About This Blog
Youth-serving organizations take on a serious responsibility when they open their doors to children and other vulnerable people. Fulfilling that responsibility well requires two things working together: a safety culture strong enough to prevent harm, and independent investigations credible enough to find the truth when someone alleges mistreatment.
Youth Services Law covers both. Posts examine the legal landscape, practical decisions, and organizational choices that shape how schools, camps, churches, colleges, faith-based groups, and community organizations protect the people in their care and respond when something goes wrong. The goal is the same in every post: precise, useful guidance for child protection and investigations.
About the Author
Featured Post
September 8, 2026
Every plaintiff's attorney in a youth sexual abuse case asks the same question: did the organization follow accepted safety practices? Many organizations assume the answer required two adults present at every activity. That assumption does not hold up under scrutiny. No universal legal standard...
Read the full post ›
A recent news story from Pennsylvania offers an object lesson about what happens when a youth organization forgets that abuse allegations are subject to mandated reporting laws rather than the usual disciplinary procedures. A vice-principal in Altoona has pleaded no contest to recklessly endangering another person and failure to report or refer suspected abuse. The…
You’ve read through every page of the independent report and appreciate that the investigator identified clear paths forward. But here’s the next difficult question for you: How do you ensure these recommendations don’t simply become another binder on the shelf? In my previous post, I emphasized that recommendations from an independent investigator must become an…
Commissioning an independent investigation is a difficult decision for a youth organization, and it is only the beginning of the process. What happens after the report lands on your desk — how you read it, who sees it, what you do with it, and how you support everyone affected — will define whether your organization…
You hired an independent investigator to find the truth. But knowing what “the truth” requires — and what a thorough search for it actually looks like — is your responsibility. Here’s how to hold your investigators accountable for the work that protects your youth. When an allegation surfaces in a youth-serving organization, most administrators do…
One type of independent investigation that many organizations now have to face are allegations of sexual abuse or sexual misconduct, whether recent or long-ago. Entering this territory requires both compassion and unflinching objectivity. Understanding how these values work together—rather than against each other—is essential to ensuring that the investigations you commission both protect vulnerable people…
One particularly When your organization engages independent investigators following allegations of sexual abuse or sexual misconduct, you’re entering territory that requires both compassion and unflinching objectivity. Understanding how these values work together—rather than against each other—is essential to ensuring that the investigations you commission both protect vulnerable people and seek truth. Let’s walk through how…
When serious allegations surface and you want investigators with experience, it’s common to turn to attorneys and former law enforcement. As a former prosecutor and currenty attorney in private practice, I obviously think that instinct is a good one. But you need to consider the distinct strengths and limitations that each profession brings to investigations….
Government entities implementing child protection measures often focus solely on effectiveness—does this policy make children safer? But a recent Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals decision reminds us that even well-intentioned safety measures must respect constitutional boundaries. The recent ruling in Sanderson v. Hanaway, following the logic of the 11th Circuit in 2022 in McClendon v. Long,…
The decision to bring in an external investigator represents a turning point for your organization. You’re facing allegations of misconduct that require more than good intentions—they require expertise, objectivity, and an investigative process everyone can trust. Finding the right investigator isn’t just about checking credentials or comparing hourly rates. It’s about ensuring the integrity of…
Saturday is International Mentoring Day—a day dedicated to celebrating the transformative power of mentoring relationships in young people’s lives. It’s also an important opportunity to address a question that keeps many parents, educators, and youth-serving organizations awake at night: How do we distinguish between healthy mentoring and the deceptive process of sexual grooming? The stakes…