Findings from a Court Study of Care Proceedings Involving Parents with Intellectual Disabilities

Abstract

Abstract This report summarizes the findings of a study of court files relating to care proceedings involving parents with an intellectual disability. The authors found that 15.3% of all children subject to care applications in the year 2000 in the courts studied had at least one parent with an intellectual disability. They also found that these children were less likely to be returned home and more likely to be freed for adoption than the children of any other group of parents. The data raise questions about the discriminatory treatment of parents with an intellectual disability in the child protection process.