Don't blame ACS: Marchella Pierce's death was a tragedy, but social workers shouldn't be demonized
By Bill Baccaglini
Monday, April 4th 2011, 11:47 AM
New York Daily News
When a child dies due to abuse or neglect, as did four-year-old Marchella Brett-Pierce, it shocks the conscience of our entire city. It is a time for sadness and, for everyone in the child welfare field, a time for reflection. What went wrong? How can we learn from this tragedy? Are we doing everything possible to prevent incidents like this in the future?
It is tempting - and far easier - to focus on the individuals within the system who were charged with overseeing Marchella's case: to blame them, to indict them as Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has done, to judge their actions, salve our sadness and move on. But these indictments fail to consider a larger context. The allegations of criminality by two employees of the Administration for Children's Services unfairly cast a pall on an agency where many dedicated people work tirelessly to fulfill a complex and challenging mission. FULL STORY
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