Tagged: child abuse

The Kentucky Supreme Court has ordered Kentucky child welfare officials to publicly release records of child abuse cases resulting in death or serious injury.

The court released the 3-3 vote on Thursday on whether to halt a lower court decision ordering the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to open the cases. The tie vote let the lower court decision stand.

Kentucky’s 17-member panel currently reviewing certain child abuse cases will remain a permanent part of state accountability and child advocates say the recently-passed law creating the panel adds more transparency and accountability.

Kentucky’s Senate Health and Welfare Committee is trying to add more oversight to a child fatality review panel in a bill approved Wednesday, but child advocates say the amendment doesn’t go far enough.

The panel was temporarily established by Gov. Steve Beshear through executive order last year. It’s meant to review certain child death and near death cases to ensure the system is doing everything it can to prevent child abuse and neglect.

Gov. Steve Beshear has signed an executive order to create a 17 member panel that will review child death and near-death cases throughout Kentucky.

"These reviews allow us to see if policies and practices in the entire system need to be altered to better protect Kentucky’s children," Beshear said in a release.