between 1985 and 2003 on charges ranging from larceny and shoplifting to grand theft. The records do not show any convictions. An investigator and supervisor with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, which handles child-abuse reports for DCF, approved the Martells as caregivers for Courtney, who was taken into state care in July 2006 after her mother, Candice Farris, was arrested on larceny charges. Farris also went by the name Candice Clark. A telephone number listed to the Martells was disconnected, and the family could not be reached for comment Tuesday. The approval of the Martells as caregivers for the toddler is among a handful of actions in the case that raised troubling questions in the internal DCF review Butterworth released Tuesday. At an afternoon news conference, Butterworth said he was ''incensed'' by the handling of Courtney's case by both his agency and private contractors. Farris took the toddler from the Martells' home on Sept. 23, 2006. On Oct. 4, Cynthia Martell called a caseworker to report ''she had made a big mistake and allowed Ms. Farris to leave with'' Courtney, the report says. It was not until four months later that caseworkers with the private Safe Children's Coalition, which contracts with DCF to provide foster care services in the Tampa Bay area, reported Courtney missing to local police. The delay hampered the state's ability to locate the toddler, reports say. ''It is unconscionable that human failures throughout the system allowed Courtney Clark to be missing for four months without being reported,'' Butterworth said. ``Fortunately, Courtney is alive and well. But I cannot say she was well served. She was not well served by the system nor this department.'' Reacting to the case, Butterworth announced Tuesday a series of reforms. Among them: the appointment of ''child location specialists'' in each of the five department regions to spearhead efforts to locate missing children, and a new ''director of criminal justice services'' to improve DCF's relationship with police, judges and juvenile justice. The head of a Clearwater agency that oversaw Courtney's foster care, Directions for Mental Health, said Tuesday the reforms may help prevent failures in the future. ''I think the suggestions for corrective action have the potential to improve the system,'' said Tom Riggs, who heads Directions for Mental Health. ``I welcome them. We will work hard to do our part in helping these things to happen.'' Candice Farris remains in jail in Wisconsin on murder charges. Wisconsin police found the toddler in a Portage home where they also found an 11-year-old boy who had been tortured. The boy's mother was found buried in the backyard. A spokeswoman for the Wisconsin Department of Health & Family Services, Stephanie Marquis, said child welfare workers in Columbia County have taken Courtney into custody. Typically, Marquis said, workers will search for ''fit and willing relatives'' for abused and neglected children before looking for foster parents. She declined to discuss Courtney's case specifically. CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAM.... CPS Does not protect children... It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even killed at the hands of Child Protective Services. every parent should read this .pdf from connecticut dcf watch... http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US These numbers come from The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN) Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS *Perpetrators of Maltreatment* Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59 Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13 Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241 Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12 Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5 Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per 100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a bunch of social workers. BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION... |
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