The Incompetency Of The D.C. Child And Family Services

Four innocent girls in Washington, D.C. was found decomposing in their home January 9, 2008 as a result of allege homicide by their mother Banita Jacks. These young lives could have been prevented if the DC child and family services and the DC school system would have taken appropriate action to investigate the care and safety of these girls. Since then six D.C. child and family services workers have been fired. Sad enough, this case is not isolated. There have been many instances of child abuse that has gone by ignored and ended up with the child severely abused or dead. Only in this extremity do officials begin to look in the child's history and piece together times and instances of possible help. I have yet to fathom why is it when a child is murdered do state officials begin to take action and formulate times in the past of when a child could have been helped. Do they not see the signs of abuse while the child is living?

I seem to be going through my own turmoil with the D.C. child and family service system which I think to be really flawed. The excuse of the agency being too overworked and understaffed is no reason to let a child go without help. The same agency that persuades parents, teachers, students, friends and family to report instances of child abuse have made it common to actually let a child go abused until the child's last breath.

I have contacted CPS to report abuse with a child. For her privacy, I will name her Lillian. She is 10 years old and recently has been having behavioral problems in school. Her mother has prior reports on file with abuse with all of her children. Bruises on all of the children have been reported yet the state still let those children stay in the household. Lillian has reported to her school about her mother but the school did nothing as well except give her scripted advice of "oh it will be ok, just talk to your mother" all the while, she goes to school with various bruises and emotional scars.