Responding in Time to Help Our ‘At Risk’ Children

Most common allegations we found in Mandated Reports filed from late 2015 to early 2017: • Children who threaten suicide • Children who experience physical abuse from an older child or parent in their home • Children who do not have adequate health care, e.g., untreated sores and infections • Children living in a car or truck • Children who are unwashed and unkempt without access to bathrooms or running water • Children who experience inappropriate touching from family members or friends of family • Children who live in homes where drugs and alcohol are used excessively every day • Children who experience flea and rat bites on a regular basis • Children (age 8 and younger) who are left unattended in their homes on a regular basis • Children who are not met by an adult after school and do not have a ride home

School Districts that do not follow the correct process for filing Mandated Reports are making it impossible for CWS and Law Enforcement personnel to address the needs of their ‘at risk’ students.

Some schools do not keep a repository of Mandated Reports filed by their school and are therefore are unaware when numerous reports have been filed on a single student, possibly creating a situation where an endangered student could fall through the cracks.

Some members of the Sheriff’s Office do not file reports on cases they investigated thus jeopardizing the child’s welfare.

Sometimes members of the Sheriff’s Office disclose to the families the identity of the Mandated Reporter resulting in a violation of state law.

Sheriff’s deputies need more training on how to handle the complicated and serious cases they are assigned to investigate.

Many of the individuals within CWS whom we interviewed complained of the long and complicated hiring process for Social Workers, delaying much needed services.

Many of the Social Workers we interviewed stated the need for a better mentoring process for training new Social Workers to effectively work in the field.

There is an urgent need for more Social Workers. We have been told there are between 10 and 22 vacancies.

CWS staff is contracting with a program from University of California, Davis for advice regarding policies and procedures which are expected to increase service efficiencies.

CWS often does not communicate with School Districts and Law Enforcement on the ongoing status of a case under investigation. 17

CWS frequently does not handle allegations in a timely manner as dictated by their own policy and procedures as well as state law.

CWS often does not follow up on cases that are “evaluated out.”

Humboldt County has an urgent need to improve how it addresses the needs of our American Indian ‘at risk’ children, including a more comprehensive orientation for incoming staff on local American Indian culture.

In the course of our investigation we discovered evidence of a disproportionate number of American Indian children removed from their homes.