Court Opinion

ID: 9569241
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 20:11:42.788422+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:50:55.834757
License: Public Domain

Dore, J.
(dissenting) — The North American Council on Adoptable Children (hereinafter NACAC) is a nonprofit organization which focuses on the right of all children to a permanent and loving home. The council concentrates its efforts on children with special needs, children, who because of physical or mental handicaps or of mixed or minority race, are hard to place with permanent families. The NACAC has had success in placing these children and promoting legislative reform in a number of states, to the benefit of these children and society at large. In fact, the respondents in this case have never contested the expertise, integrity or unique qualifications of the NACAC to promote the rights of these hard to place children located within Pierce and Thurston Counties.
The NACAC has asserted a number of facts which indicate that DSHS and a number of other governmental agen*444cies have contributed to the problems associated with finding homes for these children who have special needs. The NACAC has alleged that these government bodies have failed to implement state and federal laws to protect the children, they have failed to train and staff foster care and adoptive workers, and most critically they have failed to recruit potential adoptive parents for these special needs children. The NACAC, if it were appointed guardian ad litem to protect these children, would attempt to remedy these deficiencies. I believe it should be allowed to make this valiant effort.
I recognize the majority's concerns that confidentiality problems would arise in this situation. I also am aware that the NACAC has not specified individual children who are suffering from governmental discrimination. Nevertheless, without reviewing the children's files, the NACAC cannot determine what needs to be done, even though everyone is well aware that a problem exists.
I believe an appropriate order could be entered which would protect the confidentiality of the children and their biological parents, while still allowing the NACAC to proceed with its investigation. For example, the names of the children could be deleted, while the files of these children are reviewed. In this way, the NACAC could review the files of the children without violating any confidentiality concerns. Such an order would be in everyone's best interests, as perhaps it would result in a few lonely, handicapped and/or minority children's being placed in a loving family environment.