Mecklenburg outlines plan for social services after death of child in Charlotte
Mecklenburg County commissioners heard findings Tuesday from investigations into the county’s Youth and Family Services department following the high-profile death of a local child.
The presentation didn’t directly reference Dominique Moody, but the child’s death sparked scrutiny of Mecklenburg’s social services department. The 6-year-old girl was found dead at her aunt’s home in east Charlotte in December weighing 27 pounds and showing signs of abuse. The aunt and two other women face first-degree murder charges in the case.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police and social services received reports about Moody’s home before she died, the Observer reported previously.
The state Department of Health and Human Services ordered the county to develop a corrective action plan in May following an investigation. County leaders are scheduled to testify on the case in front of the state House Oversight Committee Thursday.
At Tuesday’s commission meeting, county staff laid out the findings of the state’s report and an internal investigation, as well as their plans to address issues. Deputy County Manager Kimm Campbell, who oversees health and human services, told commissioners the internal investigation launched in January and involved a third-party group.
“We began this process even prior to being notified by the state that they would be doing their own practice assessment and case reviews,” Campbell said.
Much of Tuesday’s presentation echoed the findings from the state’s report, including that intake workers were not asking “sufficient questions to explore all alleged maltreatment” and safety assessments had adequate safety plans “in only 43% of the cases.”
The county is adjusting its procedures to address the reported issues and has requested more training from DHHS, Campbell said. She added the county’s budget for the new fiscal year that begins July 1 includes a $2.5 million investment in Child, Family and Adult Services, including funding for 18 additional child welfare positions.
“Child welfare is extraordinarily complex work,” Campbell said. “… There are calls to abolish the system, and there are calls to transform the system. But there are no calls to keep it the same because everybody understands that it’s not perfect. And yet we are here dedicated to making improvements and know that we cannot make those improvements in a vacuum.”
Most county commissioners did not respond to the findings presented during Tuesday’s meeting.
County Manager Mike Bryant told reporters after the meeting the report reflected “due diligence” by the county and the state.
“It really highlighted not only opportunities but strengths as well, and we’re going to continue to build on those strengths,” he said. “And certainly we’re going to put measures in place to address each one of those opportunities.”
