Child welfare reforms named for Charlotte girl who died in abuse case become law
Reforms to North Carolina’s child welfare system named for a Charlotte child found dead of alleged abuse are now law.
The Dominique Moody Safety Act, which establishes a new statewide team to review some of the state’s most serious child welfare cases, passed in the General Assembly as part of the new North Carolina state budget. Gov. Josh Stein signed the budget into law Tuesday.
It’s named for the east Charlotte 6-year-old who died in December. Moody, who’d been in her aunt’s custody, showed signs of abuse and malnourishment, law enforcement said previously. The Charlotte Observer and other news outlets reported police and social services received reports about Moody’s home before she died.
The aunt and two other women face first-degree murder charges in the case.
Moody’s death sparked a flurry of investigations and calls for action.
Multiple county employees were fired or disciplined after an internal investigation, county manager Mike Bryant said previously. The state Department of Health and Human Services ordered the county to develop a corrective action plan after an investigation into Mecklenburg’s social services found “a broad, systemic lack of appropriate safety planning to address identified danger indicators and risk factors to the children.”
And after grilling Charlotte leaders at an hourslong hearing in Raleigh, leadership of the state House Oversight Committee called on Mecklenburg’s district attorney to conduct criminal investigations into county social services employees involved with Moody’s case.
What is the Dominique Moody Safety Act?
The legislation named for Moody was initially introduced by Charlotte-area state Rep. Carla Cunningham, alongside Reps. Allen Chesser, Mike Colvin and Donny Lambeth. Chesser, a Nash County Republican, previously told the Observer Moody’s case and other child fatalities “revealed a reoccurring critical gap” the new bill aims to address.
“Repeated reports of abuse or neglect were often screened out, allowing chronic patterns to go unaddressed,” he said in a statement.
The new Child Welfare Case Escalation Team will get involved when county social services departments report an allegation of abuse or neglect against a juvenile in a “high-risk” situation. “High-risk” scenarios include situations where the child has special medical needs or cases of “chronic neglect.
