Court Report Shows Connecticut Making Progress in Adoptions for Children in Foster Care; Challenges

PRESS RELEASE

Under a new agreement reached this year, hundreds of adoptions finalized since January; intensive services still needed to avoid creating a new backlog.

The Court-Appointed Monitor in the class action lawsuit, Juan F. v. Rowland, issued a new report today on adoption services for foster children in custody of the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF). The report follows up on an agreement, reached by child advocates and DCF earlier this year and approved by the federal court in Bridgeport, mandating corrective actions to address a backlog of over 600 foster children in government custody needing intensive services to find them permanent homes. The report highlights some initial progress in finalizing the paper work for children already in adoptive homes. However, significant problems remain in identifying homes for children whose parents' rights have been terminated but for whom no home has been found.

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"The state is to be commended for taking the court order seriously and acting to help hundreds of children whose parental rights had been terminated but were still stuck in the system- these are legal orphans," said Ira Lustbader, associate director of Children's Rights, the national child advocacy group which is co-counsel for plaintiff children in the Juan F. case. "There is still a way to go to address the State's backlog of children needing permanent homes, and we will keep pressure on the Department to improve its policies and recruitment efforts so we don't see another backlog in the future."

In the report, the Monitor provides data on the results achieved in speeding adoptions in three categories of foster children:

Category 1:
Children living with families who want to adopt them but cannot because DCF has failed to finalize minimal paperwork.

In this category of approximately 400 children, the Monitor found that the Department had finalized the paperwork for the adoptive placements for over two-thirds (66%) of these children during this year.

Category 2:
Children who are waiting to be placed in homes that have been identified as wanting to adopt them.

For this smaller category of children, the Monitor found that the Department had placed over 88% of these children in identified homes during this year.

Category 3:
Children whose biological parents have had their rights terminated and who are waiting for a home, but for whom no home has been identified.

For this category of approximately 160 children, the Department has placed or identified homes for only 27 (about 17 %) of these children.
"These children have already waited too long for a permanent home-there must be an all out effort so they do not languish longer in foster care," said Lustbader.

The Monitor expects to report further on adoption compliance over the next month, particularly regarding children whose parents' rights have been terminated since June 2001 and foster children in custody for fifteen months or more whose parents' rights have not been terminated, as required by Federal law.

Children's Rights is a national non-profit organization working throughout the United States in partnership with advocates, experts, policy analysts and government officials to address the needs of children dependent on failing child welfare systems for protection and care. Children's Rights develops realistic solutions and, where necessary, uses the power of the courts to make sure the rights of these children are recognized and that reform takes place.

Children's Rights works throughout the United States in partnership with national and local experts, advocates and government officials to document the needs of children in the care of child welfare systems. Children's Rights helps develop realistic solutions and, where necessary, uses the power of litigation to ensure that reform takes place.