Don't let DYFS go into hiding
The Division of Youth and Family Services has decided to step back into the shadows. It must not be allowed to do so.
In an outrageous change of policy, DYFS announced last week it will no longer publicly disclose the details of its actions when a child under its supervision dies from abuse or neglect. The arrogance involved in that policy boggles the mind.
DYFS officials say that revealing the circumstances behind the death of a child who was in the agency's care isn't useful. They contend it is better to release reports of "trends" in the agency's failures than to focus on individual cases. They also argue that publicizing details could hurt the victims' families and that a federal monitor assigned to oversee the agency eliminates the need to inform the public.
When it comes to accountability and transparency in the public arena, truth should trump utility. Naturally, DYFS would not find it "useful" to have its possibly fatal mistakes and missed calls exposed to the light of day. So what? The public, whose tax dollars pay for DYFS to make life-and-death decisions, has every right to demand to know what has happened.
The public airing of the misjudgments that cost a child's life could be painful for some of the families of the victims. But it's hard to imagine anything could make them more grief-stricken than the loss of their child and the knowledge that the system failed them. They also might be among the loudest voices in support of disclosure, as one way of helping to ensure that it doesn't happen to some other son or daughter.
When the competence of an agency or its employees is in question, it should not be left to that agency to decide how much information to release to the public. The governor and the Legislature must override this disastrous policy switch.
DYFS has a difficult, sometimes impossible, job. And they often do a fine job. But when they get it wrong, we need to hear about it.
