Florida’s latest assault on transparency: sealing names of foster parents

When detectives asked Michael Beer’s young daughter to demonstrate how Beer handled the toddler state child welfare authorities placed in his care, the girl took a stuffed animal by the arm and hurled it to the floor.

The teddy bear survived. Two-year-old Trystan Eli Frank Adams, the unfortunate foster child, did not. Beer’s career as a foster parent ended when Trystan succumbed to “severe lacerations” to his liver, along with bruising to his kidney, gallbladder, pancreas and rib cage.

More >> Florida’s latest assault on transparency: sealing names of foster parents 

'My birth mother deserves an apology': Forced to give her up for adoption, Liz Wilde's mum Valerie was told it would spell the end of her status as a 'fallen woman'

Forced to give her up for adoption, Liz Wilde’s mother Valerie was told it would spell the end of her troubles as a ‘fallen woman’. But decades later, Liz would discover it was just the beginning of a lifetime of heartbreak

More >> 'My birth mother deserves an apology': Forced to give her up for adoption, Liz Wilde's mum Valerie was told it would spell the end of her status as a 'fallen woman'

Minnesota woman convicted of fracturing infant foster son's leg

A Champlin, Minnesota woman will be sentenced next month on a third-degree assault conviction for injuring her infant foster son.

A jury found 40-year-old Melissa Sondrol guilty of fracturing the femur of the seven-week-old boy in October of 2017. Sondrol testified that she did not mistreat the boy and claimed he must have had weak bones. Her claim was supported by an Illinois-based orthopedic surgeon.

More >> Minnesota woman convicted of fracturing infant foster son's leg

Arizona police department facing criticism for kicking in door to bring sick boy to hospital

Officers wielding pistols and ballistic shields kicked in the door of a suburban Phoenix home in the middle of the night to bring a sick 2-year-old boy to a hospital after his mother refused a doctor's advice to get him to an emergency room for what was thought to be a potentially life-threatening illness.

The doctor called child-welfare authorities on Feb. 25 after the mother didn't show up at the agreed-upon emergency room, leading police in Chandler to knock on their family's door to check on the condition of the boy, who earlier in the day had a fever of 105°F (41°C) and was suspected to have meningitis.

More >> Arizona police department facing criticism for kicking in door to bring sick boy to hospital

Youth often become homeless just after leaving juvenile detention. Can Washington state really stop it?

By the age of 17, David Vanwetter had been in and out of detention perhaps a dozen times.

Often homeless when he went in, he would be right back on the streets when he got out.

More >> Youth often become homeless just after leaving juvenile detention. Can Washington state really stop it?

Parents separated from their kids returned to the U.S. to be reunited. They’ve been detained for almost a month.

Earlier this month, 29 migrant parents from across Central America who were separated from their children last year by U.S. immigration officials returned to the U.S. border.

They asked to be allowed back into the United States to resume their asylum applications and to be reunited with their children, who remained in American foster homes, shelters or with relatives. After about 10 hours of waiting on March 2, the parents were escorted into Calexico, Calif., by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, as a group of immigration attorneys and advocates applauded.

More >> Parents separated from their kids returned to the U.S. to be reunited. They’ve been detained for almost a month.

Case worker, supervisor terminated by DCFS for 'lack of urgency' in Aniya Day-Garrett case

The case worker and her supervisor who were responsible for handling the case involving Aniya Day-Garrett, the 4-year-old girl who was killed by her mother and mother’s boyfriend, were terminated by the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services.

The system of failures that may have led to the death of Aniya included missed deadlines, poor guidance from supervisors and a lack of urgency to protect the little girl from her abusers, according to the termination letter provided by Cuyahoga County DCFS.

More >> Case worker, supervisor terminated by DCFS for 'lack of urgency' in Aniya Day-Garrett case

'Evil attracts evil': Judge gives mom life in murder of adopted teen daughter

A woman who plotted the rape, torture and murder of her own teenage daughter pleaded guilty on Friday and was sentenced to life in prison for a crime so barbaric that prosecutors and the judge strained for superlatives to describe it.

One day after her co-conspirator boyfriend was sentenced to death, Sara Packer, 44, appeared in a suburban Philadelphia courthouse and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, kidnapping, abuse of a corpse and 16 other offenses in the 2016 slaying of 14-year-old Grace Packer.

More >> 'Evil attracts evil': Judge gives mom life in murder of adopted teen daughter

Urbana foster dad sentenced on sex crimes involving young boys

A 63-year-old Urbana foster dad on Wednesday was sentenced to 13 years in prison for sex crimes involving three young boys.

Jeffery McClain was convicted earlier this month of gross sexual imposition and endangering children.

More >> Urbana foster dad sentenced on sex crimes involving young boys

Foster Care Worker Pleads Guilty to Child Endangerment

A foster care worker in Bradford County has pleaded guilty to child endangerment.

Tabitha Dunn of Monroeton was charged in December after a 17-year-old boy in the foster care system told police he was having a sexual relationship with Dunn.

More >> Foster Care Worker Pleads Guilty to Child Endangerment

Sex abuse case against former Galesburg foster parent continues

The prosecution of a former Galesburg foster parent moved a step forward Tuesday afternoon.

Dennis K. Donnelly, 70, Glendale, Arizona, made a court appearance Tuesday for his preliminary hearing before Circuit Associate Judge Patricia Walton. Public Defender Dan O’Brien represented Donnelly Tuesday, in place of Knox County Chief Public Defender Dave Hansen, while Assistant State’s Attorney Brian Kerr was present for the state.

More >> Sex abuse case against former Galesburg foster parent continues

40 ‘credible’ concerns raised to Tusla against foster carers

There were 40 substantiated child protection and welfare concerns made against foster carers last year, the Child and Family Agency has revealed.

Tusla said the figure, provided in response to a Freedom of Information request, were based on cases where there was "credible evidence, on the balance of probabilities, to support the allegation".

More >> 40 ‘credible’ concerns raised to Tusla against foster carers

Foster kids removed from juvenile jail that limited tampon access

Oregon child welfare officials are removing foster children from a Klamath Falls residential program located in a county juvenile jail, after lawyers and state lawmakers raised concerns that the girls did not have free access to tampons.

Girls recently were given access to three free tampons at a time, but only if they turned over their used hygiene products to staff.

More >> Foster kids removed from juvenile jail that limited tampon access

AZ lawmaker calls police raid to take sick Chandler child to hospital 'excessive'

After a SWAT team broke open a door to take an unvaccinated 2-year-old boy with a fever to the hospital, an Arizona lawmaker is calling for a review of police and child protective services procedures.

"I want to sit down with stakeholders about this," said state Rep. Kelly Townsend. "That was excessive. It's a scary thing."

More >> AZ lawmaker calls police raid to take sick Chandler child to hospital 'excessive'

A CPS investigator was dating a convicted felon. Then he was charged with murder

Manatee child protection services investigator Gwendolena Fernandez was supposed to be working on a Wednesday morning last December when detectives serving a search warrant found her at her boyfriend’s North Port home, just after arresting him on murder and other charges, according to an internal affairs report.

