Adoption subsidies bill heads to governor’s desk
The Indiana House of Representatives concurred Tuesday on a bill that makes changes to adoption subsidies, sending it to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s desk.
Department of Child Services
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Fostering hope: Adoption attorney releases documentary series on Indiana’s foster care system
The importance of working for social change runs deep in the veins of adoption attorney Natalie Chavis, who’s advocating for foster awareness through a new documentary series.
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Family ties: Reunification celebration spotlights families who achieve stability
Although many may be skeptical of parents whose children are removed from their care, statistics show that nearly 67% of Hoosier youths exit foster care and are successfully reunited with their moms and dads. Those stories of resilience inspired the Marion Superior Court Juvenile Division and the Marion County Public Defender Agency to celebrate National Reunification Month for the first time in Indiana.
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Year in Review: In 2019, troubles dominated legal news
When those in the legal community look back at 2019, they may turn their heads and look forward instead. While the year had bright spots, several sordid sagas dominated the headlines.
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Lawsuit claims DCS failing to protect children and inflicting further harm
Children going into the state’s child welfare system end up more broken, attorneys suing the Department of Child Services say, because they are not being provided with therapy and treatment to help them heal. Rather, the lawyers contend, DCS is just finding beds to stick the kids in and forgetting about their other needs.
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Articles
COA reverses dismissal of CHINS case based on ‘absurd assertion’ that coercive intervention was no longer necessary
In a case accusing both the trial judge and the Indiana Department of Child Services of “inexplicably ignor(ing)” the best interests of a child, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has reversed the dismissal of the CHINS case.
DCS says discovery production complete in case of 4-year-old who was killed, but director’s email wasn’t searched
Indiana Department of Child Services Director Eric Miller’s email was not part of a batch of documents produced in a case involving a child who was killed after the department placed him in his parents’ home, the director repeated at a contempt hearing.
DCS ‘ambushed’ by GOP senators ahead of proposal to switch to contract attorneys in 2 regions, source says
A Senate Republican plan to switch from in-house attorneys to contractors in two Indiana Department of Child Services regions caught the agency off guard and followed a meeting in which agency executives were “ambushed” by a group of senators.
DCS settles for $750K with family in child removal case
The parents of a child who was removed by the Department of Child Services for three months as an infant reached a $750,000 settlement with the agency earlier this month.
Report: Indiana had 60 child neglect or abuse deaths in 2021
Sixty Indiana children died from neglect or abuse in 2021, the state Department of Child Services said in a report issued Friday.
Foster parents can sue DCS, but not case manager, COA rules
Foster parents whose efforts to adopt two foster children fell through can proceed with their negligence and defamation claims against the Indiana Department of Child Services, but not against a DCS caseworker, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has ruled.
Parental rights termination affirmed by COA following mother’s continued drug use
The termination of a Vanderburgh County mother’s parental rights to her minor child was based on sufficient evidence and did not violate her rights to due process, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has ruled.
7th Circuit dismisses CHINS lawsuit challenging Indiana’s foster care system
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed a lawsuit pushing for better treatment of children in Indiana’s foster care system, finding it difficult to determine what options for relief are open to a federal court but closed to a CHINS court.
7th Circuit questions its role in lawsuit against DCS
A lawsuit pushing for better treatment of children in Indiana’s foster care system met a skeptical 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on March 30, when during oral arguments the panel of judges grilled the plaintiffs’ attorney about what the federal court could actually do to help.
Couple facing TPR, felony charges for ‘biblical’ discipline suing DCS, using RFRA as defense
A southern Indiana couple facing both criminal charges and the termination of their parental rights due to allegations of unreasonable discipline against their children are seeking to use Indiana’s controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act to end, or at least pause, the litigation against them.
Senate committee advances bill giving intervention rights to ‘kinship caregivers’
The Indiana Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 410 on Wednesday, a measure designed to give “kinship caregivers” the right to intervene in termination of parental rights cases.
Parents of SW Indiana girl sue city after she drowns in pool
The parents of a 5-year-old girl who drowned last summer in a southwest Indiana city’s swimming pool are suing the city and the child’s foster parent, accusing them of negligence in her death.
DCS wins dismissal against grandmother alleging misconduct in child’s placement
Indiana’s child welfare agency has won a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a grandmother alleging her criminal history was intentionally altered to prevent her grandson from living in her home.
Monroe Co. couple sentenced to federal prison for child sexual exploitation
A Monroe County husband and wife have each been sentenced to federal prison following their convictions for sexual exploitation of five children in their care.
Indiana asking 7th Circuit to review challenge to foster care system
In a case that even the district court acknowledged tested the limits of federal interference in state court matters, the Indiana Department of Child Services and Gov. Eric Holcomb are asking the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to review the denial of their motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by children in the foster care system.
COA affirms termination despite issues with Zoom hearing
A mother whose parental rights were terminated following a hearing held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic has lost her appeal of the termination, with the Indiana Court of Appeals finding the technological issues that arose during the virtual hearing were not tantamount to a due process violation.
Parents with physical, mental, legal troubles lose appeal of CHINS ruling
A mother who was twice banned from the hospitals where her son was being treated and a father who was found passed out and drunk on the lawn of their temporary housing failed in their challenge to the adjudication of the severely ill son as a child in need of services.
Young women appointed to Children’s Commission to serve as voice for youth
Two young women have been selected to serve as the voice of Indiana’s youth in foster care and social services and will be the newest — and youngest — members of the Commission on Improving the Status of Children Indiana.
At long last, Clark County gets two new judges
A public defender and an attorney with the Indiana Department of Child Services have been appointed by Gov. Eric Holcomb to serve as judges in Clark County’s two new superior courts.