Six laws proposed for child custody cases

If any good can come out of the deaths of his grandchildren, Chuck Cox said he hopes it’s changes in the way Child Protective Services and the Washington Department of Social and Health Services do business.

In response to the murders of Charlie and Braden Powell, a state senator proposes six new laws to fix perceived flaws in the system that deals with child custody cases.

The boys were on a court-ordered, supervised visitation with their father, Josh Powell, when he killed them and himself by spreading an fire accelerant in his home and torching it.

State Senator Pam Roach filed the bills after meeting with Chuck and Judy Cox.

“We believe there’s a lack of strong guidelines, and we believe there are policies and procedures that need to change,” Chuck Cox says.

Roach, and attorneys for the Cox family, believe Washington’s Department of Social and Health Services knew police in Utah were conducting a murder investigation into Susan Cox-Powell’s disappearance in 2009. Visitation rights at Josh Powell’s home should not have been allowed, considering he was a suspect in his wife’s disappearance which the police were investigating as a murder case.

Here are the bills Roach introduced:

Senate Bill 6602 – creating child welfare transparency committees within each of the six DSHS regions. The four legislative caucuses, the attorney general and governor would appoint the six members.

Senate Bill 6603 – preventing a child custody award to someone considered a suspect in an active murder investigation.

Senate Bill 6604 – establishing what is to be contained in background information for guardians. The list includes a statement of financial affairs, number of years of experience, level of formal education and founded allegations of child abuse.

Senate Bill 6605 – requiring Child Protective Services workers to be licensed social workers and bonded.

Senate Bill 6606 – breaking the Department of Social and Health Services into the Department of Children and Family Services, Department of Public Welfare, and Department of Medical and Rehabilitative Services.

Roach also reintroduced a bill she sponsored a couple of years ago which would give grandparents some standing in child dependency proceedings.

The Cox family believes these laws are reasonable and might prevent tragedies like theirs. However, a few lawmakers expressed concerns about rushing to create legislation to deal with one incident.

The DSHS has not formally responded to the bills, which were introduced Thursday.

The state’s Department of Social and Health Services also formed a team that will review the deaths of Charlie and Braden Powell. That panel, which is set to meet at the end of April, includes a psychologist that specializes in sex offender treatment law enforcement.

By Linda Thomas

AP Photo, Elaine Thompson