The drowning death of Phoebe Jonchuck, who allegedly was thrown into Tampa Bay by her mentally ill father, caused Florida’s child advocates and attorneys who fight for abused children, as well as the Florida Department of Children and Families itself, to explore what went wrong. Now, legislators want answers, too.... View Article
Any child advocate or child abuse attorney who fights to protect children from child abuse or other harm knows the confluence of domestic violence, substance abuse and mental illness create a toxic cocktail that can place children in harm’s way. Little Phoebe Jonchuck, 5, reportedly was surrounded by all three.... View Article
After reading news accounts of the report issued this week by the Department of Children and Families in the case of Phoebe Jonchuck, the 5-year-old girl killed when her father allegedly tossed her into Tampa Bay, Florida child abuse attorneys and lawyers who represent at-risk children believe ample blame and... View Article
This document, by Daniel Pollack, a professor at Yeshiva University, School of Social Work, New York City, and a frequent expert witness in child abuse and foster care abuse cases, explores the role of videotaping investigative interviews with children suspected of having been sexually abused. The U.S. Supreme Court has not... View Article
Every Florida child advocate and child abuse lawyer is watching the case of John Jonchuck, the man accused of tossing his daughter over a bridge into Tampa Bay. The latest news revealed that the Florida child abuse hotline created to protect at-risk children from reported abuse ignored at least two... View Article
The death of Nubia Barahona ranked as among the most horrific confluence of child abuse, unspeakable suffering and deadly outcomes on two adopted children ever witnessed by Miami child advocate lawyers and South Florida foster child abuse attorneys. Her sad story surfaced again recently as Jorge and Carmen Barahona were... View Article
Pioneering children’s rights attorney and child physical abuse and sexual abuse lawyer Howard Talenfeld was profiled recently for his being named a Champion for Children by Florida’s Children First, the state’s premier children’s advocacy organization. Talenfeld was lauded for his career spent protecting for the rights of children abused, injured... View Article
When Mike Carroll, secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families, told panel committees from the Florida House and Senate in the wake of Phoebe Jonchuck’s death at the foot of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge earlier this month that a “sad irony” had also occurred, it highlighted a stark... View Article
Child advocates and children’s rights attorneys who fight to prevent child abuse and death of Florida’s at-risk children are concerned about the evolving case of Phoebe Jonchuck. During a court hearing, her father, Jon Jonchuck, had hoped his case would be “in God’s hands” but a court-appointed attorney now... View Article
To those who advocate for greater protections for any child suffering physical abuse or threatened with harm, the episode this week when a young girl was tossed to her death off a Tampa Bay bridge raises questions and concerns. In the aftermath of the death of 5-year-old Phoebe Jonchuck, reportedly... View Article