Child abusers win one in the 9th Circuit

Child abusers win one in the 9th Circuit

A new federal court decision is creating ripples in the world of child-abuse protection. They aren’t good ripples.

Ruling earlier this month in an Oregon case, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals imposed tight new restrictions on investigations of suspected child abuse – restrictions that tip the balance of power in favor of the suspected abusers.

The judges held that Oregon’s equivalent of Child Protective Services violated the Fourth Amendment when one of its caseworkers and a deputy sheriff took a girl aside at school and asked whether her father had been fondling her. The ruling’s implication is that they should have obtained a warrant – or the permission of her parents – before doing so.

Note: Now here is a good decision reported with an offensive headline. Especially since most reports of child abuse or neglect are false! Innocent parents win too. If you have never harmed a child, yet a social worker spreads your cheeks and crawls up your ass anyway...