On Wednesday, March 4, I was proud to present Senate Bill 924 to the Missouri Senate Seniors, Families and Children Committee. This legislation aims to provide legal protections to employees of child assessment centers.
Currently, Missouri law does not explicitly protect non-governmental employees, including Child Advocacy Center (CAC) employees acting in good faith, from legal liability during their investigation into cases of child abuse and neglect.
Government employees receive protections afforded by the federal “qualified immunity” doctrine, which is designed to shield government workers from liability, as long as their actions are within the scope of their duties and do not violate state or federal laws or an individual’s constitutional rights.
In child abuse and neglect investigations, this federal doctrine protects most, but not all, members of the multidisciplinary team involved with these investigations.
CAC employees play an important role in working to provide justice and healing to victims of child abuse and neglect, and I firmly believe they should be covered by protections currently in law.
In order to protect CAC employees, SB 924 adds protections to state law for these workers, who act in good faith, from legal liability during their involvement in child abuse and neglect investigations.
Through this legislation, I believe we are providing vital protections to individuals that are working to provide justice to children who have suffered unspeakable harm.
I am proud to sponsor this legislation, and I believe it has the potential to make a real difference in the lives of children who have been abused or neglected. I am committed to working as hard as I can to get this important legislation across the finish line and to the governor’s desk before the end of the legislative session.
I am proud to sponsor this legislation, and I believe it has the potential to make a real difference in the lives of children who have been abused or neglected. I am committed to working as hard as I can to get this important legislation across the finish line and to the governor’s desk before the end of the legislative session.
1 comment:
What exactly do you mean by "Good Faith"? A caseworker goes in and makes an assessment and a decision. As long as that person has done the job and reported to the superiors, that is good faith. The problem is when that person goes in and doesn't do the job, is intimated, or doesn't know the rules. That person has liability insurance for that. When we start providing a haven for bad judgment, that is a problem. I have seen this first hand as an RN.
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