There are many people who are aware of what CPS does, to an extent. However there are many “facts” about CPS that are either misrepresentations, or entirely untrue. With that in mind, there is a short list of a few things you should know about CPS that may change the way that you view them as an agency, and how you respond to them in the future, should you ever have the misfortune of having them involved in your life.
CPS are not the police!
This is important to remember. Why? Because CPS workers would like you to believe that they have the same powers as law enforcement when they are dealing with you. But that is not true! CPS workers cannot arrest you, cannot open a criminal investigation into your life, and cannot take retributive action against defendants outside of petitioning to terminate their parental rights to their child. They cannot send you to jail, and they cannot threaten you with imprisonment if you do not follow their orders.
When a CPS worker arrives at your house to talk to you, they are often accompanied by a police officer. Unless the officer has a warrant that they can show you which gives them a right to enter you home, then they are just there for the protection of the CPS worker. Most of the time, the CPS worker will not tell you this. Why? Because they would rather have you believe that the officer is there to arrest you if you do not comply with their wishes. This is misdirection and misrepresentation!
Your assigned CPS caseworker can testify against you
One of the strangest aspects of the way CPS operates is their assigned case worker reporting mandates. What this means is that the caseworker assigned to work with you and your family, who is supposed to be invested in your success as a family, is also required to testify against you in court.
This is the equivalent of sending someone to a therapist to get help for a problem they are having, and then insisting that their therapist become a witness for the prosecution during their trial. It is a situation that doesn’t promote honesty between families and their caseworkers, which in turn reduces how efficient the caseworkers are able to be when helping the families. After all, who wants to tattle on themselves?
Removing your child should not be CPS’s first option
Although CPS is often quick to threaten to remove children from a home with problems, it is not supposed to be their first resort. In fact, it is supposed to be their last resort. CPS workers are supposed to make an effort to find other solutions. To preserve the family in any reasonable way possible before tearing them apart.
However many CPS workers find that the threat of a removed child makes a frightened family more compliant. And so they are more apt to use it when they think it will get them in the door. Not everything they threaten to do is actually within their power. In fact, sometimes they make threats that are actually illegal.
Please remember that a good CPS defense attorney can make a world of difference to your case. If you or a loved one are battling CPS, or have been falsely accused of abusing or neglecting a child, contact us immediately at 866 766 5245. Our highly skilled Child Protective Services defense attorneys are experienced in protecting the rights of parents. We can help you too.