In the fall of 2015, the number of Arizona children being removed from their homes by child-welfare workers to protect against abuse or neglect hit a high point. More than 6,800 of them were removed, and the number of children in the system neared 19,000.
In the six-month period that ended in March, 4,600 children were put into the foster care system, and, last Sunday, a new law took effect that could bring that number down even more.
Now, except in emergency situations, child welfare workers will no longer be able to remove a child from his or her home without first getting a court’s permission.
Mary Jo Pitzl is covering it all for the Arizona Republic, and she joined The Show to talk about it.