A Better Childhood
A Better Childhood (“ABC”) is a nonprofit legal advocacy organization that works nationally to reform child welfare systems. Through litigation and in collaboration with policy experts, local organizations, and government officials, ABC develops and implements lasting systemic reform. Their goal is to achieve a tipping point, past which efficient, compassionate, and effective child welfare systems become the norm and not the exception. ABC believes in a better childhood for the over 400,000 children in foster care today.
ABC works in three phases. First, it investigates areas where foster children are suffering in a state’s care, speaking to local families, caseworkers, and advocacy groups to build its case. Next, they litigate, using the power of the courts to fight on behalf of its child plaintiffs. Then, it monitors the states’ actions to hold them accountable for systemic change. ABC has the experience, commitment, and creativity to ensure that states meet their legal responsibilities to protect children, based on both existing law and innovative legal approaches.
THE CASE
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Jeremiah M. v. Crum
Jeremiah M. is a class action lawsuit against Alaska’s Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), Office of Children’s Services (OCS), and several executives for violations of foster children’s constitutional and statutory rights. The state fails to exercise sufficient oversight over its child welfare system, causing children to needlessly suffer. There are rampant problems with the system, including children being shuffled across many placements, high child maltreatment rates, high caseloads for caseworkers, lack of placements, lack of permanency plans, and failing to meet the needs of kids of disabilities. Foster children are often placed unnecessarily in inappropriate placements, including institutions, non-kinship foster homes far distances from their families, homeless shelters or—in extreme cases—OCS offices. Native children are being taken away from their families and community. Kinship (or familial) caregivers are provided little if any support.
ABC brings this case on behalf of a general class of over 3,000 children in foster care, and two subclasses: children in kinship placements that are unnecessarily disrupted and children who have disabilities whose needs for services are unmet. The case also represents many native children, who are disproportionately represented in the foster care system. ABC asks that the Court enforce these children’s constitutional, federal, and state law rights to be safe while in the foster care system and to grow up in a permanent family. Last year, a federal judge denied defendant’s motion to dismiss the case, which allowed the case to move forward. ABC is now preparing for trial, which is scheduled for May 2025.
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Jonathan R. v. Justice
Jonathan R. is a class action lawsuit against West Virginia’s Governor and Department of Health and Human Services (DHHR) for violations of foster children’s rights. ABC alleges that the State fails to exercise sufficient oversight over its child welfare system, causing children to needlessly suffer. Rampant problems with the West Virginia foster care system allegedly include an insufficient number of foster care placements, child maltreatment and death rates that are double the national average, a lack of mental health assessments and services, and inadequate training and extremely high caseloads for caseworkers. West Virginia foster children are also often placed unnecessarily in out-of-state institutional care or are shuffled between many placements. Foster children often age out of the system at 18 with no supports and end up homeless. Children in the system are needlessly shuffled around, far from family, often experiencing abuse, all because DHHR does not create adequate and safe permanency plans.
ABC brings this case on behalf of a general class of over 6,000 children in foster care, and three subclasses: children in family foster care placements that are unnecessarily disrupted, children who have disabilities, and children who age-out of the system with no support or services. ABC asks that the Court enforce these children’s constitutional, federal, and state law rights to be safe while in the foster care system and to grow up in a permanent family. In August 2023, the case was granted class action status, which allows ABC to fully represent all foster children in the State and move the case forward.
