Evidentiary issue - child hearsay (child statement not at hearing)

Reversed - DCF did not have sufficient evidence to support a finding of neglect by Appellant father when 1) Appellant provided substantial evidence to prove the children's mother had fabricated similar allegations in the past to regain legal and physical custody of them; 2) the children were…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support allegations of physical abuse and neglect against Appellant daycare staff member when no corroborative evidence was given and the three children involved provided inconsistent statements. Evidence from other teachers and other parents painted…

Reversed - DCF did not have sufficient evidence to support a neglect finding against Appellant father where 1) the child and their sibling gave inconsistent statements from each other, from prior statements, and from adults; 2) the child and their sibling were known by their social worker to be…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A Report for neglect of the two subject children by the Appellant (their father) where 1) there was only a single isolated incident where the Appellant duck taped his 12-year-old autistic son's mouth for a few seconds after the child said…

Reversed - DCF did not have a reasonable cause to support a finding of physical abuse because the child had significant behavioral problems, and there was no evidence that the injury to the child's face was a result of her mother hitting her. Video evidence showed the child's mother physically…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect for the children's Appellant mother. There was insufficient evidence that the children's mother met the department's definition of neglect. While the children did engage in rough playfighting with their stepfather, which…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a finding neglect of the child's Appellant mother. The child alleged that she told her mother about a history of sexual abuse by her uncle. However, the department determined that the child was not credible due to inconsistencies in her…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a finding of abuse because 1) the reporter interpreted the child's unclear speech as an allegation but the Appellant's child did not provide that information to the DCF response worker and the pediatrician disputed that the child's speech was…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect by the children's Appellant mother where although the mother threatened to kick out the children when they turned 18 years old this neither posed a substantial risk to their safety or wellbeing, nor did it present a…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for physical abuse against the Appellant (biological mother). Though the older child, D, told her school counselor that the Appellant had punched her in the head and hit her in the knee, these injuries were found to have been…

Affirmed - DFC had reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for physical abuse against the Appellant (biological father). The Appellant had an extensive history of violence in the home which led to his eventual removal and incarceration. The disclosure of the abuse and filing of the 51A reports…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support allegations of neglect by the Appellant's partner (the children's biological father) where no credible evidence was presented to suggest that the partner failed to provide the children with adequate care. The 51A reports filed against the…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect because the child's mother overdosed in Appellant grandmother's home and the child reported to her social worker that she saw her mother unconscious in the bathroom. The Appellant claimed that the child was not home, but DCF did not…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to deny the Appellant's kinship foster care license. In reaching the decision that the Appellant failed to meet licensing standards, the Department relied on statements from one of the four children in the Appellant'a care (J) as well as statements from…

Reversed - DCF did not have a reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect because there was no evidence that the three children, all aged 17, were pressured to bathe nude during a school camping trip. The children were given alternative options if they did not wish to bathe nude. There was no…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the 51A Report for neglect where the Appellant (the child's father) failed to provide minimally adequate emotional stability and growth for his son by engaging in a contentious custody battle with the child's mother, where the Appellant and the child's…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the allegations of neglect against the Appellant. The Appellant left his two sleeping children in his car as he entered his ex-wife's home to collect a jacket and then got into an argument with his ex-wife, leading to her calling the police.…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for sexual abuse against the Appellant (the boyfriend of the biological mother of children F, S, and T). There was insufficient evidence to support allegations that the Appellant had taken his clothes off in front of the three…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the 51A report report for physical abuse against the Appellant (mother's live-in boyfriend) where, while intoxicated, the Appellant pushed the child and put his hands around the child's neck during an argument. The Appellant's actions resulted in a…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the 51A Report for neglect by the Appellant where the Appellant failed to provide her biological son with minimally adequate supervision, emotional stability, and growth by 1) acknowledging that she was an alcoholic but never engaging in substance abuse…

Affirmed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A report for neglect against the Appellant (biological father). The Appellant had gotten into an argument that led to a physical altercation with his wife, the child's mother, while the child, J, was sleeping in another room. The…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A reports alleging neglect by the Appellant. While it was determined that the Appellant's words and actions towards the child (her son) were excessive and manipulative as the Appellant fought for custody with the child's biological…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for sexual abuse against the Appellant (biological father of children D and J). In an initial disclosure to a mandated reporter, D and J stated that they had played a game with the Appellant where all three of them took their…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the allegations of neglect where there was a history of the two subject children hearing and witnessing arguments, both verbal and physical, between their father and the Appellant, their father's girlfriend. Though the Appellant denies getting in…

Affirmed in part and reversed in part - DCF had reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect when the Appellant 1) disciplined his child in a manner and pattern incompatible with the child's fragile mental health condition and 2) showed a lack of regard for his child's significant mental health…