Fernandez was allowed to have a seat outside as detectives searched the home. Her cell phones, including one issued her by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, were seized and searched during that time.

More >> A CPS investigator was dating a convicted felon. Then he was charged with murder

9 young people overdosed last year while under DCF’s watch

Three youths under the watch of the state’s Department of Children and Families died of overdoses last year, and six others suffered nonfatal overdoses — the most since state officials declared the opioid epidemic a public health emergency five years ago.

The nine cases, disclosed in a recent state report, have set off alarms among child welfare advocates. While it’s unclear if it’s a grim, new trend or a tragic anomaly, they said the overdoses underline how much the drug crisis is still buffeting DCF, the agency charged with helping protect children from abuse and neglect.

More >> 9 young people overdosed last year while under DCF’s watch

Child sexually abused while in DSS care awarded $534,000

A boy who was sexually abused while in a group home run by the South Carolina Department of Social Services has been awarded $534,000 in damages.

A federal jury in the United States District Court in Spartanburg returned a verdict Friday in favor of the child.

More >> Child sexually abused while in DSS care awarded $534,000

When the state kicks down your door and takes your child over a fever

In February, Arizona police officers broke down the door of a private home with their guns drawn. They weren’t there to rescue a hostage. They were serving a court order against parents who declined to take their child to the hospital for a fever, and they left with three children now claimed by the state.


More >> When the state kicks down your door and takes your child over a fever

Man gets death for teen's rape, murder, dismemberment

A man who killed and dismembered his girlfriend's 14-year-old daughter as part of a rape-murder fantasy he shared with the teenager's mother was sentenced to death Thursday.

More >> Man gets death for teen's rape, murder, dismemberment

Lawyer: Child welfare workers had sex next to foster child at Dallas hotel

A lawyer for a child in Oregon's foster care system plans to sue the state after the lawyer says the child saw two state workers having sex in the hotel room where the child was staying.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the attorney further contends the state sent the child to a juvenile detention facility as punishment after the child reported the incident.

More >> Lawyer: Child welfare workers had sex next to foster child at Dallas hotel

Lawsuit: 10-year-old was drugged, sexually assaulted in US custody

A Guatemalan father is suing two nonprofits that house migrant children for the US government, alleging his 10-year-old son was forced to take psychotropic drugs and sexually assaulted while in custody.

The father and son, identified in the lawsuit as J.E.B. and F.C.B., allege that US officials forcibly separated them at the border in February 2018. From there, according to the lawsuit, F.C.B. was first placed in the custody of a migrant shelter run by Southwest Key in Arizona, then later transferred to the Shiloh Treatment Center in Manvel, Texas.

More >> Lawsuit: 10-year-old was drugged, sexually assaulted in US custody

Lawmakers urged to limit Maine child protection workers’ caseloads

State lawmakers are contemplating a bill that would limit the caseloads for state child protective workers, a shift aimed at closing cracks in a system that advocates say contributed to the deaths of two young girls in late 2017 and early 2018.

State Rep. Colleen Madigan, D-Waterville, told members of the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee on Monday that child protective workers overburdened with cases cannot fully protect Maine’s vulnerable children. She urged the committee to set standards for caseloads based on the recommendations of a national organization focused on child welfare.

More >> Lawmakers urged to limit Maine child protection workers’ caseloads

State hides from public more deaths of children on its watch as lawmakers plan reforms

Oregon child welfare officials concealed reviews into the deaths of two children on its watch, including one girl shot and killed in foster care, by claiming their deaths fell through a loophole in public reporting laws.

The Department of Human Services insisted in December that it had no obligation to tell the public about the 2017 deaths of Payshience “Tia” Adams or Colin Valencia, because case workers had concluded neither child died by neglect or abuse -- despite criminal charges of aggravated murder in both cases.

More >> State hides from public more deaths of children on its watch as lawmakers plan reforms

Unvaccinated children banned from public spaces amid measles outbreak in New York suburb

A New York county has banned unvaccinated children from all public spaces as the state battles its largest measles outbreak in decades.

Officials in Rockland County declared a countywide state of emergency Tuesday, announcing that the ban will begin at midnight and remain in place for 30 days or until unvaccinated minors receive the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. Officials said minors who are unvaccinated will not be permitted in public places, such as churches, schools and shopping centers, though outdoors spaces such as playgrounds are not included in the ban.

"We must not allow this outbreak to continue," County Executive Ed Day said during a news conference. "We will not sit idly by while children in our community are at risk."

More >> Unvaccinated children banned from public spaces amid measles outbreak in New York suburb

Oregon’s graduation rate for foster kids is 35 percent

Oregon teenagers who spent time in foster care were less than half as likely as their classmates in the class of 2017 to graduate on time.

The graduation rate for teenagers who spent any amount of their high school years in foster care was 35 percent, according to figures reported by the Oregon Department of Education at the end of last year.

More >> Oregon’s graduation rate for foster kids is 35 percent

DCFS’ failure to protect children is a travesty

How many more children have to die in the custody of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services before it becomes a crisis?

Nearly 100 children died in FY 2018 in cases involving DCFS, according to the Inspector General report submitted to the governor and Illinois General Assembly in January.

More >> DCFS’ failure to protect children is a travesty

Oshkosh foster home operators charged with child neglect return to court

The operators of a foster home charged with neglect for the way care was allegedly provided, made their initial court appearances Monday.

More >> Oshkosh foster home operators charged with child neglect return to court

A MOTHER GRAPPLES WITH AN ADOPTION THAT LED TO DEATHS

It’s been nearly a year since Jennifer Hart drove her family, including at least five of her six adopted children, off a cliff to their deaths on the rocky shores of Mendocino County, California.

But for Tammy Scheurich, the pain is still fresh. Scheurich, the biological mother of Markis, Hannah, and Abigail Hart, learned about their deaths in October, more than six months after it happened. “Those are my children,” she said by phone the day after she heard the news. “This was not supposed to happen.”

More >> A MOTHER GRAPPLES WITH AN ADOPTION THAT LED TO DEATHS

‘All She Wanted Was to Be a Mom’: Adoptive Parents Allegedly Murdered by 11-Year-Old

As police investigate a pair of murders in a tiny New Hampshire town, residents are coming to terms with the shocking nature of the crime: a child is accused of fatally shooting a couple one cloudy Friday morning inside their rural home.

The 911 call came around 7:30 a.m. on March 15. Cops arrived to the Eckert family’s farm and discovered Lizette, a 50-year-old mother of three, dead of a gunshot wound. Her husband James, 48, was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. He died later that evening.

More >> ‘All She Wanted Was to Be a Mom’: Adoptive Parents Allegedly Murdered by 11-Year-Old

State agency blasts San Jose foster care provider Unity Care for failures with high-risk youth

To celebrate its 25-year anniversary providing “safe, secure and positive living environments” to thousands of local foster children, San Jose-based Unity Care threw a sold-out gala last summer at Club Auto Sport featuring Oprah’s longtime boyfriend, Stedman Graham.

Within four months, the state of California — in a rare move — took action to revoke the licenses of Unity Care’s five San Jose foster homes that were part of a new program serving the highest-risk foster youths.

