A Petition in Behalf of the
Forsaken Children
of Texas to the
Governor and the 76th Legislature
TO THE HONORABLE GOVERNOR AND MEMBERS OF THE 76TH LEGISLATURE:
I. INTRODUCTION
This petition is written in behalf of the abused and neglected children of Texas, not those in the care of the state, but those the state has forsaken, however unintentionally, and who, as you read these words, are in the care of abusive or neglectful adults. This petition is directed to you at this moment in time because the present economic prosperity of Texas gives you the power to rescue some significant number of these children from sexual assault, physical assault, severe neglect, and emotional cruelty by strengthening the Child Protective Service.
The case for action is overwhelming. Since 1985 the state's investigations of child abuse and neglect have deteriorated in both number and quality. Even though our child population increased at least 16% between 1985 and 1998, from just under 4.8 million to just over 5.5 million, the actual number of children confirmed after an investigation as abused or neglected has decreased 28% from 62,233 in 1985 to about 44,536 in 1998, which is a drop of 17,697 children.
As this petition will demonstrate, this decline is not attributable to better lives for children in 1998 as compared to 1985; instead the decline is attributable to less resources for investigations by the Child Protective Service. The statistical case to be presented is clear and convincing--indeed, desperate, but before turning to the numbers, consider these two stories of failed investigations.
