Twelve children died in the state last year while under the protection of social services agencies. That’s a devastating toll that should weigh heavily on Coloradans.
We’re glad to see the Colorado Department of Human Services is reviewing the deaths as well as the entire child welfare system with the goal of finding ways to improve it.
It must be a no-holds-barred, meaningful review with an eye toward change. The deaths of these children require no less.
Among the horrifying litany of abuse and neglect cases is the starvation death of 7-year-old Chandler Grafner, who authorities said had been locked in a closet for prolonged stretches.
The child was just 34 pounds when he died. An average 7-year-old boy weighs about 50 pounds, according to height and weight charts from the Centers for Disease Control.
In the months before his death, teachers at the child’s school made reports to social services about possible abuse and neglect. At least one of those reports was unfounded, and human services officials in Denver did not visit his family after the school said Chandler hadn’t attended for more than a month.
This week, a teacher’s aide in Chandler’s kindergarten class broke down in tears as she spoke in a Denver courtroom about the child’s condition, which included bruises and a black ear.
If the explanation ultimately is that Chandler Grafner fell through the cracks, that is unacceptable.
The sad life and awful death of Chandler is the most publicized of the child deaths last year, but the others are equally gut-wrenching.
There is 3-year-old Neveah Gallegos, who lived in Denver with her mother, and the mother’s boyfriend, who was a registered sex offender. There is 8-year-old LoReyna Barea, who was emaciated and covered with cuts and bruises when she died.
The way the system works in Colorado is that the state Department of Human Services oversees the 64 county departments of social services, which conduct child welfare operations.
A team of 21 staffers is conducting an emergency investigation of the efficacy of this system, including worker caseloads, qualifications and training.
We look forward to their assessment and recommendations for meaningful change.
