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Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to children and families
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Prohibits the alleged child victim of a child abuse report from being interviewed in the presence of any other person named in the report
In Assembly Committee · Children And Families · Sponsor Mickey Kearns
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S6326
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to interviewing a potentially abused child
Purpose
Amend the social services law such that the subject of a report of suspected child abuse shall not be required to be interviewed in the presence of any other person named in the report.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill amends the social services law such that an alleged victim of child abuse shall not be interviewed in the presence of any other person named in the report.
Section 2 of the bill is the effective date.
Justification
Awareness of the epidemic of child abuse has come a long way since section relevant sections of the social services law were enacted. The most recent literature estimates that child maltreatment costs the country a total lifetime economic burden resulting from new cases of fatal and nonfatal treatment of $124 billion using 2008 figures.
Western New York experienced a horrific beating death of a 10 year old child by his step father. on April 17, 2012. According to the attorneys representing the child, the investigation of the initial Child Protection Services Report of excessive corporal punishment was referred to a "differential response" team which, according to its protocol, interviewed the child in the presence of the alleged perpetrator, his step-father. The step-father was even relied upon to translate between the investigator and the child's mother. Under these circumstances, the child recanted his initial claim that his stepfather had beaten him. The step-father murdered the child after the initial report was filed with CPS. This death was most likely preventable had a different standard for investigating the CPS reports been required.
Legislative history
New Bill.
Fiscal implications
Minimal. The Child and Family Services department will continue to conduct interviews of alleged child abuse, but be required to find a safe place in which to interview the victim away from the alleged perpetrator.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.