due process
The Machine
When Removal Comes Before Rights in Child Welfare Cases
A case out of Massachusetts is moving forward that raises a question many families across the country have quietly asked for years.
What happens when children are removed before the law is properly followed.
In Waltham,...
The Machine
Where Did the Oversight Go?
For families navigating the child welfare system, one question continues to surface again and again.
Who is watching the system that is supposed to be watching our children?
Oversight is often discussed in policy language. It...
The Machine
The Emptied Account but an Unempty Spirit: How I Fought for My Children
Like so many other families, I emptied my savings fighting for my children.
Not for luxury. Not for comfort. But to defend my family in a battle that never should have existed.
Retainers. Court costs. Evaluations....
The Machine
A Call to Alabama: When Families Speak, the System Must Answer
Alabama is being called to account.
On January 22, families from across this state will arrive in Montgomery for two public events that expose a truth the system has long relied on silence to obscure....
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Know Your Rights #12: You Have the Right to Say No to a Safety Plan
You are not required to sign a safety plan. DHR’s own policy states that these plans are voluntary and do not change legal custody. This article explains what safety plans really mean, when to be cautious, and how to protect your rights.
The Machine
Freedom Still Denied: The Fight for Substantive Due Process and the Right to Parent
Even though Juneteenth has passed, its meaning still echoes. Freedom was delayed then, and for many families today it is still being denied. The right to parent your own children is a fundamental liberty, and yet families across America are losing that right without cause, without fairness, and without justice.
The Machine
Opinion | Almost Twenty Years Later, Nothing Has Changed
*** Watch the full clip here ***
Seventeen years after Nancy Schaefer’s warning, families are still fighting to be heard. The system hasn’t changed. It has simply gotten better at hiding.
In 2007, State Senator Nancy...
The Machine
“Deserves to Be on That List”: A Chilling Glimpse into Alabama’s Abuse Registry
When Alabama Deputy Commissioner Karen Smith was asked if everyone on the state’s abuse registry deserved to be there, she answered without hesitation: “I do.” With no requirement for trial, no guarantee of notice, and no clear path for removal, Alabama’s registry functions as punishment by accusation. This investigation explores the real cost of that system and the chilling indifference of the official defending it.