The state of Child welfare
September 29, 2006 by MCA
The federal government requires every state to complete an annual System Improvement Plan to create guidelines for improving child welfare programs. The focus is on Florida due to the Trenton Duckett disappearance and his parent’s marital disputes, but it is not the only state with issues.
Nevada is revamping their systems to be more in line with Federal guidelines. The National Center for Youth Law filed a class action lawsuit against the state of Nevada and Clark County citing that at least 79 children have died of abuse of neglect at the hands of their parents, foster parents, or other caregivers while under the watch of the Clark County Department of Family Services.
Ohio is being requested to repay $224 million in mismanaged funds. This is the same state where 3-year-old Marcus Fiesel’s foster parents Liz and David Carroll are facing murder charges in his death, and biological mother Donna Trevino seeks $5 million in compensation for wrongful death.
How much does the failure of state’s child welfare systems contribute to the number of missing children and runaways? It is widely known they add to the number of cases involving child abuse, neglect and deaths.
