370 texas cps workers have criminal histories

[mysteriew]

Sorry about that David, it looks like I forgot the link. I found it by following my own instructions, lol.
http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=64320&highlight=bishop's

 

[RainbowsAndGumdrops]

You might want to read the opinion of the Texas appeals court, affirmed by the Supreme Court--both decisions were unanimous. They make it quite clear that teaching your children that things are right which the law says are wrong is not child abuse and is not justification for taking the children away.

As you presumably know, Islam also permits polygamy. Do you want to argue that all Muslim parents should have their children taken away until the parents are persuaded to renounce that part of their faith?

As you probably also know, Quakers have engaged in various forms of illegal nonviolent action, such as draft resistance, following out their understanding of their religion. Do you want to take away the children of all Quaker parents until the parents make it clear that they will not teach their children that nonviolent resistance to military conscription is justified?

Teaching the kids to break the law is bad, I don't care how many people do it. If the laws need to be changed, then work to change them. I am ok with the law saying it isn't abuse. I too would be upset if that is why the boys were actually taken from the home.

Your discussion comments seem to be looking backwards trying to find anything wrong with what happened. Should things have happened the way they did? Both sides of that question can be argued. However, you seem to be basing your arguement on false pretenses. You are arguing that the intent of the raid was genocide. You are also arguing that the reason for removing the boys is that CPS said they were being abused because they were taught polygamy.

This case goes back to arguing what is imminent danger and what is a household. CPS argued that there were cases of imminent danger. In cases of imminent danger, the child in imminent danger can be removed immediately from the situation and placed in state custody. Other children in the household can also be considered in imminent danger.

The question of removing the families should be about there was imminent danger and whether using the household rule should have applied to everyone in the compound.

All of the other arguements are irrelevent to the case and were not the intent of the "raid".

 

[The_Woof]

I live in Texas & for many years worked in the foster care system. CPS is a totally out of control agency & is accustomed to steam-rolling over anyone & anything that gets in their way. They get away with it because most of the people they trample do not have the financial resources to obtain competent legal counsel.

You are absolutely "spot on" when you say that this was an effort to chase FLDS out of Texas. I've lived here all my 70 years & I know how many Texans think & how Texas politics work.

The seizure of the 400 + children has always been a source of great concern for me because I have first hand knowledge of the effects of trauma on children. Another of my concerns is the issue of religious freedom. No one could disagree with FLDS beliefs more than I BUT supposedly our constitution does guarantee us religious freedom.

At a minimum, I would like to see a housecleaning at Texas CPS, top to bottom. This agency needs to be staffed with true professionals who have the best interests of children in mind, not the political hacks they have now. Any legal action initiated by FLDS would be ok with me, but I think they would have a difficult time actually proving the actual intent of CPS.

I just joined WS. Honestly, I wasn't going to read this forum, I knew it would upset me. Of course, the best laid plans and all that. Even then, after I read it, I waited 24 hours to post. I am a Texas CPS employee. A current employee. I wouldn't say that I am offended by some of this, but it is very frustrating to do a job that is, by nature, thankless and then have to deal with this kind of attitude by the general public.

In response to this particular post:

CPS is a totally out of control agency & is accustomed to steam-rolling over anyone & anything that gets in their way. They get away with it because most of the people they trample do not have the financial resources to obtain competent legal counsel.

I can not tell you the number of times I have come home at night upset because I left a child in a situation my gut told me was dangerous, but because I can not violate peoples right to "parent" as they see fit, I had to leave a child there. In addition, anyone involved with a child custody suite has the right to request court appointed counsel. Requests are approved based on income guidelines.

You are absolutely "spot on" when you say that this was an effort to chase FLDS out of Texas. I've lived here all my 70 years & I know how many Texans think & how Texas politics work.

The seizure of the 400 + children has always been a source of great concern for me because I have first hand knowledge of the effects of trauma on children. Another of my concerns is the issue of religious freedom. No one could disagree with FLDS beliefs more than I BUT supposedly our constitution does guarantee us religious freedom.

