Can I call Social Services under this condition?

Question

I know this woman that has two kids, one is 2 yrs old and the other is 8mths. The 2 year old boy about less then a year ago got lost at her church for about a half an hour to an hour, then last week the 2year old wondered out of the house and walked away two and half blocks down from where they live. The mother didn't even notice the two yr old was gone after 2 hours, her brother in law went out to look for the little boy and found him at a random house. The family (who lived in the house) called the cops because they noticed that noone was searching for the boy, the cops released the little boy to her brother in law. On top of that, the father of the kids is in jail on felony charges for possession of drugs, and she is undocumented.
So can I report her to Social Services???
If I do report her will she know I reported her??

Answer 1

Hello:

It sounds like you need to call social services and report this woman anonymously!! You can remain anonymous,when you report this person! There is never any excuse for just letting a child wander off by themselves,especially at 2 years old.I am also wondering how badly the eight month old baby is being neglected too?

I am probably very overprotective of my little girl who is seven,but if she goes outside to play,I go out with her! You would not believe the neighbors that we have that just let their young children play outside all day by themselves,and by a road non the less too!! I have heard and seen too many stories on the news stations about children getting kidnapped and worse,but if I am a very overprotective mom,then so be it! I know that I can look in the mirror every night before I go to bed,knowing that my daughter is safe and secure.

I have had to report some people in the past because they had a house full of cats,dogs,and their house REEKED of animal urine,the dishes were piled and dirty all over the place,and the house was literally trash everywhere. When I reported my neighbors,the caseworker said that I could remain anonymous,and the neighbors never found out that I was the one who reported them.

When I reported these people,social services has been watching them and coming into there house ALOT!! I am glad that there are services like this that can help children who cannot control what kind of environment they live in! I would have to say that any kind of drug use,or if a person is in this country illegally,then that will definetely raise the red flag with social services. I will be keeping these precious children in my thoughts and prayers,my heart is breaking for them! :-(

Answer 2

Accidents can happen but this is neglect. You can and should call social services. Most states have a central hot line. In South Carolina each county has their own phone number. All calls are taken anonymously. If they don't take your call as an investigation hang up and call back. You may get a different person who will take the call.

Answer 3

She will not know you are the one who reported her.Keep in mind that the cops did not charge the mother so there must not be a case.Social services will get the report from the cops when making their decision.So there aint much there if they just turn the little one over to the brother inlaw which I have never heard of a cop turning over a child to someone that is not the parent.As far as the child getting lost last year at church,social services will consider that hear and say because there is no legal documents stating the child was ever lost last year.

Answer 4

Yes, you can report her, and no, she will not know you did it. Most states have a 24 hour hot line that requires complaints to be checked out within 24 hours. Different states have different requirements as to what constitutes neglect but at the very least it will get Social Services involved and aware of the case.

Answer 5

Yes, you can and should report the problem. But, yes, she may know that you did it -- unless there are many people with the same info who might have.

If challenged, you might decide this is a good time to lie. Don't let fear stop you from reporting this neglectful parent. Often a warning will improve the situation for the child more than you can know.

Answer 6

Yes she should DEFINITELY be reported. She is being neglectful and putting her child at risk to be killed, kidnapped, molested, etc.
Now, it is supposed to be anonymous. However, two years ago my sister called and reported my other sister (she had an abusive boyfriend that hit her when she was holding the baby!). In the report my sister received following being investigated, it stated not only my other sister's name, but also MINE (my sister stated that I could verify some of the info).
So, this is one of those situations where YOU need to decide what's more important....possibly upsetting this woman or making sure this little boy is taken care of like he deserves to be!

Answer 7

In some states, you can ask ahead of time if this will be an anonymous report. However, you take a greater risk of not having the children taken away, since there is no witness that can be called to testify.

Answer 8

You shouldn’t judge her because she is undocumented or because of the children’s father. You can call CPS because they will most likely give her a warning and tell her to take parenting classes. Keep in mind that you don’t know the whole situation. I’m not trying to protect her, but I hate how everyone jumps at calling CPS without taking a thought about the seriousness of it. If she is really unfit you shouldn’t care if she knows you called I mean if you are in the right. Do what you think is right, but don’t assume.

Answer 9

She is neglectful. Yes, you can. But my Aunt Terri lost my cousin Christian...and an old lady found him walking down a major highway when he was two years old. But she was so worried. She was hysterical, but she couldn't help it. She has a daughter who has severe cerabal pausey and five other kids...but that mother is neglectful.

Answer 10

As the police got involved in the incident, and especially as they released the child to the brother-in-law rather than the mother, it should be a given that the police also notified child protective services of the matter. At least one would hope so.