More >> State agency blasts San Jose foster care provider Unity Care for failures with high-risk youth

State agency blasts San Jose foster care provider Unity Care for failures with high-risk youth

To celebrate its 25-year anniversary providing “safe, secure and positive living environments” to thousands of local foster children, San Jose-based Unity Care threw a sold-out gala last summer at Club Auto Sport featuring Oprah’s longtime boyfriend, Stedman Graham.

Within four months, the state of California — in a rare move — took action to revoke the licenses of Unity Care’s five San Jose foster homes that were part of a new program serving the highest-risk foster youths.

More >> State agency blasts San Jose foster care provider Unity Care for failures with high-risk youth

Ozark foster mom indicted after child suffered second-degree burns

A foster mother from Christian County was indicted this month on felony child abuse charges after prosecutors say a child in her care suffered second-degree burns.

Shara L. Foster, 30, was arrested Monday on charges of child abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.

More >> Ozark foster mom indicted after child suffered second-degree burns

Texas focused more on fighting lawsuit than fixing foster care, child welfare advocates say

Major improvements to a foster care system that a federal judge has said fails Texas kids aren't likely to happen anytime soon, according to child advocates.

The state is fighting the judge's orders, they would cost tens of millions more per year and the Legislature is focused on school finance and property tax issues.

More >> Texas focused more on fighting lawsuit than fixing foster care, child welfare advocates say

Foster carers could receive an extra £200 a month for each child placement

The council also hopes increasing the number of in-house carers will cut its ballooning children’s services budget – which is currently facing a £5.7m shortfall

More >> Foster carers could receive an extra £200 a month for each child placement

Accused child molester severs his genitals in Santa Cruz County Jail, doctor reports

A former Live Oak foster parent, Girl Scouts troop leader and Scotts Valley Unified School District technology director accused of molesting children is competent to stand trial, a doctor reported.

The accused, Carl Benedict Guerin, 57, faces 16 felonies linked with lewd acts with children and attempts to dissuade a witness, according to court documents. A physician, upon court order, reviewed the defendant’s mental state and ruled out the need for medication and noted that the examination was spurred by the defendant’s decision to sever his testicles while in jail.

More >> Accused child molester severs his genitals in Santa Cruz County Jail, doctor reports

Child adoption agency in Osaka shut down over profit motivation

City authorities here decided not to grant a private online adoption agency a license on grounds it offered its services for profit and engaged in other unlawful activities.

The March 19 decision followed skepticism expressed by experts about the group's activities and is the first known case of a license being denied since the permit system was introduced a year ago.

More >> Child adoption agency in Osaka shut down over profit motivation

Foster parent arrested in undercover sex sting to remain in jail

New details have emerged in the case involving a foster parent who was arrested in an undercover sex sting. Reports say the foster child living in that home will not be removed.

According to the Albuquerque Journal, CYFD stated that Joshua Saavedra will no longer be living in the house. Saavedra is in jail where he is facing several charges.

More >> Foster parent arrested in undercover sex sting to remain in jail

Baby apprehended at birth dies in foster care

The parents of a four-month-old girl apprehended at birth appeared before media Tuesday to say Manitoba child-welfare authorities had informed them the baby had died in foster care.

The baby, born in November, had been spending one out of every three weeks with the parents at their home in Bloodvein First Nation, 210 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

More >> Baby apprehended at birth dies in foster care

Foster dad to 30 kids molested at least one of them — and maybe more, SC cops say

A South Carolina man who has been a foster parent to “roughly 30 children” was arrested Wednesday and charged with sexually abusing a foster child multiple times, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office said.

On Feb. 20, the sheriff’s office began investigating Darrell Girardeau after learning of allegations that he had “inappropriate physical contact ... with a child under the age of 16,” according to a news release.

More >> Foster dad to 30 kids molested at least one of them — and maybe more, SC cops say

Social workers ‘spying’ on families through Facebook

Social workers are risking breaking the law because they are using Facebook to spy on families and inform decisions on child custody, academics say.

A team led by researchers at the University of Birmingham carried out 15 months of field work observing child-protection teams at two unnamed local authorities.

More >> Social workers ‘spying’ on families through Facebook

Felony child abuse charges filed against Ozark foster mom

A child suffering burns from hot water in an Ozark home led a mother to face felony charges.

A Christian County grand jury charged Shana L. Foster, 30, with abuse or neglect of a child resulting in serious emotional or physical injury and first degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in serious physical injury, both class B felonies.

More >> Felony child abuse charges filed against Ozark foster mom

State investigated abuse claims at South Florida migrant shelter for children

Florida’s child-welfare agency has investigated six cases of alleged child sexual abuse at a federal migrant shelter in South Florida in less than a year, including allegations involving caregivers.

The data, obtained by The News Service of Florida as part of a public records request, outlines allegations at the Homestead temporary migrant children’s shelter just south of Miami. The facility was reopened by the federal government last March as part of the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” border enforcement policy, which swelled the number of migrant children being housed in facilities like the one in Homestead.

More >> State investigated abuse claims at South Florida migrant shelter for children

Mom charged in adopted daughter’s murder says she ‘wanted her to go away’

A mother charged in the death of her adopted 14-year-old daughter gave chilling testimony Wednesday in a Pennsylvania courtroom.

Sara Packer took the stand against Jacob Sullivan, 46, smirking as she told jurors that she hated her daughter, Grace, saying "Grace has become, for the lack of a better term, a non-entity. I wanted her to go away."

More >> Mom charged in adopted daughter’s murder says she ‘wanted her to go away’

DCS moves to cut off YouTube mom's $4,900 monthly adoption subsidy

The Department of Child Safety has suspended paying the adoption subsidy to a Maricopa mother who is accused of abusing and neglecting her seven children, and officials are seeking to end the monthly payments altogether.

Machelle Hobson receives state support for each of her seven adopted children, a total amount estimated to be as much as $4,900 a month. But since she was arrested last week, and her children placed in the foster system, the subsidy payments won't serve their intended purpose of supporting the children.

More >> DCS moves to cut off YouTube mom's $4,900 monthly adoption subsidy

Foster parent accused of trying to meet child for sex after chatting online

Special agents with the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General arrested Joshua Saavedra Wednesday.

While conducting an undercover chat operation, agents said Saavedra agreed to meet up with the fictional child for sex.

More >> Foster parent accused of trying to meet child for sex after chatting online

Arizona mom accused of abusing 7 adopted children, forcing them to star in YouTube videos

A Maricopa, Arizona woman is accused of abusing seven adopted children in her home, including using pepper spray on them and locking them in a closet.

More >> Arizona mom accused of abusing 7 adopted children, forcing them to star in YouTube videos

Adult adoptions made by mentally incompetent San Antonio millionaire are nullified

A state district judge Tuesday nullified the March 5 adoptions of Joe and Brittany Martinez by Charlie Thrash, 81, a wealthy man who is mentally incapacitated.

Joe Martinez, 27, and Brittany Martinez, 25, are the adult children of Laura Martinez, 54, who was briefly married to Thrash before their marriage was annulled last week.