I am not going to respond to this case because I had nothing to do with it and any opinion I express would be my own and I don't want to seem like I'm talking for the department.

At a minimum, I would like to see a housecleaning at Texas CPS, top to bottom. This agency needs to be staffed with true professionals who have the best interests of children in mind, not the political hacks they have now. Any legal action initiated by FLDS would be ok with me, but I think they would have a difficult time actually proving the actual intent of CPS

DFPS has been under legislated "renewal" for at least 3 years. A very thorough house cleaning has been going on. New investigative positions, time frames and requirements for case work has been implemented. New policy is introduced on a regular basis, policy designed to protect both children and the citizens. As for me, your post implies that CPS workers are unprofessional political hacks. I had to fluctuate between *snorting* with laughter and being a little offended by the generalization. You'd probably have to know my ultra liberal leanings to see why I think that's funny.

I don't think that CPS in Texas is a perfect organization and I know that there are people who abuse their power. To put the original article in perspective, I live and work in a County with one office (as opposed to say Dallas County with 6 or more offices). I don't the investigation centered on only direct service staff - but everyone from the big wigs to the janitor. My one office has well over 100 employees. 350 some odd employees in an organization as big as CPS is a drop in the bucket.

Part of why I get so frustrated with CPS bashing can be seen when looking at the forums in WS. On another forum a poster asked why can't CPS just go take kids when the parent is accused of hurting them. On this forum, people are complaining because CPS just took kids when the parents are accused of hurting them. It's a no win situation some times.

I make 1/3 the money of my husband. Yet, everyday, I am expected to read a report, go talk to children, families and the community and make the best decision I can to keep a child safe. If I mess up there's a CHILD's life on the line.

To make that assessment, I go out at all hours of the day and night. I visit homes that would make your skin crawl. I see baby's exposed to drugs, broken, beaten and abused. I have been threatened, screamed at, called names and hunted down kids whose parents are hiding them from me. Once I find a child, I am forced to take them, often screaming from their abuser, because they would rather stay with them then face the unknown.

Believe me when I say that most of this does not give me a sense of power, it makes me very sad. At least once a week, I come home and hug my own kids and thank God they are healthy and safe.

I'm glad that people question agencies such as CPS. It keeps things moving in the right direction and makes change happen. However, before you make a blanket judgment about CPS ask yourself if you could do it better.

 

[DavidFriedman]

Teaching the kids to break the law is bad, I don't care how many people do it.

Whether it is bad depends on the law. But bad or not, it isn't illegal--and shouldn't be.

You are arguing that the intent of the raid was genocide.

I am arguing that the intent of the raid was to either destroy the Texas FLDS or drive them out of Texas--that's the most plausible explanation for why the CPS took such wildly excessive action. And it is consistent with the the fact that some of the laws under which the FLDS ended up being attacked were laws explicitly intended to target them, according to both the legislative summary when the laws were first proposed and the explanation of them by the legislator who proposed them.

I'm not sure that driving them out of Texas counts as genocide, but I think it is clear that destroying the FLDS--either by forcing the parents to give up their beliefs in order to get their children back or by keeping the children--does, under current law.

You are also arguing that the reason for removing the boys is that CPS said they were being abused because they were taught polygamy.

That was the justification offered at the time by someone from the CPS--that the boys were being brought up to be abusers. That was supposedly the sense in which they were claimed to be in imminent danger--in imminent danger of being abused by being taught their parents' religion. No evidence was offered of any other sense in which the boys, or the younger girls, were in imminent danger of abuse.

 

[mysteriew]

I just joined WS. Honestly, I wasn't going to read this forum, I knew it would upset me. Of course, the best laid plans and all that. Even then, after I read it, I waited 24 hours to post. I am a Texas CPS employee. A current employee. I wouldn't say that I am offended by some of this, but it is very frustrating to do a job that is, by nature, thankless and then have to deal with this kind of attitude by the general public.

