What Can I Do About a False Report of Child Abuse or Neglect?
(Article published in HWW Nov 2009)
by Joshua Goldfein, Legal Aid Society’s Homeless Rights Project
Has ACS met with your family because someone said you were putting a child in danger or at risk of harm?
Do you think that the person who called ACS knew what they were saying was not true?
It is against the law to hurt a child (“abuse”) or put a child at risk (“neglect”) but it is also against the law to say that someone abused or neglected a child if you know that what are you saying is not true.
A child abuse or neglect report can be a very bad thing for your family. If ACS meets you and decides you did hurt a child, they make take your children away or make you go to a program. You may also not be able to get certain kinds of work, such as caring for other people’s children at a day care or school, and you may not be allowed to foster or adopt a child.
Many of the people you meet who work in shelters are “mandated reporters” of child abuse or neglect. This means that they must make a report if they think someone has abused or neglected a child. Social workers, police officers, medical workers and school staff are all “mandated reporters.” Other people who are worried that a child has been hurt or put at risk might also make a report about it.
But sometimes people make reports of child abuse or neglect that they know are not true. They might do this because they want to make trouble for the person they are accusing. Some homeless families believe that shelter staff have called in reports of child abuse or neglect because they want to help get the family permanent housing through the City’s “Children’s Advantage” program.
Under Section 240.50 of the State’s Penal Law, it is a Class A misdemeanor to make a false report of child abuse or neglect.
If you get a notice that says ACS believes a report of abuse or neglect against you is true, you have 90 days to respond. You can write to the State to ask for a copy of any reports about you at:
State Central Registry
PO Box 4480
Albany, NY 12204
If you think that the report is wrong, you can write to the State at the same address and ask that the report be changed to say it is not true. Be sure to send the State whatever evidence you have to show the report is not true, and a letter explaining your case. If the State does not change the report, you can ask for a “fair hearing.” The notice you get from the State should tell you how to do this.
If someone has made a false report about you, you can also call the district attorney in your county and report them.
You can find more information about these issues at these websites:
