Child who feared for safety died by suicide within an hour of DCF visit: Child advocate
The Office of the Child Advocate has opened an investigation into the Department of Children and Families after the suicide of a child who had been visited by a DCF worker.
According to a letter to DCF from Christina Ghio, the state’s acting child advocate, the child told a DCF caseworker that they did not feel safe in their home and wanted to be placed into foster care.
The family had a long history with DCF, did not have stable housing, had moved in and out of Connecticut over several years, and none of the children in the household were enrolled in school, according to Ghio.
DCF decided to leave the child with the parent and said bringing the child under the care of DCF was not an option, according to the letter from Ghio.
The child took their own life within an hour of the DCF visit, according to Ghio.
“OCA has opened an investigation to conduct a full review of the circumstances of this case. While it is too early to reach conclusions, our preliminary review of this case leaves us alarmed. In fact, OCA has grown increasingly alarmed at the quality of case practice observed through our reviews of critical incidents and child fatalities, some of which have garnered significant public attention and some of which have not,” Ghio said in the letter addressed to DCF commissioner Susan Hamilton.
Ghio said it was this increasing alarm, along with what she called deficits in the quality of case practice that compelled her to issue the letter.
The letter, which was also sent to Gov. Ned Lamont and several prominent lawmakers, included several recommendations for DCF. They included providing administrative support for social work case aides, identifying additional options for therapeutic foster care and support for foster parents, and enhanced supervision for staff with less than two years of experience.
NBC Connecticut has reached out to DCF for a comment. We have not heard back as of this publication.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.
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