Lawsuit alleges NC foster care system is failing its children

NORTH CAROLINA — A lawsuit filed Tuesday alleges the North Carolina foster care system has been “in a state of crisis for years” and is failing its children.

Multiple parties, including kids who are part of the system, filed the class action suit in district court. They are suing Gov. Roy Cooper and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, among several other parties.

The lawsuit goes into detail about each of the foster kids’ stories, drawing attention to the ways in which they believe the system failed them.

In one case, the plaintiffs describe three siblings who were put into a group home because of their parents’ substance abuse problems. Despite repeated attempts to home them with willing grandparents, the kids bounced from home to home and experienced mental and emotional distress, the lawsuit reads.

The lawsuit says the kids are now back in the group home and will be there at least until their next permanency hearing scheduled for January 2025.

“If Defendants had made reasonable professional judgments, provided timely and appropriate medical treatment, engaged in reasonable case planning and placement matching, equipped caseworkers with a reliable information system, not acted in disregard of reasonable professional standards as to the management of their case, and not acted with deliberate indifference to their legal rights, Defendants may have prevented [the kids] from deteriorating while in state custody,” it reads.

The plaintiffs say all of the children’s cases show a pattern that “amounts to deliberate indifference to the constitutionally protected liberty and privacy interests” of the kids.

The lawsuit says a “severe lack of staff and resources” is at the root of the issues in Mecklenburg County. It also says Gaston County has one of the worst jurisdictions for permanency outcomes.

The plaintiffs are demanding several actions from the defendants, including:

• County-by-county mandatory performance metrics that meet federal standards
• Safe, appropriate foster care placements for children that best suit their needs
• Within 30 days of placement, children are comprehensively evaluated
• A case plan for each child made within 60 days of placement
• A requirement for children with physical, mental, intellectual, or mental disabilities to receive the care they need while in foster care

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