"Children in a State of Neglect,"

With patience and persistence, Teichroeb and Smith pierce the thicket of a state bureaucracy to ensure a basic element of public policy is in place — accurate information about children’s death and abuse cases. They hit a larger issue of credibility: If the state agency charged to track these events can’t keep good numbers, how can it help to protect the neglected and abused? And who is watching this toothless watchdog?