April 16, 2025
Children’s Rights has filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in support of an appeal brought in March by the Family Justice Law Center that argues that the court erred in its ruling upholding the removal, in 2017, of a newborn baby from his father’s care by the New York City Administration for Children’s Services (ACS). The Children’s Defense Fund, the National Association of Counsel for Children, the Juvenile Law Center, and the National Center for Youth Law joined Children’s Rights in the filing.
The father, K.W., was never accused of wrongdoing, yet ACS removed the child, K.A., and placed him in the foster system ostensibly because of his mother’s history of neglect with her previous children. Father and son were separated for three years. Though they were finally reunited, the district court dismissed the claims made in a lawsuit brought by K.W. against ACS, concluding that the years of separation from a fit father did not violate family integrity and applying a low standard for finding imminent danger to support removal. The ruling has the potential to set dangerous precedent that would undermine children’s constitutional rights to remain with their parents and remain free from unreasonable seizure.
The amicus brief describes the enormous long-term trauma and harm children suffer when unnecessarily separated from their parents, regardless of the length of the separation but especially when the separation lasts for years, and argues that courts must recognize and specifically weigh this harm in upholding a child’s Fourteenth Amendment right to family integrity and Fourth Amendment right to be free of unreasonable seizures.
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ABOUT CHILDREN’S RIGHTS
Children’s Rights is a national advocacy organization dedicated to improving the lives of children living in or impacted by America’s child welfare, juvenile legal, immigration, education, and healthcare systems. We use civil rights impact litigation, advocacy and policy expertise, and public education to hold governments accountable for keeping kids safe and healthy. Our work centers on creating lasting systemic change that will advance the rights of children for generations. For more information, please visit childrensrights.org.