The DC Court of Appeals in J.C v. D.C., reversed and remanded some of the constitutional claims raised by the biological parents after the removal of their eight months old twins due to the allegations of abuse and neglect. Factually, the parents had taken one of the babies to the Children’s hospital due to excessive vomiting, retching, and general irritability. At the hospital, the treating physician had diagnosed the child as suffering from “shaken baby syndrome” and the contacted Child Protection Services (“CPS”). CPS thus removed also the twin baby from the home in the middle of the night and
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Archives for dc child abuse and neglect lawyer
CRIMINAL CONSEQUENCES OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT: DC FAMILY LAWYER
The Child Abuse and Neglect Statute in Washington DC has both a civil and also a criminal component and at times run on separate tracks but concurrently. If there is a referral for child abuse to the Child Protection Services (CPS), in cases of alleged physical child abuse — there will be a civil as well as criminal investigation when warranted. Thus charges may be brought in the Family Court as well as in the Criminal Court Systems. According to the DC Civil Neglect Statute, the term neglected child encompasses the following categories: 1) A child who has been abandoned
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Excited Utterance Exception: Admissibility of the 911 tapes: Recent DC Court of Appeals Decision: Washington DC Criminal Lawyer
Oftentimes in the Washington DC domestic violence assault cases, the complainant does not actually testify for one reason or another. In such cases, the government attempts to introduce the 911 reporting/call of the complainant in lieu of the substantive evidence of assault. If the 911 tape recoding does meet the three prong test for admission; then the recording can and will be admitted and relied upon by the trier of the facts albeit the jury or the judge. The DC Court of Appeals on August 17, 2017, in Pelzer v. U.S., highlighted and outlined the test of admissibility for the
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WASHINGTON DC RETROACTIVE CHILD SUPPORT: RECENT CASE LAW & APPLICABLE STATUTES: DC CHILD SUPPORT LAWYER
District of Columbia Child Support Guidelines provides the right to the custodial parent to receive retroactive child support payments for a period of 24 months preceding the filing of the petition for child support. The Court of Appeals in Ford v. Snowden decided on September 22, 2016, addressed specifically the issue of whether a custodial parent receiving government benefit (“TANF”) was entitled to child support payments in addition and above the “TANF” amount. Specifically, Fashon Ford challenges the trial court’s order denying her the opportunity to seek child support from Snowden for the period of time during which Ms. Ford
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RECENT COURT OF APPEALS DECISION: GOAL CHANGE FROM REUNIFICATION TO ADOPTION NOW APPEALABLE: DC ADOPTION LAWYER
The DC Court of Appeals in: IN RE TA.L.; IN RE A.L.; – decided on December 8, 2016, opined a significant decision in extending and preserving parental rights in the context of adoptions. Here the parents were adjudicated as neglectful and the children were subsequently placed in a foster home. Approximately within a year of the placement, and during a permanency hearing, the goal was changed from reunification to adoption. The goal change from reunification to adoption and the permanency goal change without affording the biological parents a legal procedure and protection was the main subject of the Court’s decision
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INTERNATIONAL CHILD SUPPORT: FORUM NON CONVENIENS: DC CHILD SUPPORT LAWYER
Generally the DC Corporation Counsel will file and prosecute a child support action on behalf of a DC resident and when both the child and the principles are DC residents. However Under 42 U.S. Code ξ 654(4)(A)(ii), the District may bring a child support action on behalf of a non DC resident, a non US national and from a country which has not signed into Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (“UIFSA”) or any other treaty governing terms, that is, a non reciprocating and a non treaty nation. According to the statute, the DC government has the discretion to bring an
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COMPETING ADOPTION PETITIONS: RECENT COURT OF APPEALS DECISION
In the matter of: IN RE M.V.H. decided on July 21, 2016, by the Court of Appeals, a relative grandmother adoption petition v. a non relative foster parent adoption petition was legally compared and analyzed with the trial court as well as the appellate review all ruling in favor of the foster parent petition. The case had initiated through a neglect petition against the biological mother who resided in the grandmother’s home (M.V.H.) at time, and alleged and proven neglect of physical injuries to the child (A.H.). The mother had given her consent to the adoption by the grandmother M.V.H.,
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CHILD CRUELTY REVERSAL: DOCTRINE OF INHERENT INCREDIBILITY
In DION M. SLATER-EL v. UNITED STATES, decided on July 7, 2016, the DC Court of Appeals reversed a second degree child cruelty case while applying a rather rare and archaic legal doctrine: the doctrine of inherent incredibility. The child cruelty statute specifically provides: A person commits the crime of cruelty to children in the second degree if that person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly . . . [m]altreats a child or engages in conduct which causes a grave risk of bodily injury to a child[.]‖ D.C. Code § 22-1101 (b)(1). The facts of the case gave rise to the doctrine
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WASHINGTON DC CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT LAWYER
This blog focuses on the DC child and abuse laws and some of the procedural aspect of a court involved case. Generally a child neglect and abuse case commences with reporting of some kind to the CFSA (“Child and Family Services”). There are those who are according to the DC Neglect Statute are mandatory reporters. The school and all those involved and have contact with the child at school setting, doctor’s offices, social workers, hospitals, police officers, etc. Regardless, when a report to hotline has been made, an investigative social worker is assigned to conduct a preliminary investigation. That would
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DC DIVORCE LAWYER/LAWS:
A divorce decree cannot be granted in the District unless the following separation criteria have been met: Parties have “mutually and voluntarily” lived separate and apart from one another without cohabitation for a period of six months prior to commencing of an action or that; parties have lived separate and apart without cohabitation for a period of one year prior to commencing the action. In the second category most likely the separation has been court ordered as it would not have been “mutually and voluntary.” Thus the statute requires a legal separation before issuing a divorce decree and the legal
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