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ACS LAWYERS, LAUREN FRIEDMAN, ABBE KALNICK AND MADELYNE MOSTILLER MAKE FUN OF PARENTS IN COURT AND TAKE PICTURES OF THEM. THIS IS A DISGRACE



Lawyers for Child Welfare and Legal Aid Under Scrutiny for Facebook Posts

By NIKITA STEWART





David Hansell, left, the commissioner of New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services, said he was “appalled” at the social media posts that mocked people in Family Court.Todd Heisler/The New York Times 

The Facebook posts were crass and left no doubt the authors did not approve of the attire that some people wore to Family Court in Queens.
“Bra tops n butt cheeks! Somebody come look at this!!” the caption read above a photo of a young woman in a pink short set that had pink sheer draping on either side as if to make a skirt.
“From the back! I took it for you!” read the caption of another photo of the same woman that was taken from behind. A grateful commenter responded, “Good work!!!!”
The disparaging banter was the kind of back-and-forth seen on social media and celebrity gossip sites, but it was apparently an exchange among three lawyers of the Administration for Children’s Services, the city’s child welfare agency, and one from the Legal Aid Society, which represents many children and parents in court proceedings. It was unclear whether the people ridiculed in the Facebook posts were involved in the lawyers’ cases, but David Hansell, the commissioner of A.C.S., said that whoever the people were, the conduct of lawyers was unacceptable.
“I’m appalled as a commissioner of A.C.S. because to me it’s completely inconsistent with our agency culture and expectations and our expectation that we treat every family humanely and decently,” Mr. Hansell said in an interview last week.
On Tuesday, the child welfare agency served three of its lawyers with disciplinary charges of misconduct and two of them were removed from supervisory roles while the agency continues to investigate, said Aja Worthy-Davis, a spokeswoman for the agency, in an emailed statement that did not include details of the charges. “Our expectation is that employees show respect to the families we work with,” she said.
FIGHTACS.COM
State law also prohibits taking photographs inside a courthouse, including hallways, without permission of the chief administrator of courts. The photos, including one of an obese woman with an emoji superimposed over her face, appeared to have been taken surreptitiously.

QUEENSDOMESTICVIOLENCEATTORNEY.COM


A person briefed on the charges filed against the three A.C.S. lawyers identified them as Lauren Friedman, Abbe Kalnick and Madelyne Mostiller. A person familiar with the inquiry by Legal Aid said the lawyer under review is Tara Famularo. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity because the inquiries are ongoing and the matters are not public.
BROOKLYNACSATTORNEY.COM
Ms. Friedman, a supervising lawyer, did not respond to a request for comment sent to her work email. Ms. Kalnick, also a supervising lawyer, referred questions to the agency’s press office. “I am sorry but A.C.S. policy does not allow me to speak to you,” she wrote in an email. Ms. Mostiller said in a statement, “Unfortunately, due to my employment, I am not able to comment on this.”
Ms. Famularo of Legal Aid could not be reached for comment but the legal services agency issued a statement on Monday that it had taken appropriate action. Patricia Bath, a spokeswoman, said the Legal Aid would not not disclose what action was taken.
The social media photo discussion comes at a time when the child welfare agency has been under scrutiny for how it treats parents and how it protects children.

Last year, two toddlers previously known to the agency were killed in separate incidents that drew public outrage. The state ordered the city to install an independent monitor, and Gladys Carrión, the commissioner of the child welfare agency, announced her resignation in December.
Mr. Hansell was appointed in March to take over the agency. In the interview on Friday, Mr. Hansell said the child welfare agency would remind employees that no parents should be humiliated. “We are certainly going to reiterate to all of our family court legal services attorneys and staff what our expectations and appropriate standards of conduct are,” he said.



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