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Families affected by domestic violence frequently experience involvement in the child welfare system and are often subject to reporting, investigation by child protective services (CPS), and separation from their children on the grounds that they have “failed to protect” them from witnessing domestic violence. Keeping children safe and together with their non-abusive parent can be critical for the survivor and child’s well-being. Studies have demonstrated that separation from a protective parent and placement in the foster care system is perhaps the most key predictor of emotional and behavioral problems in childhood and harms children’s well-being throughout their lives, contributing to worse mental health outcomes and a greater likelihood of involvement in the criminal justice system.
Given the relationship between racial disparities, economic disadvantages, and discrimination against victims of violence and involvement in the child welfare system, the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence (the Partnership) and its partners continue to work to mitigate the harms of the child welfare system on families of color, families experiencing economic disadvantage, and families affected by domestic violence. These organizations are also working to end the practice of removing children from parents solely on the grounds that children have been present during a domestic violence incident.
AB 2085 (Holden) was written into law in January 2023. It removed economic disadvantage as a component of general neglect, making it less likely that children would be separated from their parents because of their socioeconomic status. In the 2023-24 legislative session, the Partnership co-sponsored SB 1126 (Min) a bill that would have clarified the law on mandated reporting to specify that mandated reporters would not be required to report a child witnessing domestic violence to CPS. The bill was withdrawn prior to a vote on the Senate floor.
