North Carolina threatens the safety of foster children by failing to supervise county departments of social services — that’s the claim of a federal class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of nine children in the state’s foster care system. They include three from Mecklenburg County and one from Gaston County. The lawsuit also names Mecklenburg and Gaston Departments of Social Services as defendants.
The federal class-action lawsuit, filed by the New York group A Better Childhood, says county departments knowingly placed children in dangerous settings, abandoned them in hospital emergency rooms, and did not relay enough information to foster parents.
The number of children in foster care has increased, while the number of foster homes has decreased. The lawsuit says the state has not hired enough people to oversee caseloads.
North Carolina and Mecklenburg County say they don’t comment on pending litigation.
