Question: I 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?
Answer: 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 [email protected]