Children's Protective Services and Law Enforcement: Fostering Partnerships in Investigations of Child Abuse

• NCJ Number: 210598
• Journal: Child Sexual Abuse Volume: 14 Issue: 2 Dated: 2005 Pages: 97-111
• Author(s): Bernie Sue Newman; Paul L. Dannenfelser
• Date Published: 2005
• Length: 15 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study describes the process of collaboration between child protective services (CPS) workers and law enforcement (LE) officers in the investigation of child abuse cases based on the perceptions of investigators working with 28 child advocacy centers.

Abstract

Information was collected through telephone interviews with 133 CPS workers and 157 LE officers working with the 28 child advocacy centers in 20 States. The qualitative data were related to responses to two open-ended questions that asked for the identification of barriers and facilitators to collaboration between CPS workers and LE officers. The directors of the 28 centers described their child abuse investigations as routinely involving both LE officers and CPS workers. Themes related to barriers to collaboration were conflicts over case control, time and scheduling inconsistencies, insufficient resources, different protocols, inconvenient location, and lack of knowledge of individual investigators. For those who perceived barriers related to conflicting mandates, one common perception was that CPS focuses on protecting the child while LE officers focus on obtaining evidence related to the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrator. Although these emphases are different, they are not necessarily in conflict. What is needed is clarification regarding how these differing emphases can complement rather than conflict with one another. Themes regarding facilitators of collaboration included the structure for collaboration in the child advocacy center, cross-training in CPS workers' and LE officers' roles in child abuse investigations, co-housing and co-location, the availability to each other, teamwork, communication, and good relationships. The co-housing or co-location of CPS workers and LE officers involved in child abuse investigations facilitates the ease and efficiency of collaboration. Training and cross-training backed by organizational commitment to collaboration are prerequisites for eliminating other barriers to collaboration. 1 table and 12 references