More >> Adult adoptions made by mentally incompetent San Antonio millionaire are nullified

NW Parents Challenge Schools' Handling Of Students With Disabilities

Thousands of times a year, Oregon and Washington students have been physically restrained or isolated from peers. Parents say what's meant as a last resort happens too often, without their knowledge.

More >> NW Parents Challenge Schools' Handling Of Students With Disabilities 

Twin girls: starved and tortured by their mother sue the State of Washington, DCYF

Twin girls, age 12, have sued the State of Washington, Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) on Monday.

Tamaki Law says that the girls are suing after alleging that social workers negligently removed them from a loving and safe foster home, where they had lived from birth to age 7, and then placed them in the home of their drug-addicted, physically abusive biological mother.

More >> Twin girls: starved and tortured by their mother sue the State of Washington, DCYF

Ohio’s Children’s Service workers experience PTSD symptoms

Is the foster child better off with or without a visit from her father?

Kristy Carlisle cannot count on her many years of professional experience, or even a gut feeling, to yield a comfortable answer. She doesn’t see any good solutions.

More >> Ohio’s Children’s Service workers experience PTSD symptoms

Court Fights Intensify Over Who Gets To Adopt Native American Children

A case before a federal appeals court last week could upend an historic adoption law meant to combat centuries of brutal discrimination against American Indians and keep their children with families and tribal communities.

For the first time, a few states have sued to overturn the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, which Congress enacted in 1978 as an antidote to entrenched policies of uprooting Native children and assimilating them into mainstream white culture.

More >> Court Fights Intensify Over Who Gets To Adopt Native American Children

Settlement Promises Major Reforms for Children in Florida Foster Care

Today, Children’s Rights is pleased to announce a major win for vulnerable children in Florida.

We have reached a settlement agreement in our case H.G. v. Carroll, which we and our partners brought on behalf of over 1,900 children in foster care in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.

More >> Settlement Promises Major Reforms for Children in Florida Foster Care

Woman gets life in prison for sitting on, smothering 9-year-old girl

A Florida woman has been sentenced to life in prison for killing her 9-year-old cousin by sitting on her as a form of punishment.

The Pensacola News Journal reports that 66-year-old Veronica Green Posey was sentenced Friday after jurors convicted her of first-degree felony murder.

More >> Woman gets life in prison for sitting on, smothering 9-year-old girl

Legal expert: What to do if your child's well-being is at risk in foster care

A six-month-old boy died Thursday under the care of a foster parent with CYFD. The parents of the baby, Monique Romero and David Zuber, lost custody of two children when their 1-year-old Anastazia Zuber was found buried in the backyard of a northeast Albuquerque home in January. Now, there is one child left in CYFD’s custody.

Romero did report concern’s for her baby’s health to CYFD.

More >> Legal expert: What to do if your child's well-being is at risk in foster care

NYC Moves to Protect Children at Foster Care Intake Center After I-Team Report

The Administration for Children’s Services has announced it will take new steps to protect children at the Nicholas Scoppetta Children’s Center in Manhattan after two insiders shared alarming details with the News 4 I-Team about conditions inside.

The workers, requesting anonymity, described chaos, physical fighting, and overcrowding inside the building which serves as the official foster care intake center for ACS. The employees say they are particularly concerned about a dangerous mix of babies and young children with special needs living alongside troubled teens and even adults straight out of jail.

More >> NYC Moves to Protect Children at Foster Care Intake Center After I-Team Report

Russian Foster Mother Jailed for Starving and Drugging Boy to Collect Sickness Benefits

A Russian woman has been jailed for six years for starving and drugging a young boy so she could claim benefits that she spent on luxuries.

A court sentenced Lyubov Korotkova to time behind bars, The Daily Mail reported, and ordered the foster mother to repay over $65,000 in fraudulently claimed child sickness and disability benefits. She was also ordered to compensate the victim to the tune of $10,500 for “moral damages.”

More >> Russian Foster Mother Jailed for Starving and Drugging Boy to Collect Sickness Benefits

Lawsuit seeks up to $4.5M for Oregon girl who was abused in state care

A lawsuit filed Thursday accuses the Oregon Department of Human Services and at least three child welfare workers of negligence for placing a teenage girl in a home where she was allegedly sexually abused.

The lawsuit, which seeks up to $4.5 million in damages, was filed on the girl’s behalf by the guardian now caring for her, Jules Moorhouse. It alleges she was also placed in foster homes in which she was neglected.

More >> Lawsuit seeks up to $4.5M for Oregon girl who was abused in state care

Albuquerque couple blames CYFD for death of baby in foster care

An Albuquerque couple is speaking out after their baby died while in CYFD custody this week.

It's the same couple accused of burying their drowned 1-year-old daughter in a shallow grave.

More >> Albuquerque couple blames CYFD for death of baby in foster care

JUST IN: Court suppresses evidence seized in foster child murder case

The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday tossed out some incriminating evidence against Henry County foster parents charged with murdering a 2-year-old child in their care.

The justices ruled that information found in electronic devices owned by Jennifer and Joseph Rosenbaum cannot be used against them because law enforcement waited far too long to obtain warrants to search the devices.

More >> JUST IN: Court suppresses evidence seized in foster child murder case

29-year-old foster father raped, impregnated teen he was fostering, prosecutors say

A 29-year-old foster father in Yellowstone County has been charged with raping and impregnating his teen foster daughter.

The man, whom The Billings Gazette is not naming to avoid identifying the alleged victim, has pleaded not guilty to a single count of sexual intercourse without consent.

More >> 29-year-old foster father raped, impregnated teen he was fostering, prosecutors say

Questa man indicted on child sex abuse charges was foster parent

Desiree Terry remembers the pain of being pulled through the foster care system as a child in New Mexico. Her parents struggled with drug abuse and spent years in and out prison, so she was sent to live with her grandparents, who loved her and kept her safe. Her childhood was set on a stable course. The system had worked as intended.

Now more than ever, she knows that she was one of the lucky ones.

More >> Questa man indicted on child sex abuse charges was foster parent

Guest view: Problems with Child and Family Services

As chairman of House Human Services Committee, I realize that there is a need for a good system of protection for our children in Montana. As many news sources opine, and as we know, there are children who need to be removed from their homes, at least for a time and sometimes permanently.

We also know that due process is not being met at times for some families.

More >> Guest view: Problems with Child and Family Services

Oregon sends foster kids to former jails, not families

A move to improve the care of foster children relegated to living in hotels has resulted in 25 percent more children removed from their families being housed in institutions such as former juvenile jails, The Oregonian/OregonLive has found .

The children sent to cinderblock facilities are often the most traumatized and difficult to care for. Most are teens but the state is looking at expanding institutional programs for children as young as 6.

More >> Oregon sends foster kids to former jails, not families

Feds: Mom charged in adoption fraud scheme made $1.6 million

In new court records just filed, federal prosecutors reveal Tara Lynn Lee took in more than $1.6 million dollars in 2017 and 2018. The 7 Investigators first showed you how the unlicensed adoption worker was under investigation, accused of promising the same baby to more than one couple. FBI agents say the 37-year-old mother from New Haven also “matched” couples across the country to birth moms and babies who did not exist. The feds say Lee would charge prospective adoptive couples between $10,000 and $33,000 once they “matched” with a birth mom.

