Report: Minor changes needed in child abuse casework

The Clark County Department of Family Services will change some policies and procedures -- but make no major overhauls -- after reviewing 82 child abuse and neglect cases flagged by the district attorney's office.

In a 235-page report released Friday, the agency responsible for investigating those cases said it revamped policies and procedures in 2008. And earlier this year, the agency worked with the state to update and clarify Nevada's policy for substantiating abuse and neglect, the report noted.

About half of the 82 cases, which span most of the decade, happened before these changes.

"For many of these older cases, if evaluated by today's standards, the service provision would be considered insufficient; yet, at the time the services were provided, they represented the standard practice and existing policy," the report said.

The agency said further improvements can be made, such as working closer with the district attorney on case review, better information sharing between the agency and courts, and training for case workers and supervisors.

The agency has already launched a new program for Child Protective Services case workers that includes two days of classes on child abuse and neglect investigations, taught by police and prosecutors.

County Manager Virginia Valentine said that training is a significant improvement prompted by the review, and it shows how far the once-troubled agency has come.

"Our analysis of some of the older cases demonstrates that we have made progress as a result of systemic improvements enacted in recent years," she said in a statement. "We also recognize that our efforts to improve child welfare in our community must be ongoing and continual."

Valentine ordered the review after Assistant District Attorney Teresa Lowry presented the 82 cases to the Legislative Subcommittee on Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice in June. The committee was considering changes in the role of prosecutors in abuse and neglect cases.

The district attorney's office called the cases worst-case scenarios where prosecutors had to stop child protection workers from putting children in unsafe households.

"Our purpose was to let them know there were issues, and the needs of the children are best met with checks and balances," District Attorney David Roger said.

Prosecutors are independent of the child welfare agency, which sometimes leads to disagreements on how cases should be handled in court. Some want to change state law to have district attorneys instead represent the agency. The issue will likely come before the Legislature early next year.

Roger, who had not seen the report, said he is satisfied that county managers hear his concerns and are committed to regular oversight of Family Services. They have also agreed to support keeping the current law.

A county spokeswoman said the county would support maintaining the law if the district attorney and agency can cooperatively resolve issues.

Child welfare advocate Donna Coleman, a frequent Family Services critic, supports keeping prosecutors independent.

"The kids need the district attorney's presence in the courtroom," she said. "It's a child safety issue."

Agency Director Tom Morton, who oversaw the changes in 2008, was unavailable to comment on the report, which noted that the 190 children involved in the 82 cases were a small fraction of the more than 75,000 children involved with Family Services in the past three years.

"It's easy to see and understand how many feel that every child who experiences abuse and/or neglect at the hands of their parents or caregivers should simply be removed and never returned," the report states. "But, while our primary role as a child welfare agency is to ensure child safety and minimize risk, we also must work to help keep families together by working with parents to develop new parenting skills and capacity that will allow them to care appropriately for their children going forward."

County Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani said she didn't approve of the way Roger's office brought attention to the 82 cases, saying someone should have picked up a phone and worked it out internally. But publicizing the issue led to improvements, she said.

"In the long run, bringing 82 cases to light made us realize what was working, what wasn't working and what we can do to make sure kids don't slip through the cracks," she said.

Contact reporter Brian Haynes at bhaynes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0281.