HCR82

WHEREAS, the Department of Human Services (DHS), Child Welfare Services Branch has experienced a troubling number of child fatalities and serious injuries resulting from systemic failures, including neglect in foster care placements and unsafe reunifications; and

WHEREAS, nineteen child fatalities or serious injuries have been reported since 1997 and over ten million dollars have been paid out in lawsuits so far; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Reubyne, who was beaten in 1997 and is still in a vegetative state, DHS was sued for negligence and settled for two million dollars; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Peter Boy Kema, who was murdered in 1997 though his body was never found, his family was involved in multiple Child Welfare Services cases and ultimately reunified; however, a Special Master’s report states that the Department should never have reunified, the father was convicted, and a lawsuit is pending; and

WHEREAS, in 1999 a Waianae family was given permanent guardianship over a group of children, who after reaching adulthood, successfully sued DHS following the parents' conviction for assault and sexual abuse in 2005; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Alexis Cabantang, who was left with permanent disabilities after she was beaten and nearly died in 2005, her guardian was sentenced to twenty years in prison and the Department of Education was successfully sued for failure to report her injuries to Child Welfare Services; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Cyrus Belt, who was thrown over a freeway overpass in Honolulu in 2008, the responsible party was sentenced to life in prison and DHS settled a lawsuit brought by the father for not intervening despite having been notified six days prior that the mother was using methamphetamine; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Braden McVeigh, who was murdered in 2009 after being reunited with his father over the objections of the grandmother, DHS was successfully sued; and

WHEREAS, in 2012, Zion McKeown was beaten to death at the age of four after being reunified with the parents despite multiple warnings against reunification; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Ronela Pascual, who was critically injured in 2008 after reunification which left her unable to communicate until her death in 2013 at the age of eleven; and

WHEREAS, in the case of Zachary Durto-Burgess, who was beaten to death after being reunified with his parents in 2010, his parents were sentenced to life in prison; and

WHEREAS, Zack Morris was convicted of sexual abuse and DHS was successfully sued by the boys who were placed in his foster home despite suspicions of child abuse in other states; and

WHEREAS, Fabian Garcia died in her foster home on Big Island due to blunt force trauma and has yet to receive justice; and

WHEREAS, Shaelyn Stone was withdrawn from public school and died of starvation in 2017; thereafter, her parents and grandparent were all convicted of manslaughter; and

WHEREAS, a seven day old infant died of brain damage at Tripler Hospital after an older sibling similarly died of injuries, and the parents were later convicted of murder for both children in 2020; and

WHEREAS, in 2020 a lawsuit was filed against DHS for overlooking systemic abuse in a foster home where the eleven adopted children were forced into slave labor, molested, and starved before a teen child ultimately killed the abusive adoptive mother; and

WHEREAS, Ariel Sellers was murdered in 2021 at the age of six after being starved, gagged, and kept in a dog cage by her adoptive parents who are currently in jail awaiting second degree murder charges; and

WHEREAS, in 2021 an infant was declared deceased after Child Welfare Services had been called in to investigate the situation months earlier but decided not to open a case; and

WHEREAS, Bula Mahoe was charged with sexual abuse of his parents' foster children; and

WHEREAS, Caitano used foster children to conduct an illegal drug ring in 2022, and was ultimately indicted for that offense along with sexual abuse and physical abuse; and

WHEREAS, Geanna Bradley was found dead in her home in 2024 after being starved and physically abused by her guardians, who are now charged with second degree murder, and another child in the home was found in very serious condition; and

WHEREAS, repeated failures to act upon warnings and ensure child safety have resulted in preventable deaths and injuries; and

WHEREAS, despite a 2005 policy directive (DHS 2005-PA-3) requiring safety concerns to be immediately reported to judges, these warnings have often been ignored; and

WHEREAS, lawsuits for some of the child fatality and serious injury cases have been successful, but they are complex, expensive, and time-consuming, while in the meantime, there is no assurance that preventative measures have been taken by DHS; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii does have a child death review panel per the federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) requirements, but there is no disclosure to the public or assurance that the circumstances of a death or injury have been addressed for future prevention; and

WHEREAS, unlike Hawaii, states like California, Florida, and Colorado publish detailed information online about such cases and some even mandate these disclosures to ensure transparency and accountability, particularly when there has been previous state involvement; and

WHEREAS, studies of child deaths over decades have resulted in four main causes:

(1) Failure of communication between staff and agencies;

(2) Inexperience and lack of skill of individual social workers;

(3) Failure to follow established procedures; and

(4) Inadequate resources to meet demands; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the Senate concurring, that the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services and House Committee on Human Services and Homelessness are urged to conduct mandatory inquiries into all fatalities and serious injuries that occurred to children involved in Child Welfare Services; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that these inquiries must include a comprehensive review of systemic failures, resource allocation, departmental accountability, and the identification of measures to prevent further harm; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the goal of these inquiries should be to ensure full transparency, prompt and thorough action, and the establishment of safeguards that prioritize the safety and well-being of all children under the Department of Human Services' care; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature is committed to enacting laws in response to the results of the mandated inquiries that ensure similar transparency and accountability as seen in other states, such as Colorado, to uphold the public trust and prevent future tragedies; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Human Services, President of the Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, and Chair of the House Committee on Human Services and Homelessness.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	82
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII