Nonsense, says Ragaglia. She rolls her eyes at the mention of Pattis. She notes that DCF took Nazareth's older sister in 1997 because she had 17 unexplained rib fractures from three separate occasions. The Abrics deny abusing their daughter. They say she was with one other person each of the three times her ribs were broken.
Criminal charges are pending.
State law allows DCF to take kids without a court order for up to 96 hours. Then they have to persuade a judge that state custody is justified. Ninety-nine percent of the time, the judge grants temporary custody, a department spokesman says. That proves, Ragaglia argues, that DCF is making the right calls. They don't carry weapons, they don't have arrest powers and they can't enter people's homes on their own authority.