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Arizona DCS director defends hotline screening and safety model as survivors and attorneys press for accountability
Summary
Arizona Department of Child Safety director described hotline volume, screening criteria, training and safety thresholds; survivors and lawyers told the committee DCS and family courts have missed warning signs in high‑profile cases and urged audits, oversight and reforms.
Catherine Ptak, director of the Arizona Department of Child Safety, told a joint legislative ad hoc committee that DCS receives about 160,000 hotline calls a year and that roughly half of those reports meet statutory criteria for abuse or neglect. "We receive about 160,000 calls every year to our hotline," Ptak said, adding that about half do not meet the statutory threshold for an investigation and that the department investigates between roughly 2,000 and 4,000 cases a month.
Ptak described the agency’s safety‑decision model, distinguishing "present danger" (immediate, observable threats requiring removal) from "impending danger"…
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