Following an anonymous report made to Child Protective Services, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband were separated from their children late June for 24 hours. During this time CPS conducted forensic interviews with their two four-year-old twins, ultimately leading to the dismissal of the false allegation.
Buttigieg has since recalled the separation as “among the darkest hours of [his] life,” and commented at the apparently politically motivated false tip.
“I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this. They are four years old. Four. They do not know or care what a Democrat or a Republican is. They don’t know how politics works. They don’t know about hate.”
The false report itself originated from an anonymous secondary source. According to Buttigieg, “An anonymous caller had contacted CPS,” he wrote. “The caller said that he had spoken to a woman who claimed to have met me at a conference several years ago in Alabama, where she said I told her that I had committed unspeakable violent crimes, and the caller believed my children were still at risk.” Buttigieg denied having ever been to the city in Alabama where this event was said to have occurred.
The Michigan Attorney General’s Office has opened an investigation into the identity of the anonymous caller behind the false allegation. Director of the Office of Public Information and Education Kimberly Bush has stated that under Michigan law, a false claim of child abuse is a “potential felony violation.”
Buttigieg and his husband intend to press charges following the results of the investigation, “If there is any way to press civil or criminal charges over this, we will.” Director Bush commented, “Child abuse is a heinous offense and must be taken seriously; however, common sense would have shown that this targeted report plainly lacked credibility on its face. Before children are separated from their families, due diligence should be exercised to ensure some nexus exists between the source and the family, or that the complaint comes from a reputable, reliable or verifiable source.
“We have requested the Michigan State Police turn over all evidence at the completion of their investigation and will zealously investigate all leads, policies and procedures that allowed for such a flagrant violation of the Buttigiegs’ privacy.”
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