SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - The state agency responsible for protecting children needs more authority to intervene in cases of alleged neglect and abuse when there’s not enough evidence to go to court to remove a child from the home, a top official in Gov. Susana Martinez’s administration told lawmakers on Friday.
Children, Youth and Families Secretary Yolanda Berumen-Deines said a change in state law is critical if New Mexico is to prevent tragic cases such as the death of Omaree Varela, a 9-year-old Albuquerque boy who police say was kicked to death by his mother.
She said the boy’s case is a “perfect example” of when officials refer a family for services to deal with potential mistreatment but there’s nothing to force the parent to participate in programs to help them change their behavior.
The department, which investigates reports of neglect and abuse, must show a court there is “clear and convincing evidence that the child is in imminent danger” in order to remove the child and temporarily place them in protective custody, she said.
“Without proper legislation to allow us to enforce and demand a parent to get engaged in treatment before we have to pull their children from their home, we will find ourselves in the same dilemma over and over again throughout the years to come,” Berumen-Deines told the Legislative Finance Committee.
Her comments came as the panel reviewed a report by legislative staff that said the rate of child abuse and neglect has been rising in New Mexico and the state should spend more on services to prevent the mistreatment of children, such as in-home visiting to improve parenting skills.
Berumen-Deines agreed that preventative services can help but said, “If that family decides to shut the door in our face and tell us to go away, we have no legal right to be there.”
A proposal to give the department more authority to intervene and require family participation in programs died in the Legislature earlier this year.
“Right now, it’s the greatest frustration for my staff. It’s the greatest frustration for me. I know it’s a frustration for the community when we have multiple referrals, when we know that something is not right in the family, but the conditions in that family are not serious enough to remove a child from that home,” she said.
The committee chairman, Rep. Luciano “Lucky” Varela, a Santa Fe Democrat, pledged to work with the department on potentially changing the law and providing more services for parents to deal with child mistreatment. He said lawmakers want to collaborate with the Martinez administration and “not create the perception that we’re trying to politicize the problem.”
The Republican governor is seeking re-election this year.
According to the report, there were 11.4 “child maltreatment” victims for each 1,000 children in New Mexico in 2012. That’s up from 9.6 for each 1,000 children in 2009. Maltreatment includes physical and sexual abuse as well as neglect.
The number of substantiated allegations of physical abuse has remained relatively flat in the past three years - about 1,500 cases annually - but neglect cases have increased 20 percent during the same time. There were 5,040 substantiated allegations of physical neglect in 2013, according to the report.
Most of the state’s spending on child protective services goes for foster care, adoption and investigating reports of mistreatment. Less than 1 percent is for preventative services.
“Research shows that investing in families before it is necessary to remove children is a safer, more cost-effective approach,” the report said.
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