Archives of the Mayor's Press Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Thursday, October 5, 2000

Release #383-00

 
Contact: Sunny Mindel / Michael Anton (212) 788-2958
  Jack Deacy / Jennifer Falk (ACS) (212) 341-0999

MAYOR GIULIANI AND ACS COMMISSIONER SCOPPETTA RELEASE THE 1999 NYC CHILD FATALITY REPORT

Child Fatalities In Families "Known" To ACS Drop By 36%; Lowest Total Since 1983


Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and Administration For Children's Services (ACS) Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta today released the "Accountability Review Panel Report" for Calendar Year (CY) 1999. The Report is issued annually by the Accountability Review Panel, a 12-member independent oversight group of experts in social work, law, medicine, psychiatry and public administration. The 1999 Report summarizes the Panel's review of the deaths of 23 New York City children whose families had some history with the City's child welfare system.

The total represents the lowest annual number of child fatalities recorded since 1983, when the current record-keeping system was established. It represents a 36% decrease from the 1998 total of 36 child fatalities, and a 61% decline from the peak of 59 child fatalities recorded in 1988. During CY 1999, ACS investigated 53,760 reports of abuse and neglect, involving 81,696 New York City children.

Of the 23 children whose cases were reviewed by the Panel in 1999, 11 died as a result of homicides, seven from natural causes, four from accidents, and the cause of one death was undetermined. In 1998, when 36 child deaths were reviewed by the Panel, 20 were classified as homicides, six were due to natural causes, six were the result of accidents and four were undetermined.

"While we are pleased that the number of child fatalities in families who have a history with ACS is dropping, each of these deaths remind us that we must continue to do everything in our power to protect children," Mayor Giuliani said. "When we created ACS in 1996 as a stand-alone agency with its own resources, we began the most comprehensive reform of the child welfare system in the City's history. While we cannot prevent every death of a child, or the abuse of every child, we are encouraged that our reform efforts are making a real difference."

Commissioner Scoppetta said: "As this Report points out, the most effective way to prevent child fatalities is to constantly review and improve the management of our child protective cases. Under our 1996 ACS Reform Plan, we upgraded training and education, raised standards and salaries for child protective managers and workers, and introduced accountability to the system."

In reviewing each of the fatality cases, the Panel evaluates the quality of the management of each case and makes recommendations on how the system might be strengthened.

The members of the Accountability Review Panel include Douglas Besharov, an attorney and Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute; Dr. Arthur Cooper, Chief of Pediatric Surgery at Harlem Hospital Center; Professor Patricia Dempsey of the Hunter College School of Social Work; Dr. Angela Diaz, Director of the Division of Adolescent Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center; Dr. Judith Flores, Associate Medical Director of the Park Slope Family Health Center; Dr. Linda Freeman, Psychiatric Director of the Columbia University/Children's Aid Society Community School Project; Dr. Katherine Grimm, Medical Director of the Manhattan Children's Advocacy Center; Dr. Margaret Heagarty, Professor Emeritus at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University; Dr. Bogart Leashore, Dean of the Hunter College School of Social Work; Barbara Lowe, a registered nurse and consultant; Patricia Morrisey, professor Emeritus at the Fordham Graduate School of Social Services; and Denise Rosario, Executive Director of the Coalition for Hispanic Family Services.

The Panel also includes seven members from government agencies. Representing the Family Court are Administrative Judge Joseph M Lauria and Principal Court Attorney Lisa Altman; representing the Office of the New York City Chief Medical Examiner are Dr. Corinne Ambrosi and Dr. Monica Smiddy; representing the Mayor's Office of Operations is Terry Weiss, Assistant Director of Health and Human Services; representing the Board of Education is Joshua Marquez, Coordinator of the Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Program; representing the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation is Consuela Dungca, Senior Assistant Vice-President for Clinical Affairs.

ACS General Counsel Joseph Cardieri and members of his staff provide administrative support to the Panel and participate in Panel meetings.

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