Op-Eds
Carol Erskine
May 25, 2026
The Justice File is a platform for truth, accountability, and reform—focused on how the law affects vulnerable children. Founded by former Massachusetts Juvenile Court Judge Carol Erskine, a Top Ten Massachusetts lawyer and author of A Cruel Injustice, the site features analysis, trial commentary, and investigative reporting on child welfare, constitutional rights, and domestic violence. Drawing on 21 years on the bench, Judge Erskine exposes systemic failures and calls for justice through articles, media appearances, and legal commentary.
Sweet Harmony Montgomery should still be alive. Instead, her tragic death has left her half-brother Jamison—now adopted by two loving dads—grieving the sister he adored. Unaware of the public outrage surrounding her case, Jamison simply says, “I wish she wouldn’t have died.” When a Massachusetts court gave custody of Harmony to her violent father in New Hampshire, her fate was sealed. Even in death, officials and lawyers have worked to silence her story to protect their own failures.
Take 4.43 minutes to watch this and ask yourselves why Senator Spilka and Rep. Ray Mariano are killing the Harmony Commission Bill in Mass. before the legislative year ends in 2 weeks. Since launching my book with this video almost 2 years ago, an 8th DCF-involved child has died
The Lindsay Clancy trial starts in ten days. My lens is always the child-protection lens. If providers believed she was suffering from a serious and deteriorating psychiatric condition, what safety planning for the children was recommended by them especially as Patrick Clancy
Having presided over thousands of child abuse cases as a Massachusetts juvenile court judge until 2023, I can tell you that the horrific Ohio case is not just a story of horrendous abuse. It is a story of isolation. Child abusers isolate children from the outside world. That's
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
