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signed a consent form to have my children taken into the
custody of Child Protective Services. At the time, I felt
I had no choice given what CPS told me about probably
ending up on the streets if we stayed together. I wasn’t
told about family shelters, and because of a conflict
I’d had with a shelter supervisor, I’ve been
branded a drug user. What can I do to regain my visitation
rights and possibly my children?
According to Katie Carder at Foster Pepper, Child Protective
Services (CPS) becomes involved with families when it
receives reports of suspected child abuse and neglect.
It is hard to address specific advice a CPS worker gives
you about giving up your kids, but this article will tell
you how the process usually works.
The social worker assigned to your family will ask you
to sign a consent form if he or she remains involved with
your family beyond 90 days. This is a voluntary agreement
between CPS and you, as the parent of your children. If
you do not sign this consent form, CPS may obtain a court
order so that they are able to remain involved.
The voluntary agreement contains a list of requirements,
with time limits, that you must fulfill in order to regain
custody of your children. These requirements are designed
by you and the social worker assigned to your family.
If the requirements are not met within the time limit,
the CPS worker will then start a dependency action to
establish the children as “dependent” on the
State.
Once a dependency action is filed, CPS will take away
the children and, within three days, provide you with
a permanency plan. This plan outlines CPS’s short
and long term goals for the children. The permanency plan
should state where the children are being fostered, give
you a visitation schedule, and tell you what you must
do to retain custody. In order for the plan to take effect,
a court must approve it at a hearing. You have a right
to present your case at this hearing with a court-appointed
attorney. If you disagree with any part of the plan, you
can submit an alternative plan to your local CPS office,
as long as it is at least 24 hours before the hearing.
CPS is not allowed to limit visitation solely because
a family is homeless or in threat of becoming homeless.
Your visitation rights may be limited only when CPS has
a reason to believe your child’s health, safety,
or welfare is in danger. This can include neglect, abuse,
or drug use. To resolve the social worker’s accusation
that you have used drugs, the court may order you to take
a “substance abuse diagnostic investigation and
evaluation” to determine any drug abuse or use .
If the court orders such an evaluation, the agency administering
the evaluation will make a written report to the court
stating its findings. You will receive a copy of this
report and provide input into any treatment plans they
recommend.
If you have any additional questions, call CPS at 1-866-END-HARM,
24 hours per day, seven days per week.
Answers are intended for general
information only and are not intended to take the place
of the advice of your own attorney. Ask a Lawyer is
in partnership with the Access to Justice Institute
at Seattle University and Foster Pepper. Got questions?
E-mail atji@seattleu.edu
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