The assault occurred exactly two years after a client stabbed a Camden case worker more than 20 times.
TRENTON -- A child welfare case worker was attacked inside her Newark office building by three clients on Thursday and suffered multiple injuries that sent her to the hospital, a state spokeswoman confirmed Friday.
The state Human Services Police Department arrested Tara Lewis, 32, of East Orange, Disiree Roberts, 21, of Newark and a 16-year-old girl from East Orange with assault, Human Services spokeswoman Nicole Brossoie said.
Bail for Lewis and Roberts was set at $10,000, according to Essex County jail records. They are currently being held at the Essex County Correctional Facility.
The unidentified employee was attacked without provocation and suffered a concussion and other injuries, said Cathy Danatos of the Communications Workers of America, the union that represents employees of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency. The caseworker was treated and released from an unidentified local hospital, she said.
"The three clients viciously and repeatedly beat the caseworker, beating and kicking the worker in the head and body with feet and fists," Danatos said.
Leida Arce, spokeswoman for the Department of Children and Families, which oversees the child protection division, also confirmed basic information about the assault.
"Initial reports indicate the assault on one of our colleagues involved three clients, that no weapons were involved, and that one of our office guards intervened with others to stop the attack," Arce said. "Our colleague was taken to a local hospital where she was treated and released. She is now home, and we pray for a quick recovery."
The attack occurred exactly two years after a client stabbed a child welfare case worker more than 20 times inside her office building.
That employee Leah Coleman, survived and went on to advocate for legislation that would require the Christie administration to install police officers in buildings that house Division of Child Protection and Permanency employees.
Stabbed N.J. child welfare worker speaks out
Days before Coleman's attack, top Human Services relocated officers scattered across the state to the three state psychiatric hospitals, Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in Parsippany, Trenton Psychiatric Hospital in Ewing and Trenton and Ancora Psychiatric Hospital in Winslow.
Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the bill to install police officers where child welfare workers have offices, known as "Leah's Law."
Following Coleman's attack, Children and Families Commissioner Allison Blake assigned armed security guards to each child welfare office.
Danatos said the latest attack emphasized the continued need to return Human Services police officers to child welfare office buildings.
Essex County Sheriff's Officers, Newark Police officers and private security officers all responded to the call for help, followed by Human Service Police, which is leading the investigation, the state spokeswomen and union official said.
Human Services police "who are out-posted in Parsippany, arrived quickly," Danatos said. "Workers continue to believe if the Human Service Police were onsite while such incidents occur, workers would not be as injured as they have been."
"There have been other attacks between Leah and now, none that I am aware of as serious as these two, though," she added. "Workers continue to have a most difficult and dangerous job , especially in our current culture, and certainly are undervalued with little public recognition of the good that they do and dangerous conditions they confront daily."
Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Anthony Joana (Photo: Dept. of Public Safety) 