In response to this particular post:


I can not tell you the number of times I have come home at night upset because I left a child in a situation my gut told me was dangerous, but because I can not violate peoples right to "parent" as they see fit, I had to leave a child there. In addition, anyone involved with a child custody suite has the right to request court appointed counsel. Requests are approved based on income guidelines.



I am not going to respond to this case because I had nothing to do with it and any opinion I express would be my own and I don't want to seem like I'm talking for the department.



DFPS has been under legislated "renewal" for at least 3 years. A very thorough house cleaning has been going on. New investigative positions, time frames and requirements for case work has been implemented. New policy is introduced on a regular basis, policy designed to protect both children and the citizens. As for me, your post implies that CPS workers are unprofessional political hacks. I had to fluctuate between *snorting* with laughter and being a little offended by the generalization. You'd probably have to know my ultra liberal leanings to see why I think that's funny.

I don't think that CPS in Texas is a perfect organization and I know that there are people who abuse their power. To put the original article in perspective, I live and work in a County with one office (as opposed to say Dallas County with 6 or more offices). I don't the investigation centered on only direct service staff - but everyone from the big wigs to the janitor. My one office has well over 100 employees. 350 some odd employees in an organization as big as CPS is a drop in the bucket.

Part of why I get so frustrated with CPS bashing can be seen when looking at the forums in WS. On another forum a poster asked why can't CPS just go take kids when the parent is accused of hurting them. On this forum, people are complaining because CPS just took kids when the parents are accused of hurting them. It's a no win situation some times.

I make 1/3 the money of my husband. Yet, everyday, I am expected to read a report, go talk to children, families and the community and make the best decision I can to keep a child safe. If I mess up there's a CHILD's life on the line.

To make that assessment, I go out at all hours of the day and night. I visit homes that would make your skin crawl. I see baby's exposed to drugs, broken, beaten and abused. I have been threatened, screamed at, called names and hunted down kids whose parents are hiding them from me. Once I find a child, I am forced to take them, often screaming from their abuser, because they would rather stay with them then face the unknown.

Believe me when I say that most of this does not give me a sense of power, it makes me very sad. At least once a week, I come home and hug my own kids and thank God they are healthy and safe.

I'm glad that people question agencies such as CPS. It keeps things moving in the right direction and makes change happen. However, before you make a blanket judgment about CPS ask yourself if you could do it better.

:clap: Ya done good The_Woof, the only thing that I can see that you left out is how along with the low pay the job is not only stressful, it is also potentially dangerous.

 

[faw720]

As for me, your post implies that CPS workers are unprofessional political hacks. I had to fluctuate between *snorting* with laughter and being a little offended by the generalization. You'd probably have to know my ultra liberal leanings to see why I think that's funny.


Believe me when I say that most of this does not give me a sense of power, it makes me very sad. At least once a week, I come home and hug my own kids and thank God they are healthy and safe.

I'm glad that people question agencies such as CPS. It keeps things moving in the right direction and makes change happen. However, before you make a blanket judgment about CPS ask yourself if you could do it better.

Observations I made were based on my own personal experiences working with CPS on a daily basis for years. I am well aware that there are some good dedicated case workers out there. In my ideal visions for CPS those workers would be retained & would receive the support from their professional superiors that they deserve. Thank you for being one of the CPS minority that actually cares about children.

As for doing it better.............. if I couldn't do it better I know people who could. I have been blessed with knowing quite a few real child care professionals who manage to persevere in spite of the roadblocks thrown up by CPS.

 

[The_Woof]

I am well aware that there are some good dedicated case workers out there. In my ideal visions for CPS those workers would be retained & would receive the support from their professional superiors that they deserve. Thank you for being one of the CPS minority that actually cares about children.

You and I can agree on that 110%. I stated my new job with the agency yesterday and my focus is retention and education. :crazy:

 

[faw720]

You and I can agree on that 110%. I stated my new job with the agency yesterday and my focus is retention and education. :crazy:

Good luck to you & God bless!