How Much Does The Life Of A Child Worth To DCF?

Few weeks ago, the Miami Herald ran a one-month investigative report on the Florida Department of Children and Families entitled “Innocent Lost.” It covered the painful story of 477 children who died of abuse or neglect after having been subjected to DCF’s inquiry.

The death of yet another child is just an addition. It came just two months after the child welfare department was alerted that the child, nine-month-old Carter James Turcany, was in danger. Apparently, the organization did nothing much to safeguard him. On April 24, Sheriff Deputies arrived to the home that the child shared with his mother Marcia Ann Hake to find him dead. According to police, he was possibly “accidentally smothered while asleep on the couch” in an unsafe sleeping arrangement.

This was not to be unexpected. DCF had recently received two reports that the child and his two siblings were in jeopardy by their mother’s abusing of drugs. One DCF report noted. “The crib is stacked with clothing and other articles…There are concerns on how safe or comfortable the baby was in the home.” Another report in March denoted that the mother was using her money to purchase non-prescription pills and other drugs and did not buy foods for the children. And, an earlier report claimed. “…Hake was not supervising her children, who were seen running around the neighborhood, and she was stumbling from apparent drug use. Hake’s children…were always hungry.”

How much does the life of a child worth to DCF? We must force ourselves to answer as to the role of the organization. The website of the Florida Department of Children and Families provides the following statement: "The mission of the Department of Children and Families is to Protect the Vulnerable, Promote Strong and Economically Self-Sufficient Families, and Advance Personal and Family Recovery and Resiliency." This sounds noble. Yet, you have to wonder whether the words are not generally empty.

When considering the traumatic circumstance enveloping the life of nine-year-old Carter James Turcany, it is obvious that he was a vulnerable child in urgent need of protection. DCF did not provide it. The family was in disarray: The mother was abusing drugs; the children were not supervised; the home was not maintained; there was no food in the house for the children; and the sleeping arrangements were obviously precarious. According to the police, the child likely died due to such a bad sleeping arrangement.

DCF was aware of the whole dangerous situation. Not only that several recent reports, one as recent as March, were done with the organization, the Miami Herald noted family members as stating that the mother “had a long history with the state Department of Children and Families.” We could fairly translate in this case that the organization has been doing a very poor job. In the case of the little boy Carter James Turcany, DCF simply left him there to die. They received reports; they investigated; and they turned a blind eye leaving the child languishing in the shadow of the malfunctioned system until on April 24, 2014, he was discovered without life. His life obviously was worth not much to DCF.

By E.C. GRANMOUN
E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com
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