Child abuse registry in Pa. is unconstitutional, names innocent people: lawsuit

Patriot-News - 8/11/2022

A nonprofit law firm and youth basketball league have filed a lawsuit alleging Pennsylvania’s ChildLine Registry, which determines who ends up on its list of child abusers, is unconstitutional.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday, claims parents and caregivers are placed on the child abuse registry without first having a chance to meaningfully challenge the evidence against them and with only a cursory investigation.

The lawsuit was filed by La Liga Del Barrio, the youth basketball league, and Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity on behalf of five plaintiffs whose names were not made public.

The names of those five plaintiffs have been erroneously added to the registry through the ChildLine’s “subjective” process, according to the lawsuit.

Having one’s name added to the ChildLine Registry closes many doors in life, according to the lawsuit. Many government jobs and private employers require a “clearance” from the ChildLine Registry for a candidate to be hired. This list is not public, but employers and volunteer organizations require clearances from this list to check people’s backgrounds.

Yet the process to end up on the list can be determined by a single person in Children Youth and Family Services, without any input from the person to offer evidence or an explanation that could better inform the investigation.

When tips are called into Childline, a caseworker is assigned to investigate within 24 hours. During this investigation, a caseworker interviews the alleged perpetrator and victim, parents, caretakers and anyone else relevant to the case.

Then, the employee lists the tip as either unfounded, founded or “indicated,” which means some credible evidence indicates abuse—but it’s not certain.

Both founded and indicated reports end up with names on the registry.

According to the lawsuit, there is no meaningful opportunity for those accused of child abuse to challenge the evidence against them before their name is added to the ChildLine Registry.

If the accused wants to have their name removed, they need to file an appeal, but there is no easy way to do that, according to the lawsuit.

“The Byzantine process for an individual to file an appeal seeking to be removed from the registry is so complex that, even with legal counsel, it is a challenge to navigate,” Peter LeVan, of LeVan Stapleton Segal Cochran, LLC, said. “A.W., for example, has spent [more than] a decade trying to clear her name but has never been able to get a hearing in her case.”

Nearly all indicated reports are eventually overturned when given higher scrutiny.

According to the Department of Human Service’s own annual reports, 91 percent of “indicated” reports were overturned in 2021, 94 percent were overturned in 2020, and 91 percent were overturned in 2019.

Beyond employment problems,being listed on the registry also prevents parents from volunteering in school and community activities, even for their own children.

La Liga del Barrio, faces a volunteer shortage because of the issues with the registry, according to a news release.

By and large, Pennsylvanians are not informed when they are added to the registry. Many parents seeking to volunteer with the league only find out they are on the registry when they apply to volunteer with the league and try to get clearance from the registry.

“When parents cannot find work and are not allowed to be fully engaged in their children’s lives, the ChildLine registry harms the very children and communities it purports to protect,” Alex Dutton, an attorney with CLS, said.

The definition for “child abuse” ranges from physical or sexual abuse to general neglect.

The plaintiffs are asking the Commonwealth Court to declare the process unconstitutional, remove them from the registry until they are provided an evidentiary hearing to dispute the evidence against them, and prevent further additions to the registry.

Because the plaintiffs are not seeking monetary damages from the government, they are choosing not to pursue class action status, as the relief the plaintiffs seek would also apply to every affected, Peter LeVan, the attorney handling the lawsuit on a pro bono basis, said.

“It is far too easy to be ‘indicated’ for child abuse in Pennsylvania and listed on the ChildLine registry for life, which results in severe reputational harm and significant employment bars,” LeVan said. “While I fully understand and support the important need of protecting children, the Commonwealth’s efforts to do so must comply with the guaranteed rights provided by the Pennsylvania Constitution, including due process and protection from reputational harm.”

Sexual harassment whistleblower terminated from Pa. National Guard awaits case resolution two years out

U.S. Rep. Scott Perry says he’s not a target of federal probe

FBI delivers subpoenas to several Pa. Republican lawmakers: sources say