The new court records give us a look at just how much money prosecutors say Lee took in: “Review of Defendant’s bank statements show that she received business-related gross proceeds of over $600,000 in 2017, and over $1,070,000 in 2018.”

More >> Feds: Mom charged in adoption fraud scheme made $1.6 million

Parents' focus on 'winning' custody battles is harming Irish children

IRELAND’S FAMILY LAW system is creating a situation where parents can be more focused on winning than on what their children want, an Oireachtas committee will hear today.

The Justice Committee will continue this morning to hear submissions on reforms to Ireland’s family law system, including recommendations from Special Rapporteur on Child Protection Dr Geoffrey Shannon.

More >> Parents' focus on 'winning' custody battles is harming Irish children

Pa. man could get death in teen's rape, murder, dismemberment

An eastern Pennsylvania jury will decide on life or death for a man who pleaded guilty in the 2016 rape, murder and dismemberment of his girlfriend's teenage daughter.

Jacob Sullivan, 46, pleaded guilty to all charges last month in a case that raised questions about the child welfare system's failure to protect 14-year-old Grace Packer, who spent years in an abusive home before she was sexually violated, drugged and then, finally, strangled in the attic of a suburban Philadelphia home.

More >> Pa. man could get death in teen's rape, murder, dismemberment

Man pleads guilty in death of 3-year-old foster child

A man charged in connection to the death of a three-year-old foster child pleaded guilty Friday.

According to court records, 31-year-old Bryce Dirk pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree murder. He originally pleaded not guilty in September 2018.

More >> Man pleads guilty in death of 3-year-old foster child

More lawsuits being against former Kelowna social worker

Seven more lawsuits will likely be filed next week against the social worker accused of stealing from at risk aboriginal youths in foster care in Kelowna.

Last fall, Vancouver lawyer Jason Gratl filed a number of lawsuits against Robert Riley Saunders, the Ministry of Children and Family Development and Interior Savings Credit Union, alleging that Saunders set up joint bank accounts with children in care, kicked them out of secure housing and kept their support payments for himself.

More >> More lawsuits being against former Kelowna social worker

Delaware mom, 45, 'shot-dead her 18-month-old baby then turned the gun on herself' just hours before she was set to appear in family court and surrender the child to his father

A woman and her one-year-old son were found dead in their Delaware apartment in a suspected murder-suicide just hours before she was due to surrender her child to his father.

Laura B. Connell, 45, was found dead in her apartment alongside her son, Walton Connell, on Wednesday morning having both suffered fatal gunshot wounds.

More >> Delaware mom, 45, 'shot-dead her 18-month-old baby then turned the gun on herself' just hours before she was set to appear in family court and surrender the child to his father

Police officers who sabotaged child abuse probes guilty of misconduct

Detective constables Sharon Patterson, 49, and Lee Pollard, 47, forged documents, concealed evidence and lied about investigations out of laziness and “cynical disdain” for victims, the Old Bailey heard.

Patterson was even accused of ditching work to get a manicure and have a four-hour-long lunch at a Chinese restaurant with her married lover Pollard.

More >> Police officers who sabotaged child abuse probes guilty of misconduct

Foreign adoptions to US fall by 14 percent, continuing trend

The number of foreign children adopted by U.S. parents plunged nearly 14 percent last year, extending a decline that's now continued for 14 years, according to State Department figures released Thursday.

Sharp drops in adoptions from China and Ethiopia more than offset notable increases from India and Colombia.

More >> Foreign adoptions to US fall by 14 percent, continuing trend

Baby dies in foster care in Albuquerque after death of sibling

New Mexico authorities are investigating after an infant died while in the custody of a foster family that was caring for the child following the arrest of his parents on charges related to the death of one of their other children.

Albuquerque police responded Thursday after the boy was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

More >> Baby dies in foster care in Albuquerque after death of sibling

DIGGING DEEPER: Two Child Services caseworkers charged with faking records

Last month, the Adams County Prosecutor’s Office charged two DCS caseworkers with obstructing child abuse investigations and theft, after two separate investigations by the State Inspector General.

Both employees – who have since been fired – admitted to a special agent that they lied about visiting families they never actually visited.

More >> DIGGING DEEPER: Two Child Services caseworkers charged with faking records

Twin girls: starved and tortured by their mother sue the State of Washington, DCYF

Twin girls, age 12, have sued the State of Washington, Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) on Monday.

Tamaki Law says that the girls are suing after alleging that social workers negligently removed them from a loving and safe foster home, where they had lived from birth to age 7, and then placed them in the home of their drug-addicted, physically abusive biological mother.

More >> Twin girls: starved and tortured by their mother sue the State of Washington, DCYF

Lawmakers want to give foster parents better standing when it comes to custody

The Georgia Senate passed a bill March 7 that would limit the amount of time the state is required to spend seeking a relative or family friend with whom to place a foster child.

Sen. Butch Miller, R-Gainesville, said he believes the bill will create more stability for foster children.

More >> Lawmakers want to give foster parents better standing when it comes to custody

'I was in 40+ different placements throughout my time in foster care'

Acorn Park is a special place for Schuyler Davis.

"I feel a sense of happiness when I come here," he said.

It's where his mom used to take him as a child until he was 7.

That's when he says the death of his father and mental health issues weighed down on his family.

More >> 'I was in 40+ different placements throughout my time in foster care'

Former Child Youth and Family caregiver denies sexually abusing boys

A former Child Youth and Family caregiver has denied historical sexual offending against 17 boys.

The man, aged in his 50s, worked for Oranga Tamariki's predecessor in Auckland and faces 43 charges.

More >> Former Child Youth and Family caregiver denies sexually abusing boys

UK gov’t begins taking kids away from parents who won’t go along with gender ‘transitions’

It has now begun: The government has been taking children who wish to “change” their gender away from their parents if their families disagree that “gender transition” is the right thing for their sons or (much more often – 71 percent of the time) daughters. According to the Daily Mail, at least three children have been “taken into council care” after “rows with their parents over wanting to change gender,” although local authorities are insisting that disagreements over sex change surgeries were not the primary reasons for removal.

As the numbers of children identifying as transgender soar, parents have often been left at a loss as children have been swept away by what some experts are referring to as a social contagion. Numbers in the United Kingdom have now risen by over 4,000 percent, prompting a government investigation and urgent warnings from health experts, while the number of young people being referred to the National Health Service for gender reassignment has risen by 1,000 percent. Many parents feel that their child’s struggles may have nothing to do with gender dysphoria, but feel powerless to object as transgenderism is trendy and anything but full-hearted support for hormone treatments and life-altering surgeries is condemned by activists as hateful bigotry.

