Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Pennsylvania
My Rights vs. CYS ''rights''
What are my and my child's rights with regard to questioning by CYS social workers? They pulled my grandson out of his class at school[he's 11] and intimidated him with questions about his mother and his home life. I was not notified of this until after it happened. His mother [my daughter] is not living with us at the moment. I told my grandson that if this happens again, to tell these people that he wants to call me or another family member. At this point, I feel their questions must stop. They left a message at my home asking me to contact their ''intake'' dept. As far as I'm concerned there will be no intaking of anything! Do they need a court order? I will not submit to this witch hunt without one. Can they simply continue to intimidate children over things that they have no control? And finally are they allowed to physically remove a child from his home without a formal hearing and ruling from a judge? The Children and Youth Services I am referring to is in Butler County Pa. They have a pretty bad reputation according to people I've spoken with.
I appreciate anything you can tell me about this matter
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: My Rights vs. CYS ''rights''
Since CYS investigates abuse, etc., they do not need parental permission to speak with a child. Otherwise, any abuser would deny CYS access. They must investigate any report they receive. They do not need a court order to investigate. They may remove a child in an "emergency" situation by court order, pending a hearing. Absent an emergency, a child may only be removed by a court order after a hearing, with notice given to the appropriate parties.
You didn't say what it was that they were possibly investigating.
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