One of the good bills moving through the West Virginia Legislature is SB 474, to create a “critical incident review team” to examine when a child known to Child Protective Services or in Department of Human Services’ custody dies or nearly dies.
This bill was likely inspired by the Sissonville incident last year, in which police found two teenagers locked inside a sweltering shed that “had no running water, no bathroom, no food other than a loaf of bread and one sleeping bag rolled up on the concrete floor,” according to MetroNews. A third, younger child was found locked inside the house, unattended.
Police had been called out to that Sissonville home at least twice prior to that incident on child abuse/neglect complaints. Both times, police did not find enough evidence to take action. The neighbor who called police the day the teens were discovered in the shed told reporters she had contacted CPS multiple times about the children’s mistreatment, but no one ever called her back.
It’s possible the perceived failure of CPS in this situation inspired SB 474. The incident review team’s primary job will be to analyze information and compile a report that “include[s] statistical information concerning cases reviewed during the year, trends and patterns concerning these cases, and the team’s recommendations to reduce the number of deaths and near deaths that occur in this state.”
If there is a pattern of kids and cases falling through the cracks, it’s essential to identify that pattern and its underlying causes, then make adjustments. However, while this bill could be helpful in the future, it is largely reactive — an assessment of what already happened — rather than proactive — a policy that would prevent such situations.
So while we appreciate that SB 474 is moving quickly through the Legislature, we wish lawmakers would consider HB 4491 — Raylee’s Law — which is a preventative approach to protecting children.
HB 4491 is named after Raylee Browning, who was 8 years old when she died in 2018 from sepsis caused by bacterial pneumonia. She was living with her biological father, her father’s girlfriend and the girlfriend’s sister, as well as the girlfriend’s three children.
Raylee was singled out for abuse. When Raylee was in public school, teachers contacted CPS multiple times because the little girl was constantly hungry and covered in bruises. To avoid further scrutiny, Raylee’s guardians pulled her out of school and “homeschooled” her. Except, instead of learning, she was forced to stand still or walk the hall for hours. An older child in the home reported Raylee was often punished with water deprivation, and the girl would sometimes secretly drink from the toilet.
Raylee’s Law would prevent parents or guardians from homeschooling a child if there is a pending abuse or neglect case or if the guardian or homeschool instructor has ever been convicted of domestic violence or child abuse/neglect. The idea is to not allow abusers to remove their victims from the public eye or the supervision of mandatory reporters like teachers.
HB 4491 has not been taken up by the House Education committee, and when Delegate Mike Pushkin attempted to have it amended into a micro school/learning pod bill, the committee rejected his amendment 5-15.
We cannot fathom why Raylee’s Law has garnered so much opposition. It does not paint all homeschooling families in a negative light, nor does it pose unnecessary restrictions on homeschooling. But it is, perhaps, the most proactive measure that can be taken to prevent another death like Raylee’s — or even another incident like the one in Sissonville.
If you would like House Education to take up Raylee’s Law, call 304-340-3265 or email Delegate Joe Ellington at joe.ellington@wvhouse.gov and Delegate Joe Statler at joe.statler@wvhouse.gov.
