Strengthening Child Welfare Practice Conference
Forensic Interviewing
Summits
Child Death Review Teams
Citizen Review Panels
Attorney Training and Development
Video Recording of Child Interviews
Munchausen's Snydrome By Proxy Protocol
Michigan Public Health Institute Contracts
Kids in Court Video
Safe Delivery Act Public Service Annoucement
Update of the Guidelines for Achieving Permanency in Child Protection Proceedings
Michigan Child Injury and Death Coordinated and Comprehensive Investigation Resource Protocol

STRENGTHENING CHILD WELFARE PRACTICE CONFERENCE

During the summer of 2005, the Governor's Task Force sponsored six sessions of a statewide conference entitled "Strengthening Child Welfare Practice." The conference was for child welfare workers and supervisors. A total of 855 caseworkers and supervisors attended.

FORENSIC INTERVIEWING

Poor interview skills could implant memories in a child, or result in adults not listening to the child's disclosure of the actual abuse.  The department initiated development of the Forensic Interviewing Protocol, and the Task Force worked with the DHS and Debra Poole, Ph.D., of Central Michigan University, to develop a protocol.  It is intended to be used in conjunction with the investigation protocol developed in 1998 by the Task Force. 

After the development of the protocol, the Michigan Child Protection Law was changed to require its use when interviewing children during CPS investigations.

In 2004, the Task Force, along with non-Task Force members, completed a reassessment of the Forensic Interviewing Protocol and its implementation.  The document has been published and disseminated statewide.  The Task Force is continually evaluating the need to update the interviewing protocol and will update it as needed. The protocol is available for statewide dissemination at any time. If copies are needed, they are available from the CPS Program Office at DHS, through the Task Force State Coordinator. PDF versions of the guide are also available on the Task Force Web site and DHS Web site.

The Forensic Interviewing Protocol is being trained statewide. The training provides best practice application for those using the protocol and provides a refresher for persons previously trained. Training of the protocol is no longer funded by CJA grant funds; another funding source has been found. This training is done by the Prosecuting Attorney Association of Michigan for CPS workers, law enforcement, prosecutors, tribal workers, judges, and others. In 2006, almost 500 people were trained in the Forensic Interviewing Protocol.  

Click here to view the Forensic Interviewing Protocol.

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SUMMITS

There has been an annual fall summit sponsored by the Task Force since 1995. There have been approximately 150 attendees including judges, prosecutors, attorneys, law enforcement, agency staff and other child welfare advocates each year. The themes have varied over the years on issues related to child welfare. The topic each year is chosen in response to needs and interests expressed by key professionals who attend the Summits, or may be reflective of concerns brought to the attention of the Task Force.

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A subcommittee of the Task Force developed recommendations for implementing Child Death Review Teams (CDRs), and a model protocol was developed in April 1995. Training is partially supported with Task Force grant funds in cooperation with the Department of Human Services and Department of Public Health. In 1996, 17 counties established teams as demonstration projects funded by the Task Force. The success of the demonstration projects led to the inclusion of funding in the Governor's 1998 budget to support expansion to all 83 counties. There are now trained, organized teams in all of the counties.

The state developed and implemented four regional Child Death Scene Investigation Trainings throughout the state in 2003. These were advanced trainings for child protective services workers, law enforcement and medical examiners. Participants learned skills in differentiating homicides from accidents, conducting thorough scene investigations, interviews and interrogation skills, and development of interagency, coordinated protocols.

The CDR program annually conducts a two day Team Member Training. The training curriculum consists of over thirteen hours of information on topics ranging from how to hold effective CDR meetings, adolescent suicide, abusive head trauma, to child death prevention.

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States were mandated to organize Citizen Review Panels in 1999. The panels were charged with evaluating policies and procedures of state and local agencies, and the effectiveness of the state agency in fulfilling its child protection responsibilities. Additionally, they are to review coordination between the state CPS, Foster Care and adoption program, and to review child fatalities and near fatalities. There are three panels in Michigan as required by the Federal Child Abuse and Prevention and Treatment Act:

1. Citizen's Review Panel on Prevention.
2. Citizen's Review Panel on Children's Protective Services, Foster Care, and Adoption.
3. Citizen's Review Panel on Child Fatalities.

To learn more about the activities of the Citizen Review Panels, view the 2006 Annual Report.

