By State Senator Katy Ives – Aug 2017 The Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Department of Mental Health license youth group homes throughout the state that house adolescents removed from their families. Over the past few years, the City of Haverhill has seen a significant surge in calls from group home staff, […]
6-16-17 Lawrence Police responded to a domestic violence call late Friday night where the caller stated a man was beating a woman outside the home of 4 Andover St. When police arrived, however, they determined there was no domestic assault and the call was false. While at the address officers discovered a missing 13 year old named […]
Police Called 754 Times in three years 419 Times for Missing Kids By: Tom Duggan – May, 2017 “The Department of Children and Families has worked diligently to build a strong system for protecting children and families across the Commonwealth. Recent enhancements include hiring more than 550 new employees in 2014 and distributing […]
By: Rep. Linda Dean Campbell October, 2015 The Baker Administration has placed our DCF under new executive leadership that is deeply committed to effecting very necessary improvements in our State’s child protection systems. As a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, I can tell you that the Legislature is highly supportive […]
By: Bharani Padmanabhan – July 3, 2015 Valley Patriot readers may be familiar with the 17 month long ordeal suffered by young Justina Pelletier at the hands of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the huge effort it took from 100,000 ordinary people from across this great land who came together to […]
By: Bharani Padmanabhan MD PhD – June 18, 2014 Justina Pelletier, one of four children of Lou and Linda Pelletier, was diagnosed with Mitochondrial Disease by Dr Mark Korson at Tufts Medical Center 2 years ago. Her elder sister Jessica also has the same disease and almost died from it before the family, from West […]
By Tom Duggan, May, 2014 Massachusetts State Auditor Suzanne Bump says, “It’s not enough” that Governor Deval Patrick is replacing the state’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) Commissioner, telling a crowd of women in North Andover last month that replacing the head of DCF would do little to protect children while the policies and […]
“I know what I can do and I’ve been doing a lot, probably more than you know, and more than the public is entitled to know under the law.” ~ Governor Deval Patrick By: Tom Duggan, 4/24/14 Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick was confronted today on his way into an event at University of Massachusetts in […]
By: Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives April, 2014 April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. I’m glad to report two recent developments that will strengthen safety for our children in the Commonwealth. There have been significant discrepencies in child services this past year; one being the serious challenges at the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) […]
By: Joe D’Amore – April, 2014 There are heroes who work with foster families and children in Massachusetts and are on the front line of caring for children at risk and I met one of them recently. She related her daily experiences of witnessing deplorable conditions in most foster homes where the standard of protection […]
Podcast of Paying Attention with Tom Duggan, April 19, 2014. Paying Attention is produced by Chris Poublon and airs on 980WCAP in Lowell CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD HOUR 1 CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD HOUR 2 Today Lou Pelletier, father of Justina Pelleteir joined us by phone to talk about his harrowing ordeal of his family at the […]