Federal Court Approves Historic Settlement Agreement Between Children's Rights And The State Of New

Calling reform of New Jersey's failing Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) "long overdue," the federal judge presiding over Children's Rights foster care reform lawsuit in New Jersey approved the Settlement Agreement between the parties in Charlie and Nadine H. v. McGreevey on September 2, 2003. Experts retained by Children's Rights had documented a system in which children had a one in ten chance of being further abused once placed in foster care, were often deprived of basic medical care, and shuffled through multiple placements while languishing in foster care without a permanent placement for years. The court-enforceable settlement requires immediate safety assessments for every child in foster care (over 12,000), special reviews of facilities with a poor record of keeping children safe, and over $20M in immediate funding for additional social workers and needed equipment such as computers, cell phones and cars. An outside expert panel will also be monitoring required system reforms as to all services, the placement process, and moving children into permanent homes.