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.
Honored to see my book on the shelves of the prestigious Copley Sq. main Boston Public Library—an institution I admired as a law student and just steps from my first legal job. The more eyes on the injustices in Massachusetts’ child welfare system, the better. Thank you BPL!
How many homicides of DCF-involved children will it take before Massachusetts leaders act? After a decade of deaths, we now wait for the next child fatality. In "A Cruel Injustice," I warned that without reform, more children would die. Three weeks after the book's release,
It will be interesting to hear the arguments before the US Supreme Court today at 10.00 AM as the justices weigh states' power to set sex-based rules in school sports.
https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/live.aspx
True crime and law podcasts are powerful voices. In 2026, I hope they shine a light on the murder trials of the parents of "Mimi" Torres Garcia, A’zella Ortiz, and Rebekah Baptiste—children failed by the very systems meant to protect them. Their voices deserve to be heard.
