State audit rips DCF on handling of sex assaults
A bombshell state audit of the Department of Children and Families has thrust the child welfare system back into Beacon Hill’s political fray, putting the Baker administration on the defensive as riled lawmakers demand answers.
The scathing report, released yesterday by state Auditor Suzanne Bump, honed in on DCF’s handling of sexual assault cases and its ability to monitor children who are badly hurt in their care — two sensitive areas that drew quick rebukes from Gov. Charlie Baker’s top aides.
It charged that DCF failed to report as many as 19 cases, including rapes, assaults and sexual abuse, to prosecutors over a twoyear span ending in 2015, and that the agency was unaware of 260 cases of children being injured in their care.
The department also didn’t report nearly 120 cases of sexual abuse to an independent state watchdog, according to auditors, including that of two male employees at a DCF-contracted residential facility who sexually abused three girls each.
Bump, acknowledging the data is years old, said some of the problematic policies they point to still exist, notably DCF’s assertion that sexual abuse does not meet the criteria of a reportable “critical incident” to the state’s Office of the Child Advocate.
“They defend their position. I find that incomprehensible,” said Bump, who on Wednesday launched a re-election campaign for a third term. “I regard their response overall to the audit as inadequate . ... It shows the agency’s reforms are still a work in progress.”
In its official response within the audit, DCF acknowledged some shortcomings. But officials were far more pointed in their responses yesterday, noting Baker — who is also seeking re-election — didn’t take office until 2015, midway through the audit period. They also dispute that they didn’t report the 19 potential criminal cases, arguing that they contacted local police in lieu of district attorneys.
“It is almost four years since the beginning of that audit. It does not reflect the changes the department and Commissioner (Linda) Spears has been systemically implementing,” said Marylou Sudders, Baker’s health and human services secretary, who touted hiring more than 300 social workers and reshaping a half-dozen new policies since 2015.
“As a social worker, I am disappointed that the auditor takes information from 2014 and 2015 and applies it today,” she said.
The report immediately sparked concern in the Legislature. Speaker of the House Robert A. DeLeo said he was “incredibly upset and troubled,” and that he contacted the Office of the Child Advocate to weigh any “next steps.”
State Sen. Joan Lovely, who co-chairs the committee on children and families with Rep. Kay Khan, said she intends to call an oversight hearing as soon as possible to address the “serious structural deficiencies” exposed.