For years, we have been investigating problems inside the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. We have now heard from someone who has been on the inside.
Now, the Cook County Public Guardian is petitioning the judge overseeing DCFS to beef up enforcement measures to get them properly staffed, citing"continued systemic failures" that include DCFS Director Marc Smith recently being held in contempt of courtThe"continued systematic failures" cited by the Public Guardian also include the fact that a DCFS investigator was killed on the job in January.
Lane is calling for more frontline workers and fewer DCFS administrators. She says the department is top heavy. She is also quick to blame the practice of caseworkers being sent into the field without the tools and teammates - a buddy system that used to be a regular in high-risk casework.DCFS says they have added 12 new investigators since last year, but case counts are outpacing that. The Cook County public Guardian says DCFS should have forecasted that trend.
A DCFS spokesperson said the department has been"addressing some of the longstanding challenges facing the department after years of neglect." We have pressed Gov. JB Pritzker on multiple occasions about how many more times Director Smith can be held in contempt before his job is on the line. H has refused to answer.