Reunification Day Celebrations Remind Us of Necessary Foster Care Changes

Parenting is certainly a difficult task; one that does not come with a road map highlighting the best routes for guardians to take. Nonetheless, parents are legally held to a certain standard which requires them to provide for their children’s mental and physical well-being–a responsibility which all child neglect and abuse lawyers in Michigan encourage guardians to take seriously.

Should Children’s Protective Services believe that your child is being mistreated, neglected, or abused, it is possible that the state will funnel them into the foster care system, ultimately tearing families apart. The state of Michigan has the seventh highest rate of terminating parental rights, with the second highest number of “legal orphans” who are parented by the state.

Despite the honorable intentions of the foster care system, far too many children are removed from their home preemptively, before providing any other options for the family. Child protective services workers often inappropriately involve themselves in families that are not in need of assistance. Not to mention, intimidation tactics are commonly used to easily convince families to comply with removing children from the home, without regarding the parents rights.

Once in the hands of the state, children are placed with total strangers and often shuffled between placements, these kids are subject to far greater harm than if they had stayed at home with their parents or guardians. While in the custody of the state, foster children see their siblings or parents infrequently, and also receive substandard medical and mental health treatment.

A study conducted by MIT showed that maltreated children at home were still better off than those in the custody of foster care. For this reason, Federal courts currently oversee many child welfare systems nationwide (including Michigan) for failing to meet the minimum standards of care.

While state officials are quick to remove children from their homes, parents in Michigan have insufficient options for reunifying their family. According to the Detroit News, only a third of children were reunited with their parents in 2008, almost 20 percent lower than the national average. Furthermore, the time it takes for children to be returned to their parents is extensive–Michigan’s return rate time is double the national average. Parents are sometimes inadequately represented and lack an effective voice in the courtroom.

To fight back against this negative trend, cities across the country celebrated the first Reunification Day, serving to recognize the importance of returning foster care children to their families–a goal that has been seriously neglected in recent decades. However, the celebration of reunifying families also serves as a reminder of the significant work still to be done.

It is also important that the decision to remove children from their home is well-thought out and appropriate for that family’s situation. Pending legislation attempts to clarify when it is appropriate to turn to state-run foster care. Should it pass, it will provide reinforcement for the notion that children should only be taken from their home when concrete evidence of “serious harm” or “an imminent risk of harm” exists. The intent is to make sure that arriving at such a life-changing decision, such as foster care, is necessary and in the best interest of the child.

Finally, it is important that parents receive improved legal representation throughout the process. Assisting parents as they attempt to navigate the legal process is essential to ensuring that children are reunited with their family. Otherwise, the State of Michigan will remain behind other states in child welfare, as well as continue to fall short when it comes to reunifying families.

When children are removed from their home, the lives of all family members are permanently affected. Not only are kids in state-run foster care subject to more mental and physical distress, but they are also separated from loved ones which can serve to hinder the rehabilitation process. Because interacting with Children’s Protective Services in any capacity is a complex process, it is essential to secure the best legal defense possible to preserve your family. Contacting hard-working children’s protective service attorneys in Michigan who give sound legal advice and legal representation will help to ensure that your children stay out of foster care and at home where they belong.

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