More >> UK gov’t begins taking kids away from parents who won’t go along with gender ‘transitions’

ACLU says schools need more mental health professionals, not police

Public schools need more mental health professionals and fewer police, according to a recently released report by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The report found that nearly one-third of public school students, more than 14 million, are enrolled in schools with police but without a counselor, nurse, psychologist or social worker. The shift in resources comes as schools reassess their security measures in the wake of repeated school shootings and as local, state and federal governments make more money available to fund officers on campuses.

More >> ACLU says schools need more mental health professionals, not police

Reports on Michigan child welfare 'depressing,' says judge

Michigan's new governor has inherited a troubled child-welfare system that has failed to protect foster kids from abuse and operates with a faulty computer network that might need to be scrapped after just five years, experts reported Wednesday.

A judge got an update on a case that is far from over, despite 13 years of litigation and $27 million spent on court-appointed monitors and lawyers to try to fix how the state cares for children who are removed from homes because of abuse and neglect.

More >> Reports on Michigan child welfare 'depressing,' says judge

Thousands of teenagers in care living without adults

In 2018, 3,090 looked-after children were living independently, government data published in the Children's Rights Alliance for England report shows.

And local authority data shows at least 1,173 spent more than six months living in this way, 19 of these were 14 or 15.

More >> Thousands of teenagers in care living without adults

B.C. social worker accused of punishing Indigenous youth for sexual assault while in foster care

An Indigenous woman who is suing two social workers as a result of treatment she claims she received as a youth in care of the B.C. child welfare system has added a new allegation.

The woman, who we are not identifying to protect her privacy, now alleges social worker Siobhan Stynes punished her for reporting a sexual assault while in foster care.

More >> B.C. social worker accused of punishing Indigenous youth for sexual assault while in foster care

Keeping families together: Legal and advocacy efforts helping parents

Increasing the chances that Indigenous and other families in crisis can stay together is a primary focus of a new service offered by the Legal Services Society of B.C.

If there’s a possibility your children may be removed from your home by the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD), or they have already been placed in foster care, you may be eligible for help from the new Parents Legal Centre (PLC) in Smithers. The centre also services clients in Houston and Hazelton in child protection matters.

More >> Keeping families together: Legal and advocacy efforts helping parents

Judge wrong to exclude mum from hearing to have children removed, Court of Appeal rules

A judge was wrong to exclude a mother from an emergency legal bid to have her two young children removed, the Court of Appeal ruled today.

She was said to have been denied her right to a fair hearing by having no input in an application which resulted in an Emergency Protection Order (EPO) being granted.

More >> Judge wrong to exclude mum from hearing to have children removed, Court of Appeal rules

JUST IN: Court suppresses evidence seized in foster child murder case

The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday tossed out some incriminating evidence against Henry County foster parents charged with murdering a 2-year-old child in their care.

More >> JUST IN: Court suppresses evidence seized in foster child murder case

Woman who faked pregnancy, promised adoption indicted on nine felony counts

Faking a pregnancy doesn’t appear to be against the law.

But using a false pretense to convince a potential adoptive family to buy baby clothes, photographs and meals – those incidents could land a Virginia woman in jail.

More >> Woman who faked pregnancy, promised adoption indicted on nine felony counts

Foster Mother Of 3-Year-Old Indian Girl Dead In US Gets Passport Back

The Indian-American foster mother of Sherin Mathews has got her passport back, nearly a week after charges were dropped against her in connection with the tragic death of her 3-year-old daughter, whose body was discovered in a culvert in suburban Dallas in 2017.

Sini Mathews was charged with child endangerment after she left her adoptive daughter Sherin alone at home while she and her husband Wesley Mathews went out for dinner with their 4-four-year old biological daughter on the night before the toddler was reported missing from their house in Richardson, Texas.

More >> Foster Mother Of 3-Year-Old Indian Girl Dead In US Gets Passport Back

Youth feel hopeless in Arkansas juvenile justice system

After 16-year-old Kristyn failed a drug test and ran away from home, the state jailed her for more than six months. Her expected sentence was three.

Teens like Kristyn are subject to a juvenile justice system that can extend their sentences for any rules infraction, or because necessary counseling isn't available or because they have to wait in county youth jails until a state bed opens.

More >> Youth feel hopeless in Arkansas juvenile justice system

Chenango County man guilty in adopted son's murder, inspired by 'Manchester by the Sea'

The trial of a Chenango County man accused with his wife of killing their adopted son, then setting their home on fire to cover up the evidence, ended with a guilty verdict Friday as jurors took less than two hours to decide.

Ernest Franklin, 36, faces up to 25 years to life in state prison when he's sentenced for felony counts of second-degree murder, third-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence. The trial began Feb. 27, and jurors in Chenango County Court spent an hour and 40 minutes deliberating before reaching a verdict.

More >> Chenango County man guilty in adopted son's murder, inspired by 'Manchester by the Sea'

DCF opens investigation charging foster parent with child pornography

Dieter Bucher went from being a foster parent to an inmate. He’s been charged with four counts of possession of child pornography.

“Clearly, this is a very serious case and one we will take very serious,” said Assistant State Attorney Jack Schlechter.

More >> DCF opens investigation charging foster parent with child pornography

Family sobs as Macomb County mom's bond revoked in adoption scheme

With her family members sobbing in the courtroom, a Macomb County mother at the center of a nationwide adoption investigation has lost her freedom for violating multiple bond conditions: She tampered with witnesses, contacted victims, used a cellphone and tried to broker adoptions.

She had promised not to do these things, the judge reminded her in court. But she did them anyway — and even texted and FaceTimed her victims on the same day she signed her bond papers, prosecutors said.

More >> Family sobs as Macomb County mom's bond revoked in adoption scheme

Former county DSS workers have lawsuit dismissed

Four former Pittsylvania County Department of Social Services workers have dismissed a lawsuit filed in federal court. 

The lawsuit, ‘for injunctive and declaratory relief and damages,’ named retired assistant DSS director Cheryl Fisk, the elected officials of the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors, and Stedman Payne, former chairman of the county DSS board.

More >> Former county DSS workers have lawsuit dismissed

"It was the worst night our our entire lives." How a couple regained child custody

 A local couple reunited with their children after a lengthy battle with Child Protective Services, is now sharing their story to help other parents get their children back.

More >> "It was the worst night our our entire lives." How a couple regained child custody

TEXAS MAN ACCUSED OF VIOLATING ADOPTED 5-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WITH DOLL, FOUND GUILTY

After his 5-year-old adopted daughter sustained horrific injuries to her private areas from being abused with a doll, a Texas man faces life in prison.

John Scott Tufts, 48, was found guilty on three counts of injury to a child on Wednesday in Judge Brody Shanklin’s 211th District Court courtroom in Denton, Texas, about an hour northwest of downtown Dallas.

More >> TEXAS MAN ACCUSED OF VIOLATING ADOPTED 5-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WITH DOLL, FOUND GUILTY

Michigan woman charged with defrauding couples in adoptions

A Macomb County woman has been indicted on fraud charges for an alleged scheme to collect money from couples who wanted to adopt children.

Federal prosecutors say Tara Lee of New Haven isn't licensed to arrange adoptions but told people that she had a legitimate agency. The indictment accuses her of collecting more than $200,000 last year for adoption matches that were fraudulent.

