Jaime? Later, QD.Originally Posted by quickdodgeŽ
Jaime? Later, QD.
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No, I don't think you are LEGALLY required to report SUSPECTED child abuse/neglect as a private citizen. I know school and medical officials are, but I'm not 100% on John Q. Public.
Morally is a whole other subject.
Personally, I think that if you feel in your gut that something is wrong.....majority of the time it is. When it comes to children, I personally adopt the same rules that I adopt if someone kicks down my door at 2 a.m......shoot first, ask questions later. I'd rather have a parent upset at me for reporting something that I felt was neglectful than have to live with the guilt if that child got hurt or worse. That's just me though. Some people choose not to get involved when they see an accident.....I stop my car and try to help. Same idea here. You can either sit by and let abuse go on, or you can choose to do something about it. It's a choice only YOU have to live with. If YOU are happy with your choice, then that's all that matters.
Just a little FYI: I know from EXPERIENCE in working with the Gwinnett County Juvenile court system for the last 2 yrs that children get taken away and kept away from parents for a ton of reasons. Drug abuse is certainly one of them. Some parents make remarkable recoveries and work hard to get their children back, while others let the drugs lead them away. I do KNOW one thing though; the act of getting their children taken away from them is sometimes the motivating factor they NEED to get their life back on track. I just saw a case this month where 6 months ago I was convinced we were going to have to take her children away permanently, but she made a total transformation for the better. I was so glad to see that and it also showed me that sometimes things can indeed get fixed IF the person wants it bad enough.
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