Child abuse claims mostly go 'unfounded' in foster care -- CBS 2 Investigators talk to survivors, dig into DCFS abuse complaints
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Foster parents accused of abuse and neglect have the vast majority of their allegations closed without findings against them.
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) data we obtained and analyzed shows - nine out of every 10 abuse or neglect allegations get closed by the child welfare agency as "unfounded".
It is a deeply troubling pattern former youth in care say they struggled with when they were abused.
"I was physically and emotionally abused. I was like beaten," said Nandilay Walker.
She, along with 13 other former youth in care - foster children - sat down with us to share their experiences in the child welfare system. They are doing this with a goal to fix problems plaguing DCFS.
"I was in 30 within a year," said Carnell Brown about the number of times he was moved to different homes.
"I've been neglected. I've been physically, sexually, mentally abused," said Caprice Langstaff. I'm kind of like the picture, the whole face of this. I'm still alive to speak about my situation."
The 14 survivors are no longer silenced by the fear of retribution and abuse. Each one says they were abused in care, yet no one was ever held accountable.
"The department has a history of not believing the kids," said James McIntyre. "I was abused – physical abuse. I was sexually abused. I was neglected. I was starved."
James says his allegations were not believed and he still suffers from the trauma. He now heads the Foster Care Alumni Association of Illinois, helping other former youth in care.
"Foster kids make the best victims," he said. "The system relies on foster kids to make the best victims."
The DCFS internal data we obtained has thousands of rows and columns covering abuse and neglect allegations from 2016 through 2021. Line by line, row after row, there are cries for help. There are more than 6,000 abuse and neglect allegations against 3,200 foster parents. Our analysis shows even more deeply troubling patterns.
The most common form of abuse allegations in the DCFS data involves physical harm - including bone fractures, head injuries, burns, torture, poison, noxious substances, cuts, bruises, welts, abrasion, oral injuries, human bites, sprains, dislocations, tying, and close confinement. A staggering number - 91% of these incidents - were unfounded by DCFS investigators.
The overwhelming number of unfounded allegations in the data shows that is the case with sexual offenses too. Allegations including exploitation, molestation, penetration, sexual abuse risk, and a few other categories are unfounded 88% of the time.
"No child should go through that," said 22-year-old Caylon Brown about sexual abuse she too says she suffered as a youth in care. "And that's why I keep my kids close to me."
The loving mother of two children hopes her darkest days are behind her. She was first sexually assaulted when she was just five years old. The same age as her oldest daughter.
"It's not common for a kid to catch an STD as young as I did," said Caylon. "I caught my STD when I was 5."
She remembers being in at least 17 foster homes and facilities. And says there were years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse in the child welfare system that was supposed to protect her.
"I was abused my whole entire life," said Caylon.
She said none of her abusers were ever held accountable despite trips to the hospital, rape kits being done and her cries for help.
One of the many incidents that haunt her took place when she was a Girl Scout and excited to raise money by selling cookies.
"I had like over $600 that I, like, sold for cookies," said Caylon who was hoping to win a new bicycle.
The money disappeared. Caylon says two adult males from a foster family stole the cookie money she raised. After accusing them, she says they beat and assaulted her.
We brought our reporting to DCFS Director Marc Smith. He has headed the department since 2019.
"We respond to kids that have been abused, in bad situations within and out of our system," said Smith. "We can all get better at the way we respond to the needs of all of our children and families."
When asked about the group of former youth in care saying none of their abusers were held accountable, Smith said, "I can't speak to if any individual case was brought to police, but I will say this - depending on the circumstance, depending on the perpetrator, cases are brought to police."
We wanted to know how often DCFS alerts police, but they couldn't give us data - they don't track it.
Mallory Stout says she was placed into DCFS protective care when she was only four. Once inside the system, the abuse just continued without consequences.
"If you're going to take youth from their parents you need to protect them," said Mallory. "There's no reason why we should be receiving more abuse within the system than we received within our own home."
"Bad things happen in this system," said Jess McDonald, who was a DCFS director for ten years.
DCFS children in foster homes can be afraid to report the extent of their abuse.
"There is always going to be a fear of reporting abuse because the potential for retaliation," said McDonald.
He says there's a DCFS rule requiring caseworkers conduct interviews with children alone - without foster parents present.
"I personally believe they would threaten and intimidate children and youth about reporting," said McDonald, "and they would do it because they themselves are then at risk."
But for the 14 former youth in care, the say the rule was almost never followed.
"The whole time you're telling them what's going on, your foster parent is just looking at you like– 'I can't wait until you get home so I can talk to you,'" said Caylon.
She says one foster parent even tore up the only picture she had left of her dad as a form of retribution for speaking up. He died when she was a child.
"My caseworker didn't really care," said Caylon. "Just hearing everybody's story is so sad."
An emotional Caylon at the time was feeling there was no hope. She was given encouragement by others in the group.
"There is, baby - don't ever lose hope," Nandilay Walker told Caylon. "That's all you got most of the time."
It has now been three years after the group interview. We found Caylon living on her own with her children.
The CBS 2 Investigators will be doing more stories with this group. They want to fix the system.
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services statement:
"The Department of Children and Family Services brings youth into care after they have been abused or neglected. We are deeply committed to providing every youth in our care a safe and supportive environment where they can thrive and have made significant progress in reducing maltreatment under this administration. Whenever youth report abuse or neglect, whether it is a new allegation or one from before they came into care, the report is thoroughly and completely investigated. DCFS has also made it easier for youth to get the help they need by creating multiple avenues for youth in care to be able to easily report concerns and receive immediate assistance. Youth have a dedicated hotline and email address, as well as drop boxes at residential facilities, to report any allegation. In addition, Director Smith and DCFS leadership regularly meet with the Youth Advisory Board, comprised of current and former youth in care, to address concerns and issues that youth may have. As a result of these efforts, the recurrence of maltreatment impacting youth in care has been reduced under current DCFS leadership and we are continuing to make progress."