Attorneys in a sweeping class-action lawsuit alleging West Virginia is failing children in foster care say the state health department has deleted emails related to the case. The filing comes after the agency recently failed to release documents showing whether Child Protective Services ever checked on children found locked in a shed.
The lack of information from the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources has worried lawmakers, who spent part of October’s midterm legislative sessions trying to obtain it Updates from DHHR about the latest issues in the overwhelmed child welfare system.
Gov. Jim Justice has remained still on the issue, drawing criticism from some Republican lawmakers who are calling for rapid changes at the state health department on behalf of children.
Del. Rep. Amy Summers, R-Taylor, said there is a lack of transparency in justice administration, including DHHR’s oversight of foster care. She noted that DHHR employees fear retaliation if they raise issues with leadership.
“There has to be a cultural change [DHHR] and the executive branch as a whole, where accountability and transparency must be at the forefront rather than mired in secrecy,” Summers said.
The state’s foster care system is overwhelmed and the number of children entering foster care in West Virginia is significantly higher than any other state in the country. DHHR is struggling with CPS staffing issues, a shortage of foster families and a lack of behavioral health services for vulnerable children. There is also one Lack of lawyers Who can take on child neglect and child abuse cases in parts of the state?
At times the governor responded to the care problems increased for CPS employees, $2.1 million to combat child abuse and neglect, and more. But some lawmakers said the judge’s silence on recent problems in the foster care system that have drawn national attention was an indication of his administration’s lack of transparency around issues. Several lawmakers interviewed for this article said the judiciary must seek rapid changes in the way DHHR provides foster care.
“It is a complete failure of the executive branch [level]and you can’t pass laws that fix the problem,” said Sen. Eric Tarr, R-Putnam. “It is a fundamental responsibility of the government to protect its people living in the safety net,” he said.
The governor’s office did not respond to questions for this story.
The judiciary did not raise child welfare issues, including the incident involving the children locked in a shed in Sissonville, in online-only media briefings this month. He is Striving for a seat in the US Senate.
In his 2019 State addressJustice said: “Of course everyone knows my commitment and how I feel about children. Foster families, we are truly upside down, and we need to address the foster care crisis, and I’m going to challenge all of you to bring me – bring me solutions.”
Marissa Sanders, a legislative advocate for foster care reform, said lawmakers’ recent attempts to reform child welfare have not produced enough results.
“The governor must increase the accountability of the DHHR,” she said.
Missing documents highlight DHHR’s transparency concerns
DHHR oversees more than 6,000 foster children, and officials said the state’s drug epidemic has created a foster care crisis. According to a recent study, the number of children in the state foster care system increased by 57% from 2012 to 2021 report from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy.
In an email, Whitney Wetzel, senior communications specialist at DHHR, said, “Transparency is paramount for every agency and also for Gov. Jim Justice” as the agency is transformed into three separate agencies. The division was ordered by the legislature.
“DHHR values the opportunity for meaningful dialogue and will continue to work with the Legislature and federal partners to develop systems of transparency while protecting the rights of children and complying with state and federal legal requirements regarding confidential information,” Wetzel said.
DHHR and justice are at the door an ongoing one Class action lawsuit suit filed by the nonprofit A Better Childhood and local attorneys on behalf of former foster children. The lawsuit, filed in 2019, said the state relied too heavily on dangerousness extra-governmental institutions to accommodate foster children and left them to languish in the system with no plan for permanence.
Transparency issues for DHHR resurfaced on Oct. 26 when attorneys were in charge of the foster children called for sanctions The lawsuit said DHHR destroyed emails from seven former senior officials at the agency, including former minister Bill Crouch.
The revelation followed a years-long battle by the plaintiff over significant documents.
“This is the opposite of transparency when the agency itself does not know what is going on and whether the children in its care are safe.” said Marcia Lowry, executive director of A Better Childhood. “I think the system continues to barely work, and I think it’s a real tragedy for the state’s children.”
DHR replied Oct. 27 that the agency has produced or committed to turning over hundreds of documents, including case files, for the litigation.
Del. Summers pointed to transparency issues in other state agencies, including oversight of prisons and jails.
Lawyers in a separate case against the state – this one alleging inhumane conditions in the state’s correctional facilities – said earlier this month that the state failed to preserve certain evidence, including emails from former officials.
Brian Abraham, the governor’s chief of staff, said On October 26, he revealed during a press conference that the government was unaware of a government technology policy that pre-empted the judiciary and deleted the emails of former employees. “There is no basis whatsoever to claim that emails were intentionally deleted by any authority,” he said.
The foster care lawsuit update followed attempts by lawmakers and journalists to find out how DHHR responded to the case in Sissonville, where neighbors said this called CPS multiple times over several months previously Police found the children locked in a shed.
West Virginia Watch requested travel documents from DHHR showing whether CPS visited the Sissonville home. DHHR did not share any documents in response to the request.
Sen. Mike Stuart, R-Kanawha, called for an independent investigation into DHHR’s handling of the case.
“Historically, everything surrounding this incident is concerning,” Stuart said. “It is important for us to understand how these matters are responded to. I think it would be better for this agency and the public to examine the information carefully.”
He has not received a response from DHHR or the governor to his request for an investigation.
Stuart said he doesn’t believe the governor is responsible for his handling of care and believes he “inherited a mess.”
But Tarr, who approved The justices’ rival in the U.S. Senate race said the governor’s lack of transparency affecting agencies and his failure to address problems have further harmed vulnerable populations.
“He’s almost in his eighth year up there. The people who needed it [his leadership] “Most have been injured or neglected – to the point where there have been deaths, rapes and cases of harm,” Tarr said.
Summers added: “We are seeing some issues that make it appear that government is protecting itself rather than improving the services it provides…The governor and the executive branch need to take a leadership role in changing this.”
State lawmakers have sought to improve the state’s foster care system with proposed legislation the CPS deficiencycreated an ombudsman monitor complaints and increased salary for foster families.
But bills aimed at the crisis haven’t always made it to the governor’s desk.
Earlier this year, legislation that would have created An online communication portal for foster families was hardly well received. The portal, touted as a way to raise transparency, would have given social workers, foster parents and relevant people access to information about a child’s case.
The bill was sponsored by two Republican House members, Jonathan Pinson and Adam Burkhammer, who are also foster parents. They developed the legislation based on their own experiences with child welfare, including the lack of communication about their foster children’s cases.
“When we look at meaningful change, the care portal bill, which failed last session, is a game-changer. It’s not just a feel-good law, I think it’s something that actually makes a difference,” said Burkhammer, R-Lewis.
As the DHHR split continues, lawmakers say foster care reform must be a priority
The ongoing move to split up the DHHR, pushed by lawmakers as part of child welfare reform, must be completed by early 2024. justice appointed secretaries the three novel departments of Health, Human Services and Health Facilities.
“I am optimistic that the DHHR split will help, but how long will it take? These children and families need help now. I hope that sooner rather than later the governor and the legislature can come together to make truly meaningful change,” Burkhammer said.
Other lawmakers interviewed shared similar sentiments regarding the urgency of addressing foster care issues.
“We cannot allow this six-month timeline … to get in the way of the urgent need to fix a broken system,” Stuart said. “Whether that takes the form of a special session … or a special authorization from the governor.”
Stuart and Summers said they will file legislation to improve child welfare during the 60-day regular session that begins in January.
“My biggest concern is that we are placing children in a broken system,” Stuart said.
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