The Inside Scoop on CYFD

As a New Mexico domestic relations mediator and child protection worker (CASA and GAL), I attend training and blog in these areas with fair regularity.  I have previously written in broad outline form about the New Mexico child protection laws, timelines and policies, and now report on training conducted in August 2011 by CYFD)and the Albuquerque Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program, in which CYFD gave a overview on CYFD policies and procedures from intake to placement.  

Is Media Making Our Kids Too Sexy Too Soon?

As a domestic relations mediator and child protection worker (CASA and GAL)--and a parent--I have occasion to wonder if the media is making our kids too precocious too soon.  In So Sexy So Soon (2008), authors Diane E. Levin, PhD and Jean Kilbourne, EdD weigh in and conclude that is the case.  While I do not agree with all of their premises or prejudices, there is still considerable merit to their book

Court Debates Whether Secret Potty Pics = Sexual Exploitation

As a guardian ad litem (GAL) and domestic relations mediator in New Mexico, I take special interest in unusual court cases involving children.  In State v. Myers, 2011-NMSC-028, the New Mexico Supreme Court rejected the Court of Appeals' chastisement, and concluded that the Sexual Exploitation of Children Act, NMSA §§ 30-6A-1 et seq. applies to taking covert pictures of the genitals of female minors' while they used the restroom.

In what was an unusual twist, the Court of Appeals, on remand, had concluded that the State Supreme Court had impermissibly expanded the scope of the Act.  Specifically, it

Child Protection Update - Abuse Evidenced by Abuse of Mom and Siblings

As a guardian ad litem (GAL) and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) practitioner in New Mexico, I take special interest in unusual court cases involving children.  In CYFD v. Arthur C. and Angel J., 2011-NMCA-022, the New Mexico Court of Appeals* recently reconciled rule amendments, and an amendment to Section 32A-4-19 with Court Rule 10-343, to uphold a determination of abuse in the context of an Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) matter, and prior abuse of another child.