Reunification Expert Witnesses

Newport Beach, California

Social Work, Child Abuse - Child protective services, public child welfare, foster care, child abuse & neglect, nonminor dependents, emergency removals, dependency court, CPS standards of care, CPS policies & practices, civil rights, CPS investigations, mandated reporting, reasonable services, reunification, .26 hearings, Placement

Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 25+ years of diverse work experience including in the public sector, private sector, non-profit, academia, and military. A former Child Protective Services (CPS) social worker & supervisor of 15 years with insider knowledge about child welfare. Hands-on experience with hundreds of child welfare-involved families and children in all phases of a child dependency case. Supervised, trained, and taught CPS social workers, interns, and Master of Social Work students. CA License #24899, AZ License #22844. Specialized areas of knowledge include: Certificates of Merits Emergency Child Removals, warrants Warrantless removals, exigent circumstances, imminent risk Child Protective Services policies, practices, and procedures Child abuse and neglect Foster care, out of home care, congregate care Case Plans: Reunification, family maintenance and transitional living plans Standards of care § 1983 Civil rights, Monell Liability AB12/Non-Minor dependents Struct...

San Diego, California

Mental Health, Child Abuse - Children's Mental Health, Bullying, Child Depression/ Anxiety, Foster Care, CPS Investigations, Child Protective Services, Childhood Trauma, Family Violence, Family Based Treatment, Behavioral Health, Social Work, Pediatric Mental Health, Reunification, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Early Childhood Development

Ashley Tapia is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in California and Texas specializing in child and family mental health. Ms. Tapia earned her Master of Social Work in 2019 from California State University, Long Beach. She has four years of experience working as a Protective Services Worker with Child Welfare Services in both Orange County and San Diego County. In this role, she conducted child abuse and neglect investigations, assessed child safety and risk, and worked closely with families involved in the dependency court system. She also provided reunification services, collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to support family stability and promote safe parent–child relationships. Since 2022, Ms. Tapia has provided psychotherapy services in children’s mental health in both inpatient and outpatient settings, serving as a clinician and program manager. In these roles, she has delivered intensive individual, group, and family psychotherapy to children and adolescents betw...

Centennial, Colorado

Child Abuse, Social Work - child custody, child development, child abuse, neglect, Family separation, Trauma, Best interest, Mental health, Reasonable efforts, Forensic social work, Removal, Foster care, Reunification, Adoption, Attachment, Termination of parental rights, Kinship care, Social work, child protective services, CPS

Jessica Duesler is a Board Certified Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Colorado, Utah, Texas, and Florida with nearly 20 years of experience. Holding certifications in Forensic Social Work and Multicultural and International Social Work Practice, other specialized expertise includes Adoption Trauma, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Complex Trauma, the Harm of Removal, TPR, and Forensic Evaluations. Jessica's primary focus of work is centered around dependent and neglected children and domestic relations matters. She has also worked on juvenile delinquency and guardianship cases. Jessica's scope of work routinely involves legal advocacy, conducting mental health evaluations, child-focused trauma assessments, Parent-Child Interactional Evaluations, facilitating therapeutic out-of-home placement transitions, and serving as an expert witness throughout the country. Jessica is a certified Child & Family Investigator and Parental Responsibilities Evaluator. Jessica’s exp...

Florida

Child Abuse, Social Work - child custody, child development, child abuse, neglect, Family separation, Trauma, Best interest, Mental health, Reasonable efforts, Forensic social work, Removal, Foster care, Reunification, Adoption, Attachment, Termination of parental rights, Kinship care, Social work, child protective services, CPS

Jessica Duesler is a Board Certified Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Colorado, Utah, Texas, and Florida with nearly 20 years of experience. Holding certifications in Forensic Social Work and Multicultural and International Social Work Practice, other specialized expertise includes Adoption Trauma, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Complex Trauma, the Harm of Removal, TPR, and Forensic Evaluations. Jessica's primary focus of work is centered around dependent and neglected children and domestic relations matters. She has also worked on juvenile delinquency and guardianship cases. Jessica's scope of work routinely involves legal advocacy, conducting mental health evaluations, child-focused trauma assessments, Parent-Child Interactional Evaluations, facilitating therapeutic out-of-home placement transitions, and serving as an expert witness throughout the country. Jessica is a certified Child & Family Investigator and Parental Responsibilities Evaluator. Jessica’s exp...

Boca Raton, Florida

Psychology, Forensic Psychology - Family Law, Mitigating Circumstances, Personal Injury, Trauma, Stress, Psychopatology, Psychotherapy, Marital Therapy, Child Custody, Parenting Plans, Reunification, Psychological Disabilities, Forensic Evaluation, Social Investigation, Emotional Sequelae Injuries

For over 40 years, Dr. Silverman has provided psychological services to adults, families, adolescents and children. His specialties include forensic evaluations, social investigations, individual psychotherapy, family therapy, couples therapy, and psychological assessments. For more information, see Dr. Silverman’s Curriculum Vitae for a list of his professional experiences. -Board Certified Clinical Psychologist -Fellow of the Academy of Clinical Psychology -Fellow of the American Psychological Association -Lifetime Achievement Award Presented by the Florida Psychological Association

Killeen, Texas

Psychology, Document Examination - Child abused, Home study, Trauma informed, Substance abuse, Guardianship, Addiction, Reunification, Child protective services, Co-parenting, Domestic violence, Meditation, BIPP trained, Forensically trained, Assessments, Counseling, Licensed, Family therapy, Court experience, Custody evaluation, Parental rights

Licensed in Texas as a Professional Counselor and Chemical Dependency Counselor with over 10 years of experience, training focused on forensic analysis of psychological data, contracted for 4+ years as a psychotherapist with the Department of Family Protective Services (DFPS) serving over 300 clients. I have testified in family law matters, DFPS-case matters, criminal court, and civil lawsuits. Experienced with collaborative efforts that include law enforcement, court administration, law firms, family, counseling professionals, and mediation efforts. Specific related experience: home studies, custody evaluations, reunification, counseling, coparenting, counseling, family, counseling, substance-abuse counseling, trauma informed counseling, department of family, protective services, and child, protective services cases, advocacy, document review, masters level assessments, such as ACES, AAPI 2.5, NCCS, SASSI and more. Our office has a collaborative team with complementary professio...

Texas

Child Abuse, Social Work - child custody, child development, child abuse, neglect, Family separation, Trauma, Best interest, Mental health, Reasonable efforts, Forensic social work, Removal, Foster care, Reunification, Adoption, Attachment, Termination of parental rights, Kinship care, Social work, child protective services, CPS

Jessica Duesler is a Board Certified Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Colorado, Utah, Texas, and Florida with nearly 20 years of experience. Holding certifications in Forensic Social Work and Multicultural and International Social Work Practice, other specialized expertise includes Adoption Trauma, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Complex Trauma, the Harm of Removal, TPR, and Forensic Evaluations. Jessica's primary focus of work is centered around dependent and neglected children and domestic relations matters. She has also worked on juvenile delinquency and guardianship cases. Jessica's scope of work routinely involves legal advocacy, conducting mental health evaluations, child-focused trauma assessments, Parent-Child Interactional Evaluations, facilitating therapeutic out-of-home placement transitions, and serving as an expert witness throughout the country. Jessica is a certified Child & Family Investigator and Parental Responsibilities Evaluator. Jessica’s exp...