Dees v San Diego

Read the brief.

A 9-year-old girl with special needs was taken from class to be interviewed by a child welfare investigator without a warrant, a judicial order, parental consent, emergency circumstances, or even probable cause.

The mother sued for a violation of her parental rights, but the defense argued that the child wasn’t taken from the mother’s custody and that the interview lasted “only five minutes.”

We filed a friend of the court brief pointing out the damage that can be done to families—and especially to children—through unwarranted child welfare investigations and intrusions of this sort.

You can read our write-up of this case here.