State to give back control of child welfare services of Nash Social Services, documents show
More than six months after the state took over child welfare services at the Nash County Department of Social Services, the state announced it would transfer control back to Nash DSS on Thursday.
The probe into the department began after a WRAL News investigation into the beating death of 8-year-old Christal Lane. Law enforcement told WRAL News that they recommended to Nash DSS that the child be removed two weeks before her death. Lane's grandmother was charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse, and arrest warrants show Lane died of severe blunt force trauma to her head and body – leaving many to question why Nash DSS hadn't removed the child from the dangerous situation weeks earlier.
A second investigation revealed another child died in their care three years prior. In that case, social workers with the department itself recommended the baby be removed. Chase Hillard, age 2, had died in 2020 after his mother, Vonquetta Hilliard, said he fell from a bed. Despite the claim, the mother was charged with second-degree murder nearly a year after her son’s death.
The state's investigation resulted in the removal of the head of Nash DSS.
In two letters obtained by WRAL News on Wednesday, state officials said three final incidents in August led them to take over child welfare services.
In one of the cases, a father contacted the department multiple times about his child’s well-being. When state officials asked Nash DSS to review the case, they “learned the case lacked any narrative and none of the structured decision-making tools were implemented.”
According to the letters, the state also learned there were “200 or more cases that had been closed…but there was no documentation to support the case decision that was made.”
In the months since the state took over the department, it says Nash DSS has made “significant” progress, including:
- Assessing the safety of children in all open child welfare cases.
- Notifying the Nash County Sheriff's office about abuse and neglect cases.
- Providing full-time management, supervision, and evaluation of child welfare cases.
- A new after-hours unit.
- Hiring and training new child welfare staff members.
The state says the goal is to regain trust in the community that Nash DSS can keep children safe. On Thursday, the county manager said people can once again have confidence that the agency can protect them.
"I do have confidence moving forward because I know what the game plan is," said Nash County Manager Stacie Shatzer.
"I will acknowledge that we are not perfect," Shatzer said. "We are not ever going to be perfect. What I have confidence in is in our growth in our development and our professionalism that we have gained in the last six and a half months."
While the state said Nash DSS will resume control of child welfare on Thursday, it will still maintain oversight and monitor the progress of the agency in the future.
"We appreciate the state’s leadership in helping Nash County to better protect children involved in the child welfare system," said Shatzer. "Moving forward, we will continue to work closely with NCDHHS to ensure we are meeting state expectations and doing all we can for children and families in our county."
Shatzer said the takeover exposed a number of weaknesses, including over 200 cases that were closed without proper documentation. Over the last six months, staff members were retrained, given new roles and a new director was named.
Shatzer said now they are working on filling vacancies and hiring an outside agency to help with documentation.
Shatzer was asked about the previous director and other upper management positions before the takeover. She said many of those employees still work with the county, but are in different roles.
