Team tasked with reviewing WV child deaths notes number of child suicides in initial report

A team tasked with reviewing deaths of children in West Virginia related to abuse and neglect have published their first report. State lawmakers mandated the creation of the team as part of foster care reform efforts. 

The Critical Incident Review Team reviewed 32 cases between January and April, including 29 incidents where a child died. Their initial report said that the team reviewed “a significant number of child suicides.”

Lawmakers hoped to get more timely information about child deaths, particularly children involved with the foster care system, while they tried to reform the state’s troubled child welfare system.

“For transparency sake, especially when it comes to these terrible and tragic incidents with children, that’s why this is necessary,” said Del. Laura Kimble, R-Harrison, a co-sponsor of the 2025 legislation creating the review team. “I would like to see more information disclosed, and I would also like to see it in a more timely manner.”

A four-month-old baby in West Virginia foster care died in Mingo County last month. The infant’s biological mother and foster caregiver were both charged in connection with the child’s death. 

Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel said the work of the Critical Incident Review team is part of the solution in addressing the foster care crisis.

“The crisis has been ongoing for years, and everyone knows that,” said Woelfel, D-Cabell. “But, very little has been done in the last decade to help these poor children who are there at no fault of their own. So, sexual abuse, physical abuse, death — those things are happening with regularity to foster kids in our state, and it should keep everyone up at night.”

Lawmakers said the Critical Incident Team must meet within 45 days of the fatality or near fatality to conduct the review and share a report with lawmakers and online. 

The team is also tasked with making recommendations to decrease preventable child fatalities and near fatalities in the state’s child welfare system.   

Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed the measure into law last year, and the review teams’ first report was due this month. Earlier this year, he vetoed a separate measure that would have changed the makeup of the Critical Incident Review Team that takes a look at certain abuse and neglect cases involving children. It would have placed the team under the Office of Inspector General.

The Critical Incident Review Team’s initial report noted, “There was limited participation due to the legislative session and member’s limited availability to attend.” The team is required by law to include members from the House of Delegates and Senate, a representative of the West Virginia Supreme Court, the state’s foster care ombudsman and more.  

“I’m impressed with the makeup of the team,” said Woelfel, who supported the bill. “We had a skeleton image of it, but when you see names associated with it, they’re the right people to be reviewing this, and they’re passionate about these issues.”

Of the 32 critical incident referrals reviewed by the team this year, 12 referrals were accepted for assessment. Seven of the child deaths were determined to be the result of abuse or neglect.

The team noted a continued pattern of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death and co-sleeping deaths in infants.

“The team discussed the varying avenues of education to parents from the time of the birth of their child and other touchpoints throughout infancy,” the report said, adding that the Office of Maternal, Child, and Family Health could help. 

The Critical Incident Review Team recommended revaluating the 45-day timeframe regarding case reviews. 

“Due to the constraints imposed by the timeframes, many initial assessments, medical examiner reports and even law enforcement reports are not available at the time of the review,” the report said. “The Bureau for Social Services and law enforcement often cannot move forward with a finding of maltreatment or charges due to the lag in medical examiner reports, with delays anywhere between 6 and 12 months.”

Kimble said she was “very cautious” about the idea of extending the 45-day time frame as lawmakers seek to address any issues contributing to child deaths.

“I think that would not be a good thing,” Kimble said. “I think that we need to have it in a more timely manner and try to fix those problems if they happen faster. We’re talking about children and children in the custody of the state, so we need to be able to … take care of them as fast as we can.”

“When we’re talking about making laws or reforms that need to be made, we have to have up-to-date information,” she added.

The team also recommended ensuring mental health services and education is provided in all schools after noting the number of child suicides. 

The legislation also required the state Department of Human Services to add information about critical incidents involving children to the online child welfare dashboard. The public data page is now available and did not list any incidents in July at this time.