During this very stressful period of life, while Michigan families are locked away in quarantine inside their homes under the “stay home, stay safe” order, the number of calls to CPS have risen significantly. As a result, the number of child abuse and neglect investigations has also increased, and the number of children removed from their parent’s care has also gone up. However, for parents who are losing their children to the system during the pandemic, it’s important to be able to keep their children as close to home as possible. And who could blame them?

CPS defense lawyers need all the help they can get to keep families together

The subject of keeping kids with family members and kin after they get removed from their parents care has been intensively investigated over the years. So far, the majority of research shows that kids who stay with relatives while in foster care do better in the long run. Now, the ABA Section of Litigation Children’s Rights Litigation Committee and the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services Children and Family Law Division are putting together a tool for lawyers which summarizes all the relevant clinical research on the benefits of kinship foster care. 

Keeping kids with family is better for them in the long run

This will allow lawyers fighting against CPS to help those children by providing sound research to prove that children should be placed with kin when they can’t stay with their parents. Although the tool being assembled for CPS defense attorneys isn’t completed, the ABA has released a few “talking points” from the research they’re compiling, which shows that children kept with family members instead of strangers do better in the long term. Here are a few highlights from that research:

• Children should be placed with kin immediately upon removal from home. The earlier a child is placed with kin caregivers, the lower their risk for later behavioral problems.

• Children placed with kin (as opposed to those placed in non-kinship foster homes) have:

1. Greater placement stability, fewer emotional and social problems, and better connections to their families and social communities;
2. Fewer school changes, and improved academic performance;
3. Improved academic performance, social skills, and involvement in extracurricular activities. Also, they have fewer behavioral problems;
4. Better maintenance of relationships with their birth parents 

During the pandemic, it’s critical to keep kids with relatives

As you can imagine, during this time of high stress and uncertainty when kids are homeschooling in quarantine and needing greater structure in their lives, staying with family is even more important. Being placed with someone who is emotionally invested in your wellbeing as a person, and not just your immediate safety as a child, makes a huge difference to a kid’s wellbeing. As experienced CPS defense attorneys, we will fight to keep your family together whenever possible. And when that’s not an option, we will work to ensure that your children are placed into care with relatives and family members.

Here at The Kronzek Firm, we understand the importance of family.

We may be skilled CPS defense attorneys here at The Kronzek Firm, but we are also parents. So we understand how important children are, and we know how hard it must be for a parent to lose their child, especially now during the quarantine. If CPS is trying to remove your children from your custody, call us immediately at 866 766 5245 and let us help you defend your family. And if keeping your children in your care isn’t possible, we’ll do everything we can to ensure that your children are placed with a loved one or family member until they can be returned to your home.