DM v. DPW – Cmwlth Court – August 3,
2015
The court upheld DPW’s dismissal
of D.M.’s (Petitioner) appeal to expunge a founded report of child abuse
maintained in the ChildLine Registry pursuant to the Child Protective Services
Law (CPS Law).
It rejected arguments that (i)the
record from Petitioner’s criminal proceeding did contian sufficient facts to
serve as the basis for a “founded” report of child abuse; and (ii) that a report of suspected child abuse based upon
court action must be reported as “unfounded” if it is not finalized within
sixty (60) days of the date of criminal sentencing.
The subject child was seventeen
years old at the time of the events at issue and a resident at a facility for
adolescents. Petitioner was employed at the residential
facility and in his capacity as a staff member and supervisor was responsible
for Child’s welfare.
Petitioner pleaded no content
to a harassment charge. The information
filed by the District Attorney stated that the harassment charge was based upon
the following:
with intent to harass, annoy,
or alarm another person, [Petitioner] did communicate to or about such other
person any lewd, lascivious, threatening or obscene words, language, drawings
or caricatures, in that [Petitioner] did state to a seventeen (17) year old
female victim “I bet you don’t shave your [p---y].” and/or did ask the victim
what kind of underwear she was wearing and/or did grab his penis in front of
the victim while stating
“I bet you can’t handle this.”
