Report cites mistrust of child welfare system

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Senate committee on Thursday reported a "serious lack of trust in the child welfare system" in Missouri following its investigation last fall into alleged problems and failures of the system.

The draft report of the Senate Interim Committee on Children's Protective Services and Foster Care primarily finds fault with the Missouri Division of Family Services for abuse of power, a lack of accountability and failure to adequately protect children under its supervision.

However, the findings also blame family courts for allowing DFS to remove children from their homes without probable cause and making decisions behind a shroud of secrecy.

The committee, chaired by state Sen. Bill Foster, R-Poplar Bluff, made a number of broad recommendations drawn from testimony collected at a series of often-emotional hearings held around the state. The recommendations include adopting and enforcing uniform policies for handling cases, placing children in foster care only as a last resort, better ensuring the safety of those in the system and privatizing certain services.

Problems raised before

Department of Social Services spokeswoman Deb Hendricks said most of the deficiencies within DFS, which the department oversees, identified in the report have been raised frequently in recent months.

"What that says to us is that those clearly are areas we need to look at," Hendricks said. "DFS is committed to making improvements and allaying these concerns."

Foster's committee was formed in response to incidents such as the alleged murder of a Springfield, Mo., boy at the hands of his foster parents.

Foster said the report will be turned over to the new Commission on Children's Justice established last week by Missouri Supreme Court Chief Justice Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. of Cape Girardeau.

The commission, which consists of officials from all three branches of government, is charged with developing various avenues for reform, including legislation that can be considered in the current legislative session. The commission's first meeting is 10 a.m. Monday in the Capitol.

Foster said the privatizing of some child welfare services has the potential to improve system efficiency and should be explored. With state finances limited, however, he said contracting with outside service providers must not increase expenses.

"I'm open to privatizing, but we have got to make sure they do a quality job for the right cost," Foster said.

The committee did not specify what functions might be turned over to outside contractors.

Action should be taken

State Sen. Mary Bland, D-Kansas City, said action needs to be taken to ease the burden on caseworkers. During the hearings, several caseworkers said they were insufficiently trained and routinely overwhelmed by the number of cases in their charge.

"The caseloads workers have make it almost impossible to create a safe, effective system," Bland said.

Some of the committee's suggestions that relate to the judicial branch's role in the system are already being implemented by the Supreme Court.

Family court judges will be instructed to place children taken from their parents by DFS with grandparents or other responsible relatives, if possible, before considering foster care.

The report said DFS and judges have frequently and arbitrarily denied requests by relatives to care for children in favor of placing them in state custody.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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