A special grand jury investigation into child protective workers who neglected reports of abuse in the case of Thomas Valva could not recommend any criminal charges. Eight-year-old Valva froze to death in his father’s Suffolk County home in 2020.
At a news conference announcing the grand jury's findings, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney blamed New York’s confidentiality laws. CPS workers labeled almost a dozen reports of child abuse “unfounded,” but the law prevented the grand jury — and prosecutors — from finding out why, according to Tierney.
“Anyone objectively looking at these facts will have no doubt that had CPS done its job, Thomas Valva would still be alive today," Tierney said.
He called for changes to the confidentiality laws to make unfounded child abuse reports available for investigations, a recommendation mirrored in the grand jury's report which notes the laws are intended to protect the right to privacy but in Valva's case, shielded CPS workers from criminal investigation.
“We have no idea why Suffolk County CPS deemed those reports unfounded and we have no idea what, if any, investigative steps they took,” Tierney said.
In the two years before Valva died of hypothermia, his teachers and other mandated reporters notified Suffolk County CPS about concerns over Valva's hygiene, clothing and behavior such as eating food from garbage cans.
Thomas Valva’s father was convicted of second-degree murder charges in 2022. The existence of the multiple CPS reports was uncovered during his trial.
