Opinion: NYC Must Act Now to Safeguard Children When Their Parent Is Arrested

On Aug. 7, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers conducted workday raids across Mississippi and arrested nearly 700 people, many of whom had children at school. At the end of the first day of the school year, educators and volunteers had to devise emergency plans to provide food and shelter, emotional support, and age-appropriate explanations to confused and terrified children. The national uproar to these raids cast a bright light on an issue that stretches well beyond immigration: the practice of arresting parents without adequate regard for the well-being of their children.

Last Wednesday, the same day that ICE agents swept through Mississippi, Jazmine Headley filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in NYC that highlights the trauma and harm of separating parents and children. In December, when Ms. Headley was arrested for sitting on the floor of a Human Resources Administration office, her 1-year-old son was ripped from her arms, and she was forced to spend two days in Rikers Island. The video of her chaotic arrest is shocking not only because of the circumstances that led to it, but for the obvious trauma that was inflicted on mother and son.

The overlapping elements of these stories—these lives—cannot be ignored. We are horrified by practices and policies that show little concern for child and family well-being. The parent-child relationship is urgently and critically important—we have only to think of our own children and our own childhoods. The American Academy of Pediatrics warns against separating children and parents, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention includes parent-child separation among its Adverse Childhood Experiences that can have negative consequences for health and well-being into adulthood.

Fortunately, there are well-developed solutions for exactly these situations. In 2014, the International Association of Chiefs of Police issued a model protocol for safeguarding children at the time of arrest. Their protocol includes measures—when possible—not to use force or handcuff a parent in front of a child; it allows parents to talk with their children, and make arrangements for their care before being removed by the arresting officer. It also advises officers to ask people who are being arrested if there are children or other dependents who will be affected—or left vulnerable—by their arrest. It recommends pre-arrest planning, including executing warrants when children are least likely to be present and making plans to minimize their exposure to violence and trauma if they are there. It includes data collection to better understand the magnitude of this issue and to track implementation of the protocol. Several cities such as San Francisco and Albany have adapted and successfully implemented this model protocol.

Read the full op-ed by Osborne President and CEO Liz Gaynes, and Council member Daniel Dromm here.