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ATTORNEY TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

The Task Force, through DHS, developed an interagency agreement with the State Court Administrative Office (SCAO) to provide child welfare training to child welfare professionals (attorneys, L-GALs, CPS workers, judges, etc.) through established, and to be developed curricula, training modules, conferences, interactive webcasts and video presentations; and to write, print, distribute, and implement protocols, resource guides, practice manuals and other materials related to such training. All activities provided by the interagency agreement are approved by the Training Sub-Committee of the Task Force.

The following is a list of some of the activities done through this interagency agreement 2006 and 2007:

Appellate Issues in Child Protective Proceedings training for L-GALs, Parents' Attorneys, Prosecutors, and Assistant Attorneys General.

Paving the Road to Recovery and Reunification: Courts, Child Welfare, and Treatment Partners conference for Judges, Attorneys, children's protective services, foster care, and adoption workers, tribes, CASAs, substance treatment providers, drug court personnel, legislators and policy makers, and related child welfare professionals. The goals of the conference was to increase knowledge and understanding of substance-affected families in the child welfare system, increase knowledge of the range of assessment and service options available in Michigan, and improve advocacy for the treatment needs of children and families involved with the child welfare system.
 
L-GAL/Parent's Attorneys Trainings:  Since May 2004, over 800 L-GALs and parents' attorneys have attended regional trainings utilizing the GTF "Handling the Child Welfare Case-Applying the Law to Practice" curriculum. At least two trainings are planned per year for the future, depending on continued need and interest. 

Prosecutor/Attorney General Training:  The Task Force has taken the success of the "Handling the Child Welfare Case Training" for L-GALs and parents' attorneys and adapted a similar curriculum for Prosecutors and Attorneys General who represent DHS in child welfare cases. The first training utilizing the new prosecutor/AG curriculum was held in September 2006.  Due to the small number of prosecutors/assistant attorney generals actively involved in child protection proceedings, one more training is planed for July 2007.   

Summer Series Training Sessions: Through the interagency agreement between SCAO, SCAO put on a series of three trainings for child welfare workers and professions on communication issues during the summer of 2006. The first training was "Motivational Interviewing: Increasing the Readiness to Change for Parents Court-Ordered to Participate in Services." Due to the popularity of this training, it was held a second time in December 2006. The second training in the series was "Communicating with Foster Children". This training focused on communication with children at the time of removal and placement, and implementation of some basic steps that will help attorneys, CPS workers, and foster care workers reduce the trauma caused to children during the removal and placement process. The third training in the series was "Interviewing Children with Disabilities". Three one day sessions of this training was held to focus on the topic of interviewing children with disabilities. 

Best Practice Forum: A best practices forum on "Children Absent from Court-Ordered Placement Without Legal Permission" was held. The forum was an opportunity to hear both Michigan and national perspectives on the issues and practices involving children missing from care in our child welfare system and provided forum participants with information and strategies to improve delivery of services to these children and families.

Mental Health Training: "Addressing the Mental Health Needs of Children in the Child Welfare System: A Closer Look at the Research" was held in September 2006. Dr. John Landsverk, a noted child welfare researcher and presenter, discussed what the research tells us about the unique mental health needs of children in the child welfare system.

Law Library: In September 2006, SCAO began the "Core Child Welfare Law Library".  This core child welfare law library was initiated with a letter from Justice Weaver accompanying the first two volumes in the core library: Child Welfare Law and Practice: Representing Children, Parents, and State Agencies in Abuse, Neglect, and Dependency Cases and the "Michigan Child Welfare Legal Resource Guide".  These resources related to child welfare law and practice were provided to courts, prosecuting attorneys, DHS county offices, tribes, community mental health boards, and other agencies involved with child protective proceedings. Additional materials will be provided in the future.

Education Guide: SCAO finalized the guide entitled "Addressing the Educational Needs of Children in Foster Care in Michigan".  The guide was developed from the 2005 education conference put on by SCAO. The guide was mailed to family court and probate court judges, DHS and CMH offices, tribal officials, and prosecutor offices as part of the "Core Child Welfare Law Library". 

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Video recording of child interviews was reviewed in Michigan and the nation as a means for reducing trauma and re-victimization of child victims.  As previously reported, the Task Force organized a subcommittee to explore the pros and cons of the issue.   The subcommittee determined that video recording should be done on a pilot basis and an evaluation conducted by Wayne State University. Video recording equipment was provided through the CJA grant. In March 2003, Michigan laws were changed to ensure confidentiality of video recorded statements. 

