When CPS social worker Dana Gresbach asked two children to remove their clothes so she could inspect them for signs of abuse, she violated their rights against unreasonable search and seizure according to a new federal ruling. This abuse took place at a Milwaukee elementary school during a child abuse investigation; no abuse case was filed.
The caseworker insisted on seeing the children, who were in grades two and three at the time, in isolation. She would not allow the school employees to be present, or to phone the parents. The allegation she was investigating was that the father had hit the boy on the wrist with a plastic stick. She took the children, one at a time, into a private room. She asked the boy to lift up his shirt, and asked the girl to lift her jumper and pull down her tights.
The family sued Gresbach and her supervisors in federal court in June 2005. In March 2007 US District Judge Lynn Adelman ruled against Gresbach but not against her supervisors. So the caseworker, who was probably just doing what her employers taught her to do, is facing the guilt of this action alone. Now both sides must negotiate a settlement or go to a jury for the decision to be made.
Source: Social worker's search violated kids' rights - Judge's ruling goes against state employee who checked under clothes for signs of abuse, by John Diedrich and Sarah Carr of the Journal Sentinel
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Comments: 19
Now if there was a lack of support to her actions, then this person was outside the law, and on her own, thus the Department would not have any reason to support her, nor be liable with the exception that they hired someone with low judgement abilities, which I think should be able to be charged to the Department on moral issues.