Sun, Jul 06, 2008
 Jonathan Paton
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YES: Openness would increase accountability Special to the Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 05.27.2007
Some state lawmakers and open-government advocates are concerned that Child Protective Services' reluctance to release details about its involvement with Tucson children who died this spring puts the agency's confidentiality needs ahead of the public's right to know. CPS and other lawmakers say that releasing such information is a violation of confidentiality laws. Representatives from the Tucson area — Jonathan Paton, R-District 30, and Pete Hershberger, R-District 26 — share their perspectives.
Recently, the Star reported an incident in which Armando Acuna, 55, who worked as a CPS caseworker, allegedly carried on a relationship with a teenage ward of the state without anyone ever saying anything. He quietly asked to resign, and we found out about it three years later.
In the real world, if Acuna had been a teacher, his dismissal or resignation would likely have been discussed at a school board meeting. The public would learn what had happened. Questions would be asked as to why no one said anything about his preoccupation with a 17-year-old girl, and steps would be taken to prevent the problem from happening again.
In the Acuna case, CPS' internal affairs investigations should have been made public the same way internal police department investigations are.
Federal and state laws restrict what CPS can disclose, but these laws are intended to protect children's identities — not abusers or agencies. State law allows those records to be opened when victims are dead. The Pima County Attorney's office has requested that CPS not reveal the contents of its case files in the murders of Ariana and Tyler Payne or Brandon Williams pending murder investigations.
I, too, have a concern for justice, but important policy issues contained in those case files are being kept from public view.
When I had to sign a confidentiality form to view the Payne and Williams cases, CPS insisted I could not talk about what I saw in them — not even if I wanted to say I had concerns about what I found. There is no value when a policymaker is able to view a file but never allowed to comment on it — even obliquely. Changes must happen to ensure accountability at CPS:
● Redacted versions of CPS case files must be as available as police reports.
● Major personnel actions should be vetted publicly the way teachers and police are — including internal investigations.
● Confidentiality must end with the death of victims.
But more important, there must be a culture of openness at CPS. The decisions the agency makes are too important to be hidden from public view.
Contact Jonathan Paton at jpaton@azleg.gov.
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