Child Abuse Reporting and Response

Recommendations 9

• R1

  Page 9
  The Office of the District Attorney, Department of Child and Family Services and LASD should lead an effort to develop a Memorandum of Understanding or Operational Agreement, as appropriate, among all of the parties within Los Angeles County involved in the E-SCAR system for communicating cases of suspected child abuse.
• R2

  Page 10
  The E-SCAR Memorandum of Understanding/Operational Agreement should define the roles of the participants as to the communication and transmission of data and information among themselves and their coordination of responses. Time-to-respond and best practices standards should be established by DA, DCFS, LASD and the other parties to the Memorandum of Understanding/Operational Agreement for use as benchmarks by the participants. The Memorandum/Agreement should not, however, attempt to define or dictate the operations of the various groups as to their internal processes and protocols used in investigating, prosecuting or resolving reported child abuse allegations. STEERING COMMITTEE
• R3

  Page 10
  The DA’s Office, DCFS and LASD should lead an effort to establish an expanded, permanent Steering Committee composed of representatives of the various agencies that participate in the E-SCAR process to oversee the system from the standpoint of enhancements, user friendliness and effectiveness of the various stakeholders.
• R4

  Page 10
  The Steering Committee as a body should assure that the system receives optimal use and is enhanced periodically with such items as: • Clarifying documentation of the procedures for rerouting E-SCARs that have been sent to the incorrect LEA • Establishing and maintaining a list of the critical contact individuals in the various groups involved. This list should be part of the system and should be available to all who have access to it • Expanding the search capabilities of the system to the extent possible within statutory privacy concerns to include responding officer’s name, victim’s mother’s name and other relevant criteria 12 2009-2010 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT • Incorporating a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) into the system as a ready reference for users to assure that the system is receiving optimal use • Establishing a formal process to seek suggested enhancements or modifications to the system among its various users • Incorporating a list of recent enhancements or changes to the system for ready reference • Monitoring the consistency and speed of handling of E-SCARs by the various law enforcement agencies • Encouraging training of Mandated Reporters as to their reporting role • Maintaining, updating and communicating a chart of information flows and action responsibilities for all of the participants in the child abuse reporting and response effort in Los Angeles County (An abbreviated flowchart of DCFS’s recently updated version is attached as Appendix A.) SCARs
• R5

  Page 11
  The DA’s office and DCFS should amend the SCAR/E-SCAR process to im- prove the identification of the sources of SCARs to the maximum extent pos- sible under privacy law concerns. This will help to better monitor the compli- ance with Mandated Reporter rules at the institution level e.g., schools, hos- pitals, and law enforcement. This can be accomplished by requiring the use of the existing fields in the SCAR input process. Results should be mon- itored and followed up with the appropriate training and education. E-SCARs
• R6

  Page 12
  The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors should take steps to assure that there will be adequate continuing funding to maintain the systems integri- ity of the E-SCAR process. Any complex system requires ongoing maintenan- ce to make minor improvements and changes as the system matures. It has been estimated that one to two full time systems analysts plus support for a cost of $100,000 to $250,000 per year would be adequate. opment grant until all authorized funds have been expended.
• R7

  Page 12
  The DA’s Office, DCFS and LASD should expand the awareness of all law en- forcement personnel as to their roles as Mandated Reporters especially as the requirement to cross-report suspected child abuse or endangerment cases en- countered in the field. DCFS
• R8

  Page 12
  The Department of Children and Family Services should consider the employ- ment of additional Human Services Aides to alleviate some of the less critical work performed by the social workers. 2009-2010 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT 13
• R9

  Page 12
  As demonstrated at the Palmdale Sheriff’s station, co-location of DCFS social workers at law enforcement facilities has helped foster better cooperation and more effective communication between the two groups. LASD and DCFS should make a thorough evaluation of this approach and expand the concept wherever practical.