| Releases & Statements
For Immediate Release,
January 12, 2006
Contact: James Vlasto
212-669-4166, 917-414-2915
The brutal death of Nixzmary Brown
is cause for alarm and a serious investigation into procedural
failings on the part of the Administration for Children’s
Services (ACS). ACS Commissioner John Mattingly’s pledge
to reassess every open case in the child welfare system is a heartening
first step but should not preclude an internal review to identify
agency-wide problems that may have contributed to lapses in individual
cases like that of Nixzmary Brown. I call on Commissioner Mattingly
to conduct such a review.
Overloaded and under-prepared caseworkers
cannot always make the acute and timely judgments necessary to
protect the life of an abused child. The City must ensure that
ACS has the resources it needs to effectively carry out its responsibilities,
and ACS must ensure that all caseworkers have the training, experience,
supervision, and institutional support they need to prevent such
senseless tragedies.
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