More >> Michigan woman charged with defrauding couples in adoptions

Father convicted of killing adopted son, burning down home

A jury has convicted a father of killing his adopted teenage son and burning down the family's central New York home to cover up the crime.

More >> Father convicted of killing adopted son, burning down home

CCPD officer accused of impersonating a CPS worker resigns from Police Department

Senior Officer Norma DeLeon has resigned from the Corpus Christi Police Department.

According to CCPD Public Information Officer Travis Pace, DeLeon resigned yesterday.

More >> CCPD officer accused of impersonating a CPS worker resigns from Police Department

Report: Texas foster kids left in state psychiatric hospitals for weeks or months

Hundreds of Texas foster children are languishing for weeks or months in psychiatric hospitals because they have nowhere else to go, hurting them psychologically, endangering them physically and costing the state millions of dollars.

Nearly 600 foster kids in fiscal year 2017 spent a total of almost 14,000 days in psychiatric hospitals after doctors said they were ready to leave, according to a new report by Disability Rights Texas, an advocacy group for people with disabilities.

More >> Report: Texas foster kids left in state psychiatric hospitals for weeks or months

Home DNA Tests Reveal 20% of Men Are Not the Father

Recent reports from AlphaBiolabs, a leading home DNA kit manufacturer, reveal that as many as 20% of all men who take the test will discover they are not in fact the father of the child they are testing.

More >> Home DNA Tests Reveal 20% of Men Are Not the Father   

Tucson man arrested for alleged sexual conduct with his mom's adopted kids

Tucson police arrested a man Wednesday for alleged sex crimes against four different minors in his mother's home, police say.

Adam Lee Wells, 31, was arrested on suspicion of 15 charges, including molestation of a child, against four adopted children, police said in a news release.

More >> Tucson man arrested for alleged sexual conduct with his mom's adopted kids

471 parents were deported from US without their children during family separations

The Trump administration has identified 471 parents who were removed from the United States without their children, according to the latest court filing in an ongoing lawsuit.

At least some of those parents were deported before a June 2018 court order that required the government to better document parents' choices to elect or waive their right to be reunified with their children beforehand. That's not to say that parents weren't provided the opportunity, according to the Department of Homeland Security, but rather they did not fall under the court-ordered waiver procedure.

More >> 471 parents were deported from US without their children during family separations

As Texas Privatizes Child Protective Services, Will the Horror Stories Go Unheard?

Critics of the forthcoming transformation of the state’s child welfare system worry about the new model’s lack of transparency. Legislators are running out of time to introduce greater safeguards.

More >> As Texas Privatizes Child Protective Services, Will the Horror Stories Go Unheard?

Canada being sued for child welfare system that ‘incentivizes’ the apprehension of children

A First Nation child advocate thinks it’s “sad” the government is being sued for “underfunding” on-reserve child welfare services in a $3-billion lawsuit.

“I don’t know the young man who put in the case other than his description, which is so sad and so typical of youth in care,” said social worker Cindy Blackstock of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society.

More >> Canada being sued for child welfare system that ‘incentivizes’ the apprehension of children

Senators Demand Investigation Into Sexual Abuse at Immigrant Children’s Shelters

Sens. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., called on Wednesday for a federal investigation into what they termed “the alleged widespread and long-term pattern of sexual abuse” in the facilities holding immigrant children.

In a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General’s Office, the senators said they were particularly concerned that allegations of sexual assault aren’t being properly investigated.

More >> Senators Demand Investigation Into Sexual Abuse at Immigrant Children’s Shelters

Project PA: Foster care worker charged after sexual relationship with foster child

Wednesday we learned about shocking allegations of child abuse in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

According to court records we've obtained from Sullivan County, Tabitha Dunn, of Bradford County is facing several charges.

More >> Project PA: Foster care worker charged after sexual relationship with foster child

Soul crushing. PTSD symptoms showing up in more than half of Children's Services workers

A recent study shows that 53 percent of Ohio's children's services caseworkers have symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. That compares with national incidences that range from 35 percent to 75 percent of child-welfare staff.

Campana is not among them. But the burden she carries is indicative of the job that is taking considerable toll on those who work to keep children safe.

More >> Soul crushing. PTSD symptoms showing up in more than half of Children's Services workers

Note: This is karma.  I also have PTSD from dealing with them.  Especially the first one, she was a sadistic bitch who got off on the power trip.

Billings lawmaker accuses state employees of 'kidnapping' children

A Republican lawmaker from Billings has accused state child protection workers of kidnapping children, and he’s urging parents visited by the state employees to throw them out of their homes.

Rep. Rodney Garcia said on James White’s “North West Liberty News” in mid-February that child welfare workers “do not protect the kids, they kidnap them.” North West Liberty News is a right-wing blog that espouses conspiracy theories on the “CIA-controlled media,” among others.

More >> Billings lawmaker accuses state employees of 'kidnapping' children

Foster Care Worker Accused of Having Sex with Teen

Child sex charges have been filed against a foster care worker from Bradford County.

Police charged Tabitha Dunn, 34, of Monroeton, in December with institutional sexual assault, corruption of minors, and endangering the welfare of a child.

More >> Foster Care Worker Accused of Having Sex with Teen

$3B class action lawsuit filed against Ottawa over First Nations child welfare discrimination

A $3.05 billion class action lawsuit has been filed against the federal government for discriminating against First Nations children by "systematically" underfunding on-reserve child welfare services.

The lawsuit, which still needs to be certified to proceed as a class action, was filed Monday with the Federal Court of Canada in Toronto and Montreal.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of First Nations children affected by on-reserve child welfare services between April 1, 1991, and March 1, 2019.

More >> $3B class action lawsuit filed against Ottawa over First Nations child welfare discrimination

Oshkosh foster abuse details emerge in court records

On Dec. 17, the police officer assigned to Oshkosh West High School was called to the assistant principal’s office to talk to a couple of ninth-graders. The boys, both 15, had gotten into a fight while being driven to school by their foster mother. One of them had a mark, which looked like a rash, on his face.

As school officials spoke to the boys, the conversation took a “disturbing” turn, according to a criminal complaint. In this and subsequent talks, the students provided a series of harrowing details: The adults where they lived kept the boys confined to their rooms, forced them to take up stress positions as punishment and made them urinate and defecate into buckets that were kept near their beds, according to the complaint.

More >> Oshkosh foster abuse details emerge in court records

Before Foster Child Naika Venant's Suicide on Facebook Live, Florida Failed to Help Her

Still dressed in her school uniform, Naika Venant went live on Facebook at 6:12 p.m. November 10, 2016. Earlier that day, the 13-year-old foster child from Miami had stolen a phone from her caseworker. Now, as an audience of three watched her video feed, she clumsily navigated the iPhone's camera, flipping through filters before settling on one in black-and-white.

More >> Before Foster Child Naika Venant's Suicide on Facebook Live, Florida Failed to Help Her

Parents, former DHHS investigator speak out about drug testing policy change

Hundreds of messages, comments, emails and phone calls followed a KETV NewsWatch 7 investigation about a policy change impacting child abuse and welfare cases in Nebraska.

