The mother of a teenager who died in foster care earlier this year has filed a claim against the county, and a local social justice activist is calling for the Escondido-area group home where he’d been living to shut down.
The claim alleges that the county failed to keep safe 18-year-old Isaiah Michael Shane, who died of an accidental overdose on May 3 in a home run by Circle of Friends, where the county had placed him.
The wrongful-death claim, the required precurser to a lawsuit, charges that the teen was “permitted to engage in reckless habits and risky behaviors” while in the county’s care.
“While in the county’s custody, Isaiah was often unsupervised and left with other minors at the group home who had access to alcohol and illegal narcotics and used them while on the premises,” the claim alleges.
No one responded Tuesday to a voicemail message left at a number associated with Circle of Friends. The president of the board did not respond to a email from the Union-Tribune.
Asked for comment, county spokeswoman Sarah Sweeney said the county has stopped placing people with Circle of Friends.
Last month, 10News broadcast an investigation highlighting the teen’s death and “a series of disturbing incidents” at Circle of Friends’ homes in and near Escondido.
The mother’s claim against the county was filed Oct. 25, but was announced Tuesday as part of a news conference with the mother, Amanda Shane, and the Rev. Shane Harris, who runs the People’s Association of Justice Advocates.
Harris, who spent years in the county’s foster care system, said the issue “goes far beyond Isaiah Shane.”
“The question is not what went wrong with Amanda Shane losing her son to the foster care system,” he said. “The question is what is the county failing to do to take care of the kids that they say they are protecting from harm, neglect and abuse.”
Amanda Shane gave a brief statement at the news conference: “It is imperative that every child within the custody of San Diego County or the state of California be kept alive and be given proper medical and mental health care as their rights as human beings.”
County officials said the county has contracted with Circle of Friends since November 2012, at a time when it was state-licensed as a group home.
State law changed in 2017 to require group homes serving foster children to transition to short-term residential therapeutic programs.
The county said it met with Circle of Friends in September, along with state licensing officials, law enforcment and probation officers and others to address several topics, including heath and safety of the youths at the facility.
As a result, Circle of Friends was required by the end of October to come up with plans to address several concerns, including staffing ratios and policies for children who run away.
Sweeney, a county spokeswoman, said the county is “prepared to work with (state licensing officials) and Circle of Friends to ensure the action plan is implemented according to all parties’ agreement.”
"claim" - Google News
November 17, 2021 at 10:10AM
https://ift.tt/3CphT1B
Mother of teen who died in foster care files claim against county - The San Diego Union-Tribune
"claim" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2FrzzOU
https://ift.tt/2VZxqTS
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Mother of teen who died in foster care files claim against county - The San Diego Union-Tribune"
Post a Comment