The child welfare system, more accurately referred to as the family policing system, employs extensive surveillance that disproportionately targets marginalized families and subjects them to relentless oversight. Scholars observe that this ongoing surveillance obstructs effective parenting, exacerbates existing injustices, and contradicts the system’s stated protective purpose. Instead of safeguarding families, surveillance becomes a tool to control those it should assist, particularly the already vulnerable. This Article extends the analysis of the family policing system’s surveillance practices to encompass parents with disabilities and their children, revealing the unique consequences of continuous observation. The system’s ableism amplifies scrutiny of disabled parents, disregarding their disability- related needs and causing harm under the guise of protection. This persistent surveillance culminates in heightened systemic harm, trapping families in an inescapable cycle of perpetual scrutiny.

This Article provides a nuanced and novel analysis of the family policing system and its extensive surveillance targeted at disabled parents and their children. It begins by detailing the legal framework that supports the surveillance apparatus, investigating constitutional protections, federal and state statutes, and disability rights laws. The exploration then turns to the intricate network of surveillance mechanisms that ensnare disabled parents and their families. This pervasive scrutiny includes mandated reporting, family policing system investigations, “service” plans, child maltreatment registries, and digital surveillance tools. Subsequently, this Article uncovers the harms arising from such surveillance, both directly and within the broader context of societal injustice. Concluding with a call to action, this Article proposes normative legal and policy solutions to challenge the system’s surveillance. These measures include revising the definition of neglect, constraining the system’s scope of surveillance, establishing rights akin to Miranda warnings, revoking mandated reporting laws, ensuring prompt access to legal representation, and reimagining support systems for families. These solutions must be integrated into broader initiatives aimed at abolishing the family policing system entirely, freeing marginalized families from the cycle of being pathologized, controlled, and punished. Ultimately, the only path to liberating disabled parents and their children from perpetual scrutiny is through the complete dismantling of the family policing system, ensuring they are no longer under the watchful eye of all.