April is Child Abuse Awareness Month. For those of us who have dedicated our lives and our careers to protecting children from harm, we have a lot to be grateful for as we advocate for the rights of children to grow up in safe homes, safe schools and safe communities. The dawning of the #MeToo and #MarchForOurLives movements is shifting the consciousness of an entire nation. Instead of ignoring … [Read more...]

It was September of 2016. I was currently under CPS supervision from an unfortunate case that had been opened due to domestic violence (I was the victim) and substance abuse. Initially, CPS was going to award me full custody but chose to place my son in foster care after I allowed my domestically-abusive husband to see our son on my birthday. After Maryela Padilla was assigned to our case, … [Read more...]

Almost exactly two years after being thrust into the national spotlight for sentencing Brock Turner to what many considered an unacceptably lenient sentence, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky ’84 M.A. ’85 will face the June 5 countywide vote that could remove him from the bench. Following a petition that gained the requisite signatures needed to recall the judge, … [Read more...]

EUCLID, Ohio - Family members expressed concern for a 4-year-old girl's safety in the months before her mother and the mother's boyfriend are accused of killing her, they said after an emotional court hearing. Aniya Day-Garrett's father and other relatives felt she was malnourished and being physically abused in recent months, they said Tuesday outside Euclid Municipal Court. They called … [Read more...]