ATLANTA — Child advocacy organizations say a new report is rightfully scathing against the Georgia Department of Family and Children Services.
Tuesday, the Subcommittee on Human Rights and Law, released chilling findings discovered as part of a bi-partisan inquiry into the state’s handling of foster children.
“What’s clear, is that our child welfare system is fraught with some serious endemic challenges,” said Melissa Carter with Emory University’s Barton Child Law and Policy Center.
Lawmakers discovered there’s a systemic failure within DFCS, resulting in the death of children. Emory Professor Melissa Clark testified as part of this inquiry.
“It’s much, much more complicated when government…the state is a child’s parent,” Carter said.
The report states supervisors do not regularly understand or have knowledge regarding the facts of cases and did not review case records.
In a May 2023 case, the report states that DFCS workers could have immediately removed a child after police found the child’s mother in distress and wandering naked down the street with her 1-year-old daughter.
The report said DFCS opted to take five days to contact the family. The report said the mother drowned the baby in a Sandy Springs lake days later.
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And in East Point, family members reported ongoing concerns regarding a mother’s declining mental health after referring to her child as the devil.
Documents indicate rather than DFCS conducting a safety assessment where they do a home visit, they requested for law enforcement to do a welfare check. Days later the report said the child died in a fire set by the mother.
“I think the most important thing here is the safety of children,” Sen. Jon Ossoff told Channel 2 investigative reporter Ashli Lincoln.
Ossoff launched an inquiry last February after a series of Channel 2 Action News reports into foster children being housed at hotels.
Federal lawmakers held several hearings in Washington D.C. and Atlanta. The testimony revealed hundreds of children were sex trafficked over a five-year span and nearly 2,000 have been reported missing.
DFCS told Channel 2 Action News last year they question the validity of those numbers.
The report also noted at least five judges testified they were directed by DFCS to improperly prolong children’s time in juvenile detention facilities because of placement shortages.
“During this time I was often physically restrained, they slammed me into the wall and put my arms into locks,” said Mon’a Houston.
The Office of Child Advocate cites declining performance to management failures, high turnover, lack of training, and poor leadership.
DFCS denied Channel 2′s request for an interview. A spokesperson sent the following statement;
“After taking months to produce a report – written and supported solely by staff of the majority party – the subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law provided DFCS and the state only two days to respond to a heavily redacted version of the final report.
“Highlighting Senator Ossoff’s staff’s obvious lack of subject matter expertise regarding complex child welfare issues, the subcommittee’s report omits key context, ignores relevant data that undermine the report’s primary assertions, and takes great lengths to misrepresent DFCS actions, facts about various cases, and outcomes for many children in the state’s care.
“Not included in the subcommittee’s report are DFCS’s improvements in addressing the issue of hoteling, strengthening rigorous safeguards for the children in our care, and streamlining service delivery.
“Our staff and leadership take our responsibility to Georgia’s at-risk youth with the utmost seriousness and will continue to identify and implement solutions that better serve those in our care. We encourage Sen. Ossoff to focus his efforts on putting the welfare of children above political gamesmanship.”
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