The grand jury report on the Florida Department of Children & Families included these recommendations:
+ We recommend that any person who administers a mental capacity evaluation on a vulnerable adult must be properly trained on how to perform such an evaluation.
We recommend that any mental capacity evaluation for a vulnerable adult must be interpreted by a trained and qualified medical professional.
We recommend requiring a secondary caregiver if the primary caretaker is unfit or indisposed.
We recommend a similar mental capacity evaluation of any person who is the sole caretaker of a vulnerable adult to determine if they are capable of caring for someone who is a vulnerable adult.
We recommend a mental capacity evaluation of any caretaker of a child
once a DCF report has been made through the hotline and meets criteria for investigation.
We recommend mandating body cameras for all abuse or neglect interviews, home studies, and home visits for children and vulnerable adults.
We recommend all-encompassing digital tracking for each case worker to document their duties.
We recommend supervisors conduct random audits on caseworkers to ensure compliance with all DCF rules and regulations.
We recommend a full evaluation of the way that interviews of potentially abused, abandoned, or neglected children are conducted. These children should not be interviewed in the presence or same location as the accused or under the immediate threat of being returned to such individuals.
We recommend mandating that any case manager document the conditions of the home and the child through photographs.
We recommend that any abuse or neglect reports that originate from certain officials, such as school employees, law enforcement, medical professionals, and counselors require mandatory investigations by DCF and be given expedited status.
We recommend that any family that is considered a high utilizer of DCF services (meaning two or more prior complaints of a similar nature), whether related to a child or vulnerable adult, be assigned to a supervisor and mandate an expedited investigation. This will ensure consistency and account for high turnover.
We recommend that all training provided by DCF, or its subcontractors, be required to be completed within a certain period of time of employment, regardless of absences.
We recommend that all Adult and Child Protective Investigators receive additional training, including, but not limited to criminal justice, medical training, indicators of abuse, and investigative techniques.
We recommend that a determination be made based on an accumulation of reports, rather than the most recent allegation. We observed that DCF often made conclusions based on a single report without giving weight to prior allegations.
We recommend that if an allegation has previously been reported, and closed, any subsequent report including that prior allegation must still be investigated to ensure there is no new information.
We recommend that a hospital cannot be used as an excuse by DCF to shirk their responsibilities to provide placement or provide services for vulnerable adults.
We recommend that if a vulnerable adult is taken to the hospital, DCF is still responsible for finding safe placement upon release, and/or implement an appropriate safety plan.
We recommend expanding capacity for temporary and permanent placement options for children and vulnerable adults.
We recommend that there should be parity for services between children and vulnerable adults.
We recommend that any placement for children and vulnerable adults cannot be outside their jurisdiction or must be within a defined geographic region.
As a grand jury we noticed that calls that come in after hours where children or vulnerable adults are in unsafe conditions, are often not responded to in accordance with the law. We recommend that failure to comply with DCF policies and the law result in sanctions and there be some form of public accountability and oversight into the process.
We further recommend that failure to comply with time constraints as outlined in Florida statutes or court orders result in sanctions.
We recommend that payments to foster or adoptive parents who are under investigation by DCF or law enforcement be scrutinized or reevaluated by the legislature.
We recommend a top-down financial audit of DCF Circuit 5.
We recommend reevaluating and expanding funding for vulnerable adults and children in Circuit 5.
We recommend revising the 60-day case closure deadline.
We recommend people seeking eligibility to be adoptive parents, and who have a certain number of prior DCF investigations, be disqualified.
We recommend that the required educational background be reevaluated and consider requiring a four-year degree in social work, psychology, criminal justice, public health, or early childhood education.
We recommend at least two random drug screens per month for caregivers, parents, and foster parents who are actively involved in a DCF investigation.
We recommend that if you have had one child previously removed from your custody, there is an automatic presumption that you are unfit for any subsequent child until proven otherwise.
We recommend more transparency and oversight in DCF investigations and court proceedings.
We recommend coordination between DCF circuits and the state to ensure proper resolution of cases that cross county or jurisdictional borders.
We recommend that the legislature revisit immunity.
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Read the grand jury report and check out the panel's recommendations
