Weaknesses in the care system lead to the exploitation of children
Reports that staff at Refuge, a shelter in Bastrop for sex-trafficked women, trafficked several foster children made our stomachs turn.
State Sen. Borris Miles, D-Houston, called it a nightmare.
Yes, a nightmare for children who have been revictimized in a place that should offer them refuge. But let’s also remember that this nightmare is not entirely new in a fundamentally flawed child welfare system.
The Refuge did not provide a safe space for the 11 children, aged 11 to 17, for whom it was caring. We fight against how victims of child abuse could be exploited by those charged with caring for them, but we’ve long known that Texas Child Protective Services faces challenges. complex and extreme.
The initial reports detailed in a March 10 emergency court hearing before U.S. District Judge Janis Jack, who oversaw a decade-long trial into the state’s troubled foster care conditions. , alleged seven victims and nine perpetrators.
“The most appalling thing about it is the disregard for these children,” she said. “You had to wait for eight calls to get 11 already trafficked girls out of this trafficking situation. It is a system that remains broken.
We await more details, but the allegations are alarming.
The Texas Rangers investigated two incidents.
In the first incident, a foster home employee took nude photos of two girls for the alleged purpose of selling them for money and/or drugs. According to a March 16 letter to Gov. Greg Abbott from Department of Public Safety director Col. Steven C. McCraw, initial findings found no evidence that the victims were also sexually abused or assaulted.
In the second incident, staff members helped two girls escape from the foster home on February 20.
A DPS review of the March 10 letter from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services to the federal court comptroller “identified material inaccuracies and contained information that had not been properly verified,” McCraw said. .
All the children were removed from the establishment, a month and a half after the first report. Officials blame nepotism for the delay, as several staff members are linked to the former employee who allegedly sold the photos.
Not everyone trusts the conclusions of the DPS. An attorney representing foster children in the Texas federal lawsuit told the Texas Tribune that McCraw’s finding that there was no evidence of sexual abuse was “both surprising and extremely disturbing. “.
We agree.
A special committee, chaired by State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, held its first hearing Thursday.
In recounting the disturbing timeline, Jaime Masters, commissioner of the Department of Family and Protective Services, said a contracted program director: “I think the trafficking is happening right under our noses.
Some DFPS Child Protective Services employees, including two mid-level supervisors, have been terminated. Lawmakers grilled Masters, who testified that the agency’s processes are sound but employees chose not to do their jobs.
State Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, offered great ideas for solutions during the hearing, such as an electronic system to immediately notify DFPS leadership of a “high risk” at a facility. , a new centralized data system and higher compensation for kinship care.
Obviously, the breakdown goes beyond a handful of rogue employees. Systematic failure and resistance to reform existed long before Bastrop’s allegations.
On Monday, KXAN in Austin reported that Child Protective Services Director of Child Care Investigations Justin Lewis has resigned, saying he can no longer “accept the political nature of this work. “.
Lewis would have called Jack a derogatory term, but in our opinion, the judge has been an indispensable voice for the children.
The legislative committee seemed tired, but members seem to be digging deep, questioning everything that contributed to this breakdown.
As daunting as it may seem to work to improve the state’s failing system of child protective services, imagine how young victims of abuse and neglect feel. Now imagine if they are rescued from troubled homes only to be abused again.