A Critical Examination of State Agency Investigations into ...

abuse or maltreatment within New York State. Upon receipt of a call, a trained specialistat the State Central Register determines whether the information provided is sufficient towarrant the opening of a child abuse investigation. If the information contained in thereport “could reasonably constitute a report of child abuse or maltreatment” or “if truewould constitute child abuse or maltreatment” the complaint is accepted and relayed tothe appropriate agency for investigation. The State Central Register accepts more than140,000 complaints of suspected child abuse or maltreatment annually from mandatedreporters and private citizens. The vast majority of complaints of abuse involve childrenin family settings. Less than one percent of reports per year deal with allegations ofabuse or maltreatment in institutional settings. Allegations of child abuse may beinvestigated by one of many agencies within the state, depending on whether the abuse isalleged to have occurred in a family or institutional setting, and depending on the type ofinstitutional setting.If the Office of Children and Family Services determines, based on its owninvestigation or the recommendation of another investigating agency or the determinationof a local child protective service office, that the complaint is substantiated, or“indicated,” then the individual named in the complaint will be retained as substantiatedon the State Central Register. 4If the complaint is unfounded, then the record of thecomplaint is sealed.In the case of Jonathan Carey’s alleged abuse at the Anderson School, the registerreceived allegations of abuse or neglect from at least two sources. One source told the4 The Office of Children and Family Services may substantiate a complaint of abuse without adetermination from a court. However, an individual who has been placed on the State Central Register maycontest this finding in an administrative hearing.34