Sex Offenders Working in Child Care Centers?
Posted on Oct, 19 2011The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report in August 2011 entitled “Overview of Relevant Employment Laws and Cases of Sex Offenders at Child Care Facilities.” You can find the report here: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11757.pdf. The most disturbing finding of this intensive study was the following:
“The cases GAO examined show examples of individuals convicted of serious sexual offenses who gained access to child care facilities as maintenance workers, spouses or friends of providers, a cafeteria worker, and a cook. At least seven of these cases involve offenders who previously targeted children, and in three of the cases, the offenders used their access to children at the facilities to offend again. Among the cases, GAO found instances of providers who (1) knowingly hired offenders and (2) did not perform pre-employment criminal-history checks. GAO also found examples of facilities operating without licenses, and facilities that employed offenders while receiving federal funds. The following four cases illustrate the nature of the situations GAO identified.”
While none of the examples given in the report occurred in Georgia, several occurred in neighboring states. While all 50 states require, at the very least, a basic criminal background check, this is not always sufficient to net out sexual predators, as is made obvious by the examples provided in the report. Careful child care facilities should go further. Parents should ask the owner for details concerning the extent of the background and reference checks that he or she performs prior to hiring the individual worker. Fortunately, Georgia is one of the 22 states that prohibit sex offenders from serving as owner, employee, operator, or volunteer at a child care facility. Moreover, Georgia specifically prohibits a sex offender from residing in a home or facility that operates a day care. Nevertheless, don’t let these laws lull you into complacency. Be active. Ask questions. Owners and operators who seem offended or unwilling to share the employee screening process are not the right people to manage your child’s care.
Morgan Robertson, Keith Bodoh, and Matt Nasrallah are Marietta Ga lawyers serving the Marietta, Cobb County and Metro Atlanta areas. Visit our Georgia Daycare Abuse and Negligence page to learn more or call:
Mathew G. Nasrallah
770-424-1234 ext.13
877-266-3694 ext.13