The evaluation found that more cases resulted in a plea being entered by the accused to the original criminal charge if the interview was video recorded. It was also found that a higher percentage of criminal cases were disposed of with a plea being entered prior to trial if the child's interview was video-taped.

In 2006, the Task Force passed a resolution of the following language "The Governor's Task Force on Children's Justice supports as a best practice the video recording of investigative forensic interviews of sexually abused children at child advocacy centers or similar program."

In June 2006, the Task Force looked at the laws in Michigan related to video recording of child interviews (MCL 600.2163a and MCL 712A.17b). The Task Force has made recommendations for additional changes to those laws to further ensure confidentiality of video recorded statements and to ensure that children are safe. The recommendations include increasing the penalty for improper release of the video recorded statements; allowing the release of the statements for Friend of the Court matters and administrative hearings; and other changes. Legislation regarding these changes is in the process of being introduced to the House of Representatives.

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In 2002, a 24-page protocol-type document entitled "Munchausen By Proxy-A Collaborative Approach to Investigation, Assessment and Treatment" was developed. It encompasses the responsibilities, and establishes guidelines for each discipline that would be involved in a MSBP case investigation.  The professionals include the court, law enforcement, medical staff, CPS workers, attorneys and psychologists. 
 
The Task Force funded the development, printing, distribution, and training of this protocol.  Distribution to appropriate disciplines was completed in April 2003.  Training sessions were held in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Future trainings are not being planned at this time.Click here to view the guide Munchausen By Proxy-A Collaborative Approach to Investigation, Assessment and Treatment.

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The task for has approved two contracts with the Michigan Public Health Institute. One contract will support a planning process to determine the feasibility of and the development of the Michigan Child Death and Severe Injury Coordinated and Comprehensive Investigation Protocol. This protocol will include a core investigative tool to be used by any investigator for any child death or severe injury. Separate but inter-related sections would also be used, depending on the type of death or injury.

The second contract was for a one-day, statewide training for professionals from multiple disciplines entitled, "Abusive Head Trauma: Investigation, Identification, Treatment and Prosecution" which was done in November 2006. The purpose of the training was to improve knowledge and skills in the early identification of Abusive Head Trauma (AHT), coordinated investigations, successful prosecutions and to encourage community efforts to prevent AHT.  The target audience was child welfare workers, law enforcement officers, medical doctors, medical examiners, attorneys and court officials. 

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KIDS IN COURT VIDEO

The task force developed and produced a video called Kids in Court. It was an informational video designed to help children, who had to testify in court, feel more comfortable at court and to learn what to expect at court. The video was reproduced in English and Spanish and distributed to the all the local DHS and prosecuting attorney's offices in Michigan.

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SAFE DELIVERY ACT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

The Safe Delivery of Newborns law was enacted in response to an increase in the number of newborns abandoned in public places throughout Michigan. In an effort to increase community awareness, a 30-second Safe Delivery video was produced to be used for training and community awareness through public service announcements. View the video and other information on the Safe Delivery Act Web site.

UPDATE OF THE GUIDELINES FOR ACHIEVING PERMANENCY IN CHILD PROTECTION PROCEEDINGS 

In 2007, the task force funded the update of the guide, Guidelines for Achieving Permanency in Child Protection Proceedings. This guide was initially published in 1999 and updated in April 2004. In December 2004, changes were made to Michigan statutes. An addendum to the guide has been developed and it encompasses the changes to Michigan statutes that went into effect December 2004. The guide is intended for use by persons involved in family court protective proceedings, such as attorneys, LGALs, Judges, etc. To obtain a copy of this guide, view the Children's Charter of the Court's of Michigan Web site at www.childcrt.org/.

MICHIGAN CHILD INJURY AND DEATH COORDINATED AND COMPREHENSIVE INVESTIGATION RESOURCE PROTOCOL

The Task Force contracted with Michigan Public Health Institute to develop the Michigan Child Injury and Death Coordinated and Comprehensive Investigation Resource Protocol. The purpose behind the Resource Protocol is to provide information to ensure successful coordinated investigations in child maltreatment cases, including child maltreatment cases that result in a child death, and to minimize additional trauma to child victims.

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