A bill is moving through the North Carolina General Assembly named for a six-year-old who died late last year.
According to investigators, Dominique Moody was beaten and starved. WBTV investigated the situation and found that Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services had received reports of abuse related to Dominique and closed them before her death. A relative told WBTV that the system has blood on its hands.
Among other things, the bill creates a child welfare escalation team that would operate under the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Lawmakers say the legislation was spurred by reporting on the local level.
On the next Charlotte Talks, we break down the local failures of this specific case, what’s being done at the state level, and the role local reporting played in addressing the issue.
GUESTS:
Emily Putnam-Hornstein, John A. Tate Distinguished Professor for Children in Need at UNC-Chapel Hill
Naomi Kowles, WBTV investigative reporter
Hunter Sáenz, WSOC-TV reporter