The new policy, formalized in October of 2018, states that Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services investigators can no longer do drug testing on parents or children involved in a child abuse or neglect case, and that testing can only be court ordered.

More >> Parents, former DHHS investigator speak out about drug testing policy change

CPS caseworker quits after accusing supervisor of lying in effort to remove 1-year-old boy

A Child Protective Services worker has abruptly quit his job after accusing his supervisor of improperly taking his first-person account of family visits and signing his name to it as if it were his own in an official court document.

Both the caseworker and several attorneys who reviewed the case on behalf of the Houston Chronicle said the supervisor’s actions could amount to perjury, a charge the agency denies.

More >> CPS caseworker quits after accusing supervisor of lying in effort to remove 1-year-old boy

Why do so many children brought up in care end up in jail?

International research shows that children and young people with care experience are often over-represented within the criminal justice system. The reasons for this over-represenation are complex and include the fact that the care experience itself may be "criminogenic", that is, a factor that contributes to offending.

More >> Why do so many children brought up in care end up in jail?

Hundreds of vulnerable looked-after children going missing from care

Since 2016, Police Scotland and the missing persons register have been alerted about 218 looked-after children in Fife, 93 in Dundee, 70 in Perth and Kinross, and 20 in Angus.

A Courier investigation revealed all 409 youngsters returned home, a statistic described as a “mercy”.

More >> Hundreds of vulnerable looked-after children going missing from care

Henderson man accused of sexually assaulting girl in foster care

A Henderson man was arrested last month after a girl in foster care told Las Vegas detectives she was afraid to report the man, her former therapist, for allegedly raping her over a four-year period, according to an arrest report.

On Feb. 19, Metropolitan Police Department officers arrested 43-year-old Marcelo Cristian Pastor at his Henderson home, dispatch records and Pastor’s arrest report show.

More >> Henderson man accused of sexually assaulting girl in foster care

Lake County being sued for not providing attorneys to foster kids

Lake County is among three Indiana counties being sued in federal court for not providing attorneys to kids in child welfare cases.

More than 30 states require that youths in the child welfare system be given legal representation, yet Indiana is not one of them. The suit, filed in the Southern District of Indiana, claims this contradicts the U.S. Constitution's equal protection clause.

More >> Lake County being sued for not providing attorneys to foster kids

Migrant parents separated from children return to U.S., plead to be reunited

A large group of Central American migrants who U.S. authorities separated from their children last year when they crossed the Mexican border entered the United States again on Saturday asking for refuge and to be reunited with their kids.

A Reuters witness said some 50 people entered the United States at the international border crossing from Mexicali, Mexico into Calexico, California, where they were met by agents from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

More >> Migrant parents separated from children return to U.S., plead to be reunited

Charges Dropped Against Sini Mathews, Mother of Slain Child Sherin Mathews

Sini Mathews, the mother of Sherin Mathews, the North Texas 3-year-old girl found dead in a culvert in October 2017, is a free woman after the child endangerment charges filed against her were dismissed Friday.

Mathews was charged after prosecutors said she left her adopted daughter home alone while she and her husband Wesley went to dinner with their 4-year-old biological daughter on the night before the child was reported missing. Two weeks later Sherin's body was found in a drain pipe near the Mathews family home.

More >> Charges Dropped Against Sini Mathews, Mother of Slain Child Sherin Mathews

Former Pekin DCFS case worker acquitted of child sex charges

Prosecutors failed to show a former state child case investigator from Pekin solicited sex from a 14-year-old girl and committed related crimes, a Tazewell County judge ruled Thursday.

Circuit Judge Michael Risinger ended a bench trial by granting a defense motion to acquit Melvin Devall, 58, of Pekin, after the state rested its case on two felony counts of official misconduct and misdemeanor counts of obstructing a police officer and solicitation of a sex act.

More >> Former Pekin DCFS case worker acquitted of child sex charges

Foster children in Indiana allege their rights have been violated

Children currently under the care of Indiana's foster system allege that three counties in the state have violated their constitutional due process and equal protection rights because they were not appointed counsel.

The suit was filed on Feb. 6 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana Evansville Division on behalf of some 5,000 children who go through Children in Need of Services (CHINS) or Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) proceedings. The 10 named plaintiffs in the case are minor children currently in foster care.

More >> Foster children in Indiana allege their rights have been violated

Children put at risk by 'major failings' at private foster care firm

A private "for profit" company funded by Tusla to provide foster care to 15 children was found to have major failings in meeting proper standards for safeguarding and protection of the youngsters.

The inspection of Oak Lodge Fostering, which had 14 foster care households around Ireland, found the tracking of its Garda vetting system was inadequate.

More >> Children put at risk by 'major failings' at private foster care firm

Prosecutors say teens forced to use buckets for toilets at Oshkosh foster home

Two foster parents did not allow three teens under their care to leave their bedrooms and made them use buckets for toilets, Winnebago County prosecutors say.

Alan D. Small, 35, and his mother, Barbara R. Peterson, 60, both of Oshkosh, were charged Wednesday in Winnebago County Circuit Court with three counts each of chronic child neglect.

More >> Prosecutors say teens forced to use buckets for toilets at Oshkosh foster home

INVESTIGATION: DCYF Wrongfully Removed Children From RI Mother, According to State Report

A Rhode Island mother is speaking out after winning appeals against the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) for taking custody of her two children — which was found in an administrative decision to have been wrong.

West Warwick’s April Doyle received a fifty-six page decision from Karen Walsh, an Appeals Officer at the Office of Health and Human Services, on February 25, which granted appeals in five separate investigations that found there was insufficient evidence to support allegations by DCYF of "inadequate shelter" and "neglect" by Doyle.

More >> INVESTIGATION: DCYF Wrongfully Removed Children From RI Mother, According to State Report

Kids do better when families stay together | Opinion

Numbers can tell a powerful story, especially when it comes to child abuse and neglect.

According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 75 percent of children brought to the attention of the child welfare system arrive with allegations of neglect – not, as often assumed – abuse.

More >> Kids do better when families stay together | Opinion

Group that reconnects SC fathers to their children seeking $1.6M

Facing a third, one-year stint in jail for missing child support payments, Frederick Hogsett Jr. received a lifeline from the judge instead.

Rather than going back to jail — or getting a second sentence to wear an ankle bracelet monitor — Hogsett was ordered to participate in a program that works to get fathers involved in their children’s lives through job training, free legal help, counseling, parental classes, and even mediation with the mom if needed.

More >> Group that reconnects SC fathers to their children seeking $1.6M

Oregon foster boy left in unsafe home before fatal fire, $5 million lawsuit alleges

The family of an Oregon boy who died after a fire trapped him inside his foster home has filed a $5 million lawsuit against his foster parents and the state’s child welfare agency for failing to prevent his death.

Nicholas Lowe loved sports, babies and collecting baseball cards, his obituary said. He preferred shorts to pants. He was two weeks shy of 14.

More >> Oregon foster boy left in unsafe home before fatal fire, $5 million lawsuit alleges