LANSING, Mich. — In the week since Target 8 exposed a gap in Michigan’s child death reporting system, CPS has documented dozens of additional deaths the agency failed to report to a state-mandated watchdog.
Over three years, Child Protective Services failed to notify the independent ombudsman of the deaths of 122 children statewide.
Deaths not reported to ombudsmen:
- 2016: 37
- 2015: 45
- 2014 :40
On average, CPS reports around 300 child deaths yearly to the ombudsman, which means it missed more than 10 percent of cases.
“The monthly checks should prevent this from happening in the future,” said Bob Wheaton, Public Information Officer with Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees CPS.
Wheaton said CPS will cross check the state’s child welfare computer database monthly instead of quarterly or every six months, as it has done in the past.
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