Still Broken: DC’s Child Welfare System

Over the summer, the DC government announced it had reached a settlement in the 32-year class-action lawsuit that sought extensive reform of the city’s child welfare system — a case initially known as LaShawn A. v. Marion Barry Jr. With the end of court oversight, the quintessential question is whether DC’s system can now ensure the safety, protection and well-being of the District’s most vulnerable children. The DC Line conducted a six-month investigation, funded by SpotlightDC: Capital City Fund for Investigative Journalism, in pursuit of the answer to that question.

Based on public documents, Freedom of Information Act requests and scores of interviews with DC officials, experts and advocates, this series focuses on particular areas that The DC Line found to be failing, including investigations, the child fatality review process and foster care.

Among the findings:

• DC’s system for evaluating the deaths of infants and children is plagued by bureaucratic delays and problematic investigations that have allowed dozens of deaths to be termed “accidental” when evidence and experts point to homicide.
• Of the 40 children whose deaths were reviewed by DC’s Child and Family Services Agency in 2020, 33 had been the subject of at least one investigation by the city’s primary child welfare agency within five years prior to the fatality.

The team that worked on the series include political reporter jonetta rose barras, editor/researcher Deirdre Bannon and executive editor Chris Kain.

Part 1: Children at risk: 32 years and billions of dollars later, DC fails to protect thousands from abuse and neglect

Part 2: Children at risk: Abuse and neglect investigations are opened too late and closed too soon

Part 3: Children at risk: City’s child fatality reviews don’t prevent future deaths as intended

Part 4: Children at risk: Foster care in DC is no safe haven