Foster Children Injustice

By Shannon Dorvall

States are charging orphans and clinically disabled foster kids for care. Children who exit foster care often end up going into another state system: the criminal justice system. These kids are broke and without assets when they turn 18 and age out of the system. If you have ever spent time with someone just released from foster care and booted into the world, you know the choices they make are often crimes of necessity. Petty theft to get food or clothing or something similar. How we can stand by and watch the shocking injustice of the state taking Social Security payments from foster children whose parents or guardians have died or who are severely disabled within the definition of federal law, while not charging anything to those without such means? Some of these parents died in combat in the military and the children’s survivor’s benefits are redirected to the state.

Under federal law, this money belongs to the recipient and states are required to provide foster care regardless of ability to pay or reimburse the state. This is injustice on its most base level. If a state finds out a child is entitled to benefits, the state files to become their financial representative so they can collect the money. While legal, federal law states a family member or other person with direct ties to the child is the preferred recipient. The Marshall Project has learned this redirection of funds is done in at least 36 states without notice to the recipient, family, or the child’s attorney. At least 10 states use private companies to handle this process to find even more money to take from abused and neglected children. Aside from simple humanity and fairness, outlawing this practice and forcing states to create trust accounts for these children would have the immediate effect of reducing the strain on other systems including the criminal justice system. If you represent a client who recently aged out of the system, be sure to check whether they would have been entitled to benefits stolen by the state as it provides an excellent mitigation basis and possible grounds for dismissal.