False child abuse allegation and bad policing torment Albuquerque family.

Robby Soave at Reason has just published a very interesting article about a baseless child abuse allegation that devastated a Albuquerque family. Even as it became clear that the allegations were unfounded, local police continued to hound the family using the sweeping discretionary authority granted in these kinds of cases. Well worth the read, here: https://reason.com/2019/04/25/adam-lowther-child-services-police-abuse/

The issue of CPS power to intervene on families is one issue where I find the libertarians have got it right. Many states have granted wide authority to these agencies to remove children and conduct investigations with little due process or judicial oversight in the interest of protecting young children. While well intentioned, the granting of such sweeping authority allows for gross abuses, such as this case, to occur.

The conclusion of the article is the most concerning. This family happened to be fairly well off and in a good position to fight the long battle against the system, incurring over $300,000 in legal costs and losing jobs after being publicly accused of being child molesters. Many families of lesser means would not be able to fight such an abuse and probably would have plead out or been crushed by the system.

via International Skeptics Forum http://bit.ly/2ZyjeRv