Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Michigan Introduces a Taste of Due Process in Child Welfare

Michigan, along with every other state in the nation, has what is called the Central Registry for Abuse and Neglect in Child Welfare.

This Central Registry is a database which keeps records of anyone who has been reported or suspected of child abuse.

Here is where it gets difficult to swallow:

In Michigan, particularly in the dark ages of child welfare (1990s - 2010) individuals, mostly poor parents, were placed on this Central Registry because....well...they were poor.

There were no charges.  There were no pleas.  There were no judges, courtroom, investigation nor conviction, yet, these individuals were placed on the Central Registry.

There were not even any notification that your name was placed on this Central Registry.

It is a racket, many decades in the making.

Think of it like this, before one is placed on the Sex Offender Registry, they are first charged, pleaded, tried, given opportunity for appeal, convicted, served time, then, must register.

In Child Welfare, there is no due process as one is guilty until proven innocent.

This Bill introduces a taste of due process in child welfare but I am betting, if it was not for the lawsuit against the State's Central Registry, no one would even touch this.

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