[meshsgrl]

D spent last weekend with his biodad. He came back on Monday. Monday and tuesday every time I redirected him, he would say "please dont hit me" or "No hit me" or he would cover his head and cower, with fearful eyes. It was horrible to see and hear. He never displayed this behavior before. I documented but was waiting until thurs to talk to the agency. Well they called me on Wednesday and said that he is going for another weekend visit this weekend, Thurs to sunday. This will continue for several more weeks, then he will go to live with him. I immeditely informed them of his behaviors. The agency cw was not happy to hear this, so she called the county SW who runs the show, and informed her of what was happening. The county Sw says" oh the biodad would never hurt a child, he's a big teddy bear" !!!!!! My agency CW transported him to the visit and she was horrified by how clearly he explained that he had been hit, but she can't do anything until the county SW makes a decision!!!! SO the child is with his Bdad this weekend!! The agency CW says 2 yr olds dont make up stuff like this, the County Sw says, kids that young dont know what they are talking about!!!! It doesn't help to call her superviser either, she is a nitwit too!!!
I spend half the night praying for his safety!! I feel so helpless and dont know what else to do!
I have not contacted the GAL but asked the Agency Cw to contact him... she seemed hesitant to contact him. not sure why!
This case has been worked in the parents favor to an extreme, I am scared for this kid!
Oh and they never tell me when they are going to drop him off after visits. I got home from ohio 20 mins before they arrived at my hosue with him!!

[jjjjmom]

Oh.... that is really scary. We'll pray that he is okay.

[GaViolet]

Praying for your little one's safety.

[Withay]

Call D's GAL, atty and get hold of a CASA worker TODAY! Don't wait for the cw, sw or anyone else to do it. D's safety is involved.

[buttascotchbaby]

I second that -call the GAL now! That is just too scary! Good luck and I am saying a prayer right now.

[lambeausam]

Call the hotline. You are a mandated reporter and you suspect abuse of a child that is in your care. If anything, do it to cover yourself so the dad doesn't put it on you.

Sam

[meshsgrl]

So I finally talked to the county Sw today, after like3 messages to her and her supervisor, concerning when D will be coming back. He is coming back on Monday.

She said.... "I talked to the Bparents yesterday and the said they would never hit him and they would closely moniter the rest of the family!" I was like OMG... do you really think they would say "yeah we smacked him around last weekend, we didnt think you would care!!!" As much as I would have liked to I didnt say the above, but I did tell her in the course of the conversation that I really didnt think the bioparents would admit to hitting their child!!! Seriously this woman needs some help!!!!
My concern now is what they are going to do to him for "telling"!!!

[sdiedre]

Ummm - wht happened to neglectful supervision??? Even IF they weren't the ones responsible for hitting him, they ARE responsible for allowing him to be around someone who DID.....I agree with the idea of hotlining it.

[SHAMROX]

It completely bugs me what the county SW's reaction was. I would call the hotline too; I think if you do that, don't they have to actually investigate? That is ridiculous. This is where I start to wonder if money plays a part (on the government side of things) - this poor kid's about to be returned home, there's an issue and they're basically ignoring it.

The other thing is that as a foster-adopt parent, I always felt like anything I said wouldn't be taken seriously b/c everyone just thought I wanted to adopt. That's yet another reason to call the hotline; you are showing that you aren't going to back down, and that someone needs to take him seriously when he says these things. I agree that a 2 year old might not completely comprehend some situations, but I don't think a 2yr old knows how to intentionally cower and cover their face to protect themselves.

Good luck and I will say some prayers for him.

[meshsgrl]

[i] called the hotline and asked what would happen if I made I reported it. They said my report would be send to that region and they would decided what to do with it. She didnt seem to think that it needed to be reported since the county already knows about it. I decided to wait until next week to actually report it. Maybe I will have more evidence...
I am foster only, but I am young and new at this, people tend to not take me serious the first time around.....
And.... my Sw's are usual amazed at my knowledge of the foster system and the way I deal with things... I tell them, I got my education from this board!!!

[timleenettesue]

Stay on top of it and don't let it go. That fact that you are not out looking for a child to adopt should carry weight that you are not just trying to "keep" the child. You are trying to protect an innocent child (which the workers should have as their first priority).

Report everything. They can't ignore you forever.

[xxsurroundedbyxy]

Yes. Report it. Even if they choose to ignore it, there will be a trail to show that you did NOT ignore it. It will protect you should the bioparents try to say that you are the one abusing. Also, check him over during first bath back at your home. Note any bruising and take pics if you feel the need to protect yourself.

Praying for little guy.

Kim