How MA DCF Deals with Child Abuse & What To Do If You Are Involved
The Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (MA DCF) investigates parents and caretakers for child abuse or neglect allegations. Understanding the dcf investigation process is crucial for any parent or caretaker involved in such cases. There are many ways to prevent MA DCF from supporting a 51A report against you or your family after the DCF investigation. Knowing your parents rights against dcf can be a significant advantage in these situations. Read on to see what steps you should take to get DCF out of your life without losing your time, money, reputation, and most importantly, your children.
How does MA DCF deal with Child Abuse Allegations?
MA DCF is responsible for protecting children who are at risk of abuse or neglect by their parents. DCF also cares about if children are at risk of abuse or neglect by a caretaker. Caretakers are people such as teachers, older siblings, babysitters, grandparents, and anyone else entrusted with caring for the child. The Department looks into allegations of abuse and neglect reported by professionals and the public. When DCF opens a case, they first have to find out whether or not the allegations are true. If DCF decides the allegations are true, they usually start a DCF family assessment. During the assessment, DCF connects families with services in the community. This is to help make sure children can grow and thrive in a safe, stable home.
Can DCF Take Your child Away Because of Child Abuse Allegations?
The short answer is, yes. MA DCF can definitely take away your child when you are facing allegations of child abuse. They can remove your child for child neglect allegations as well. It depends on how serious the allegations are. The process is as follows: your DCF social worker files a petition in the Juvenile Court. This called a “care and protection” petition. Under this petition, DCF will ask a judge to order that your child be removed from your home. Then, the court can order DCF to take temporary custody of your children. This is more likely to happen when the judge is seriously concerned that the children are not safe with the parents because of sexual exploitation. While judges do not want to take children away from their parents, they try to err on the side of caution. The proper course of action will depend on the nature of the allegations and a number of other factors.
What Are Helpful Tips for Parents Dealing with MA DCF?
When you are facing DCF child abuse allegations, try to keep your cool. Don’t be defensive with the social worker during the investigation. It is in your best interest to try and cooperate with the social worker no matter how difficult it is for you. This is because if you are too aggressive, the DCF social worker can accuse you of being unfit to parent your child.
It can be a good idea to reach out to relatives, friends, co-workers, or neighbors. Ask them to be character witnesses for you so they can vouch for your parenting abilities. This is important because simply having people who can state that they never saw you mistreat or threaten your children will help your case. Give DCF the names and contact information of all these people so that DCF can interview them. Also, keep in mind that DCF can use anything you say against you. DCF can twist your words or take it out of context and phrase what you say in a negative way.
So, keep records of every phone call, interview, or conversation you have regarding the subject. But before trying to fight against DCF, the most important thing is to hire the right attorney for the job. You need an attorney who is specialized in DCF law. They should also have a lot of experience dealing with the range of MA DCF allegations, including understanding the DCF investigation process.
Kevin Seaver is a trusted Massachusetts DCF lawyer specialized in DCF law since 1991. 
DISCLAIMER
You find yourself in this situation, it’s advisable to seek legal representation from a qualified attorney, like those at the Law Office of Kevin Seaver, who can advocate for your rights and guide you through the complex process of a DCF investigation.
Remember that the ultimate goal of DCF is to ensure the safety and well-being of children while supporting families in crisis.
Please note that this article does not create an Attorney-Client relationship between our law firm and the reader and is provided for informational purposes only. Information in this article does not apply to all readers.
Readers should not rely on this information as legal advice and should seek specific counsel from the attorney based on personal circumstances. Thank you.
Kevin Patrick Seaver is a Massachusetts DCF Defense Lawyer who represents parents against false child abuse allegations.
Massachusetts DCF Defense Lawyer Kevin Seaver has been successfully fighting false child abuse allegations since 1991.
dcf sucks. my son died in there custody in 2019 and the foster mom got her license back. i dont think its fair what ma dcf is doing. theres alot of things that are fishy in my son’s death and noone did or is doing anything about it.
CPS Wrongfully removes children to gain funding, at least what I see to an extreme level with CPS. The statistics on how many go missing they refuse to report to continue to receive funding is shocking. Missouri law makers asked the right questions and realized the missing kids were being sex trafficked, in one instance one child was sex trafficked to 4 other states. the amount that die in their care is alarming. Please Mr. Seaver help us shut them down. They do more harm than good and everyone is afraid to say it.